The Chinese translation given by that dictionary is “Xuan1 Chuan2″, which is a neutral word. So I said “nasty propaganda” to refer to negative Xuan1 Chuan2 and “good propaganda” to refer to constructive Xuan1 Chuan2. Just now I looked it up on both webster’s online dictionary and my hard copy of “Oxford Advanced Learner’s dictionary of Current English, Edition 1988″. Webster’s definition of propaganda is pretty close to what you have said in your comment. But Oxford’s definition is again pretty neutral: “information; doctrines, opinions, official statements.” I do not know which definition is more appropriate. But anyway, I’d love to learn from you that most of the time, propaganda means negatively. So I will use this word more cautiously. What is the semantically equivalent word of “Xuan1 Chuan2″ in English or German, could you please tell me?

>Eigentlich wird hier bereits deutlich, dass bei diesen sich nicht um sachliche, objektive Darstellung eine Sache ist. Sondern ein bestimmter Aspekt wird aufgewertet, man will den Zuschauer für sich gewinnen, einen anderen Eindruck erschaffen, als es in Wirklichkeit ist.

Hmmm, if seen like this, then there’s seldom anything that is not propaganda (in Webster’s sense) in today’s world. Politicans’ speeches, sowieso; Many commerical advertisements; Marketing documents; Annual financial reports of many companies;…If you’ve read enough academic papers in the technology/engineering field, you’ll see “propaganda” of certain technologies very often; International tech conferences are not free of “propaganda” too….Recently the “up to 4800*4800dpi” propaganda on my actually “300*300dpi” scanner made me upset. I do not like such kind of bullshit. I hate it actually. But I do not let this hatred destroy my mental health. I cannot change the world so I live with them, make fun of them if I can manage, and make fun of myself when I occassionally tell bullshit or nonsense.

>Jedoch sind es tatsachen, dass Menschenrechte z.T. missachtet werden.
Yes yes yes. I’ve said it in my blog entries again and again. Many others have said it again and again. The leaders in China know the miserable facts better than you and I. They are taking care of the matters. Our constant blaming does not help them! I think we better spend our time on something constructive from now on. Again: Condemning alone does not bring anything. Problems have to be solved one after another. What’s the point of showing your fingers to the Chinese people and belittling them at every given chance? They need constructive advices and concrete help, rather than your finger-showing and belittling.

>Ich denke das muss man nun wirklich von der Wirtschaft trennen.
So you think the human right must be decoupled from the economy. Sigh, I am too stupid to imagine how this “decoupling” could be implemented. Human right is an abstract concept, the concrete implementation has to be backed by economic strength. Humans live on economic activities. Where comes the human right when human’s economic activities are hindered?

> Es ist nun mal ein Kritikpunkt! Der tatsächlich so vorhanden ist. Dies sagt nicht nur die westliche Medien etc. dies sagte mir damals eine Austauschschülerin aus Shanghai.
Yes I agree with you. The recent scandals in China such as the milk powder etc. are really, really depressing and shameful. The problems in the system are really critical. Some people in China are too eager for money, from milk-gatherers to the high-level officers. There surely exists corruption in the government. My opinion is, systematically fixing this will need some time. People, especially the officers need better education of dignity and “Vernunft”. The execution of laws should be greatly strengthened…anyway I see education as a main means of solution and you know people’s integrity and intelligence cannot be built overnight. Let’s give the Chinese people some more time. Do not forget many are still struggling against hunger there.

> Sie war sicherlich sehr stolz wie Du,
Ach, more often than feeling “stolz”, I feel deeply ashamed and embarrassed for the miserable scandals from China. The positive news does not stop me from worrying about China’s future, and the negative news does not stop me from contributing to China, especially the Chinese education system, in one way or another.

>jedoch weist sie auf die starken Probleme von China hin.
Oh dear Yvonne, not only she knows the problems, but everyone is aware of the deep problems in China. The president Hu Jintao does not deny the miserable facts, either. I don’t think the “either love or hate” mentality is healthy. We should hope for the best, work really hard on our own business, contribute at our best. The rest is not what we can control. Try our own best is most important.

>Ich möchte gerne von Dir auch mal Einträge über Taiwan lesen, und über das Kopieren von Produkte anderer. Dies war auch ein sehr beschämendes Thema, vorallem neulich auf der Messe IFA.

Why should I join the already big movement of China-bashing in Germany right now? Surely I feel very embarrassed for some Chinese companies that have illegally copied others’ designs. They should not do it and they should be punished. But isn’t there already enough condemning from the German mainstream media?

At the other hand, do not think the Chinese people lack originality on advanced technologies. My husband once took me to several high level international IT conferences. You know what, at least one third papers are submitted by Chinese researchers, at least one third participators in the conferences are Chinese. They are young, and live all across the world. And this proportion is growing. In some conferences, it’s already 50% or so. Let’s say, in 20 to 30 years, there might be no need for the Chinese tech companies to copy from others.

