TikTok's three-year effort surpassed the Confucius Institute's efforts in 20 years?

Recently, in China's international public opinion war, there is a topic that has been discussed a lot. That is about the comparison of the effectiveness of Tik Tok and Confucius Institutes in China's external propaganda.

In today's era of globalization, the way of cultural exchange and information dissemination is changing with each passing day. Although China, which continues to move to the center of the world stage, has made the world not to be underestimated, for a long time, China's international communication has been inward-looking, and the research on the communication object is not in-depth, accurate and close, which makes it difficult for China's voice to be effectively conveyed internationally.

In particular, today's Internet has been regarded as a new field of international politics, and the competition for international political power in cyberspace is fierce, and the technologically advanced countries often have the right to speak and dominate cyberspace. At the same time, English, as the main language of communication in the world, has affected the international communication effect of non-English-speaking countries to a certain extent.

Under such circumstances, China's hard work and great contributions to itself and mankind do not match China's image and status in global communication. How to break the situation, break the constraints, and expand China's international influence has been the major mission of China's international communication for many years.

In 2004, the Confucius Institute was established to meet the needs of people from all over the world for Chinese language learning, develop Confucian culture, promote the development of world multiculturalism, and build a harmonious world, so as to enhance the international dissemination of Chinese culture and enhance China's soft power.

On November 21 of that year, the world's first Confucius Institute was officially established in Seoul, South Korea. As of December 2023, 563 Confucius Institutes (classrooms) have been established in 154 countries around the world.

In the past 20 years, despite a lot of work, in the global cultural and public opinion environment, in the minds of the Chinese people, it seems that the Confucius Institute is far from achieving the expected results, and there is a sense of a long way to go. TikTok, a short video social platform under Douyin Group, rushed to the world in 2017, especially in Western developed countries, and developed into mainstream social media in one fell swoop. In the past two or three years, it has attracted great attention and influence around the world.

As of April 2024, TikTok has been downloaded more than 4.92 billion times worldwide, and the number of monthly active users has exceeded 1.582 billion, making it the fifth most popular social app in the world. The United States is the country with the largest number of TikTok users, with 170 million users.

Not only did TikTok's total revenue in 2023 reach a staggering $16 billion, but its market valuation soared to $150 billion. What is even more rare is that it has played a miraculous role in publicizing China's foreign affairs, telling China's stories in the new era, and spreading China's excellent culture.

Now, TikTok has become a "heart disease" in the United States. The U.S. government is still unrelenting, "destroy it if you can't grab it", and make every effort to prevent TikTok from showing "international content" to American users.

To use an inappropriate analogy, compared to the "spring and white snow" of the Confucius Institute, TikTok is undoubtedly a "lower riba person". But TikTok focuses on a simple and rude, no matter what language you speak, short videos directly "crit" users, directly allowing foreigners to understand China in the simplest and fastest rhythm.

The broad spirit of Chinese culture, many times when it comes to foreign exchanges, there is indeed a certain generation gap. There are many profound environmental displays, complex expressions, etc., which foreigners may not be able to comprehend. Directly open the skylight and say bright words, often with good results.

Recently, everyone must have noticed that on the morning of June 28, the United Nations Security Council held a public meeting on the North Korean nuclear issue. Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, made three speeches at the meeting, saying that "China does not need the US side to tell us how to do it," effectively countering the US representative's repeated attacks and accusations on China's stance and role on the Korean Peninsula issue. This kind of expression is a language that the other person can hear completely.

TikTok is such a "stunned youth" who was born out of nowhere. The reason why it has been able to achieve such an achievement in a short period of time is due to its unique propagation mechanism and algorithm.

Through the form of short videos, TikTok can quickly capture users' interests and preferences, and accurately push relevant content to the target audience. This efficient way of disseminating information allows the content on TikTok to quickly spread around the world, thus attracting widespread attention and discussion.

In contrast, although Confucius Institutes have also made great efforts to promote the Chinese language and culture, their influence is slightly insufficient due to their relatively traditional communication methods and limited audience.

In addition, TikTok's openness and inclusiveness are also one of the key factors in its success. On TikTok, users can freely express their opinions and ideas, share their life experiences and insights. This openness and inclusiveness make TikTok a global platform for cultural exchange and integration.

Through TikTok, people from different countries and cultures can get to know each other and learn from each other, thus promoting the development and prosperity of cultural diversity. Although the Confucius Institute has also made efforts to promote Chinese culture, it has not been able to attract the attention and participation of the younger generation due to its relatively fixed teaching methods and content, and lack sufficient flexibility and inclusiveness.

As a business platform, TikTok's success in commercialization has also provided strong support for its global promotion. By cooperating with brands and bringing goods to influencers, TikTok not only provides users with more entertainment and consumption options, but also provides a broader market space and marketing channels for brands and enterprises. This commercial operating model allows TikTok to better integrate into the global market, thereby enhancing its competitiveness and influence on a global scale.

Of course, TikTok is not on the same footing as Confucius Institutes. They play an important role in different fields, all with their own unique reasons and values. We cannot ignore the great contribution made by the Confucius Institute in promoting the Chinese language and culture.

Confucius Institutes have established numerous teaching sites and branches around the world, providing high-quality teaching resources and services for local Chinese learners. It also actively organizes various cultural exchange activities to promote mutual understanding and exchanges between Chinese and foreign cultures. These efforts have not only improved the international status of the Chinese language, but also made important contributions to the dissemination and development of Chinese culture.

Now, after the fragmentation of TikTok has opened up a new situation in China's international communication, the next step is to take advantage of such a good trend and systematically go into battle. In the steady growth of China's national strength, the country can learn from the successful experience of TikTok, combined with the actual situation of the Confucius Institute, to jointly promote the global dissemination and development of Chinese language and culture, and return a truly wonderful land of China to the world.

Xie Xiaowen: Strategic scholar. He mainly commented on current politics, business, railways, and culture. WeChat public account: zgmjply (commentator Xie Xiaowen)