The Australian China Image Made By The Australian (1971-1973)

Studies on the image problem,especially on the foreign ones,has been a hot topic in academic circles in recent years.This research is based on one of the mainstream media in Australia—the Australian newspaper,focusing on the unique turning-point period of the China-Australia relations,1971-1973,right between the establishment of formal diplomatic relations.By reviewing those ‘Chinese news' on the Australian through a method of textual interpretation,this thesis tries to explore the image of China in the Australian perspective,as well as its influence on the relations between the two countries.This paper is divided into four parts.The first part is the introduction,a brief academical review of the China-Australia relations and the status of the research in the field of China's image.Illustrating the possibility and the rationality of the research object — the Australian as the window of the Australian China image.The second part is the key part of the thesis,it details the interpretation of the reports on the China news on Australian during 1971-1973.According to the text content,the author divides all the 1424 reports into three categories: political,economic and social,and then subdivided into 12.In general,there was no obvious fluctuation in both numbers and attitudes of the Australian reports.The author finds the political reports filled with hostility and smear,while in the economic and social class,the construction of China's image was slightly improved.The third part is also the highlight of the whole context.Selecting representative news of the political news,economic news and social news,to specific the details about the Australian media operations in the process and tries to demonstrate how did Australian media create their own image of "China" based on their own demands.Overall,the author thinks that the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Australia plays an important role in shaping and spreading these opinions.The fourth part explores the reasons for such changes of Chinese image in the Australian newspaper from 1971 to 1973.The easing of the east-west cold war situation in the 1970 s and the transformation of Us policy towards China were the main factors for the establishment of diplomatic relations between Australia and China,so the Australian media had no choice but to face the reality and accept the rise of PRC and the all the following consequences impact.However,it was definitely not easy for the media to abandon the traditional cold war ideology and ‘White Australia policy' in their news for China.The Otherness is a mirror to reflect the subject.Those China news on the Australian could be some kind of ‘Others' acknowledgement' for the Chinese,likewise,the construction of China image for the Chinese could also be regarded as a kind of ‘mirrored self'.the Australian China Image is a Thaumatrope that we should take seriously rethinking,to recognize its distortion part,while understand the rest with a relatively reasonable attitude.