>Ehrlich gesagt, ist es mir schon recht peinlich in einem Laden zugehen und dort, wenn ich etwas witziges finde, was ich meinen Freunden gerne zeigen möchte, und es fotografiere. Ich befürchte schon, dass man denkt ich möchte davon billig Kopien in China anfertigen lassen.

Dear Yvonne, there’s really no need to feel so. If you do not do illegal things yourself, why should you feel embarrassed for yourself? Just be honest, and at the same time, be confident. I remember the senior researchers allowed me to take photos of any posters, papers or presentations during the conferences. If you behave vernünfig, people would welcome you. There is no need to have a sense of inferiority. Always try your best in your own business, people would respect you.

> Ich möchte von vornerein Dir sagen, dass ich Kantonesin bin.
Oh that’s great. So you can also read Chinese. Have you read Ray Huang’s books on Chinese history? If not yet, I strongly recommend them to you. I especially like “1587, a Year of no Significance” and “China: A Macro History”. These books were originally written in English, since Huang was a professor in Havard. But later he translated them into Chinese by himself. The Chinese editions have the charm of their own. Among the English books, I recommend John K. Fairbanks and his wife’s books on China and Chinese intellectuals and Jonathan D. Spence’s books. If you prefer reading German, no problem. Have you read Helmut Schmidt’s book “Nachbar China”? I finished reading them last month. The depth and breadth of Mr. Helmut Schmidt’s knowledge about China is amazing. That book is highly educational and inspirational. I always find it not easy to discuss any issues about China when the other side has not done enough homework. Or they do not want to know China’s history and reality at all. Be it out of arrogance, laziness or whatever other reason.

> Ich habe sowohl die Eröffnungs-, als auch die Abschlußzeremonie nicht angeschaut.
Oh dear Yvonne, you really should. Your fine taste of art may be beyond the show. But you would be greatly touched for the strength of the Chinese nation during the last 3000 years. Your and my motherland had gone through countless difficulties in the history. The civilization survived and was reborn again and again. We are still standing in the world today, this, by itself, is already a great accomplishment. This accomplishment does not hurt me, so I watched it respectfully. Does it hurt you?

> Warum? Weil es eben so insziniert ist.
Pray, what is not “insziniert” in any big organized events in the modern world? It does not stop me from observing the events. I am only a curiosity woman, and I have the confidence that backed by the books I’ve read, I am able to think independently and judge the value by myself. Why are you afraid of the “Inszinierung”? It’s the reality of the world, either live with it or you shut yourself out of any big events in the world.

> ich weiß nicht ob ich mich über sowas, wie ein Ticketautomat, verkürzte Wartezeit um ein Ticket zu erwerben, freuen würde, wenn ich doch überwacht werde in Bereich Medien.

I guess you have not suffered from the long waiting queues in Chinese railway stations. I did and my husband also did. Welcome try it out yourself. When you were standing in the humid and smelly air for more than 60 minutes, you will feel uttermost happy if that 60 minutes can be reduced to 60 seconds by using a machine. In that situation, normally you won’t worry about the great firewall. You know people cannot solve the problem all at once. IMHO, the Chinese people need such enhancement of life quality much more urgent than the luxury problems. And, more importantly, start to solve one problem or two is worlds better than endlessly condemning the system and the government. Blah blah brings nothing, you know.

> Ich leugne nicht, dass es woanders auch so läuft, jedoch kommt mir bei Dir der Eindruck, als ob in China alles in Ordnung ist.
Excuse me, but have you read this entry of mine?
http://ningning.org/blog2/2008/08/13/debug-and-refactor

If not yet, read it first.

> Kontrovers bezüglich der Olympischen Spiele ist auch der schon, meiner Meinung nach, unmenschlichen Behandlung der jungen Athleten, wie sie trainiert werden.
Hey but that’s not only China’s “problem”. You think Michael the Phelps won the medals by merely sitting around and enjoying the video games all day long? By constantly working hard for many years of course! By “unmenschlich” training of course. No pain no gain. All greatness are achieved by more or less “unmenschlich” practice. Period.

According to your opinion, people should stop running sport competitions to protect the young sportlers or? Great will, somehow I also think that’s not a bad idea. But hey, let’s be realistic. Many people in the world need this means of social rise (train hard to become a sport star or entertain the people hard to become a pop star). I respect those who have paid the effort for their dreams.

