Op-Ed Contributors

Handle platform with kid gloves

By Li Guangdou (China Daily European Weekly)
Updated: 2011-04-22 09:49

Indeed micro-blogging has truly revolutionalized the mode of communication today. Journalism has also reached a rare moment in history where for the first time its hegemony as the gatekeeper of the news is being threatened, not just by new technology and competitors, but potentially, by the audience it serves.

Armed with easy-to-use Web publishing tools, always-on connections and increasingly powerful mobile devices, the online audience now has the means to be an active participant in the creation and dissemination of news and information.

People do not need to let an informed intermediary dictate to them what is good, important or meaningful. They can sort things out for themselves and find their own version of the truth.

Micro blogs differ from traditional media in that they are more personal and emotional, whereas the latter tends to be more objective and fair. They also have a key role to play in any branding communications exercise. However, they also need to be handled with care as they can have negative side effects.

Earlier this year, E-commerce China Dangdang Chief Executive Li Guoqing lost his cool on Sina Weibo when he accused Morgan Stanley of undervaluing his company's initial public offering. Li also exchanged tirades with a user who claimed to be working for the financial services firm. Although the event ended with apologies from both the participants, it grabbed the attention of the traditional media.

The Wall Street Journal published an article called Dangdang CEO's Tweets of Rage to expose the whole event. The shares of the recently US-listed company dropped 8.3 percent on the first trading day after the news came out. Its market capitalization declined by nearly 270 million euros over the next two days.

The advent of micro blogs is more like a new era that has been thrust upon us. It is all about decentralization. The traditional mode of centralized news gathering and distribution is being augmented (and in some cases replaced) by what's happening at the edges of increasingly ubiquitous networks. People are combining micro-blogging and innovative ideas and fundamentally altering the nature of journalism in this new century.

Micro-blogging has also become an integral platform for communication. It has changed how we communicate and the traditional way of product promotion and marketing. The commercial value of micro-blogging has yet to be fully ascertained and it may still take some time for companies to realize the full potential of such a powerful medium of communication.

The author is the founder of a Beijing-based brand consultancy.