>Hast Du es zufällig gesehen, die Reportage?
Ach, when I was a kid from 9 to 11, I was trained in a semi-pro swimming team for 2.5 years, 2 or 4 hours per day, 7 days a week. I know much better than the journalists how the training is going on in the Chinese sport schools. I can assure you basically what they reported in the ARD documentation about the sport schools in China are pretty true. While I am against Dopings and such, I do not think such kind of training by itself is a problem, as long as the children choose to be trained, out of her own interest or after told the potential chance of social-rising. I myself is a typical example of countless losers from sport schools. The earth did not stop turning after I dropped out. My time and energy was spent on exams and books then. That kind of failure will occur in my life now and then. Important is to be firm on hope, be flexible on execution, and try everything to find a way out when crisis comes. I do not believe in condemning the system endlessly. Most Cantonese people I know do not believe in condemning alone. We believe in what works in practice. You know, people from Hong Kong are the most pragmatic people in the world. I like them so much! While “Anstreber” sounds like a negative word in German, you know it is very positive in the Chinese thinking pattern. Almost all my role-models are “Anstreber”s.

Opps, I have to cook now, I’ll write another reply after my dinner.

“This world does need propaganda of the mutual efforts for harmony between nature and people, harmony between people and people, harmony between nation and nation, harmony between different cultures. This world does need propaganda of love to the earth, the planet we live on. I for one, appreciate all people’s hard work and beautiful propaganda, in tears”

Ich weiß nicht, welche Harmonie zwischen den Nationen durch Propaganda erreicht wird.
“Propaganda of love” nun ja, mir wäre echte Taten aus/von Liebe lieber, als Propaganda von Liebe.
Propaganda für Liebe? Inszinierte Liebe? Insziniertes glückliches zusammen sein?
Wobei es in der Realität doch ganz anders ist?

Ich mag lieber ehrliche Dinge und nicht gestellt und ins Szene gesetzte Dinge.

Jedoch ist mir (auch allgemein aufgefallen, dass Du sicherlich sehr patriotisch bist).

(Damit meine ich den Eintrag, wo Du ein Beispiel nanntest, wie man den Menschen in China helfen könnte, z.B. mit besseren Ticketautomaten, oder so ähnlich. Dies liegt ja bereits weiter zurück. Bereit damals wollte ich Dir einen Kommentar hinterlassen). Zu diesem kann ich gerade nur grob sagen: ich weiß nicht ob ich mich über sowas, wie ein Ticketautomat, verkürzte Wartezeit um ein Ticket zu erwerben, freuen würde, wenn ich doch überwacht werde in Bereich Medien.
Bekannt ist es ja mit der Sperrung einige Internetseiten, Google, etc. Zensur.
Ich denke das ist jedem geläufig.

Ich leugne nicht, dass es woanders auch so läuft, jedoch kommt mir bei Dir der Eindruck, als ob in China alles in Ordnung ist.

Kontrovers bezüglich der Olympischen Spiele ist auch der schon, meiner Meinung nach, unmenschlichen Behandlung der jungen Athleten, wie sie trainiert werden.
Hast Du es zufällig gesehen, die Reportage?

Natürlich, man selbstverständlich nicht alles in den Medien glauben.
Wer weiß, glaubst Du diese Reportage war ebenfalls ein westlicher Propaganda gegen das Reich der Mitte?

“This world does need propaganda of the mutual efforts for harmony between nature and people, harmony between people and people, harmony between nation and nation, harmony between different cultures. This world does need propaganda of love to the earth, the planet we live on. I for one, appreciate all people’s hard work and beautiful propaganda, in tears”

Ich habe mich nicht tiefgründig mit den Begriff Propaganda beschäftigt. Jedoch ist dies in einem negativen Sinne annotiert.
Ich assoziere Propaganda mit den dritten Reich, auch die Zeit allgemein während den Weltkriegen.
Ich weiß nicht die genaue Definition davon, dafür müsste ich es erst mal nachlesen.

Aber jenes, was bisher als Propaganda bezeichnet wurde, “verherrlicht” -”ins Szene setzen” (ich möchte, wie bereits erwähnt, da ich es nicht genau nachgelesen habe, mich vorsichtig ausdrücken) von einer Idee, Ideologie.

Bekannte Propaganda:
- Amerikanische Propaganda gegen den “Kommunismus” (heikler Begriff) der Sowjet Union, Kommunismus das Böse, in Youtube gibt es einige Beispiele dafür
- selbstverständlich die Propaganda des dritten Reiches, wie sehr Hitler doch verehrt wurde, wie schön alles ablief
- Arbeiter - sozialistische Propaganda

Eigentlich wird hier bereits deutlich, dass bei diesen sich nicht um sachliche, objektive Darstellung eine Sache ist.
Sondern ein bestimmter Aspekt wird aufgewertet, man will den Zuschauer für sich gewinnen, einen anderen Eindruck erschaffen, als es in Wirklichkeit ist.

Mag sein, dass andere Länder neidisch auf China und ihre Entwicklung ist.
Jedoch sind es tatsachen, dass Menschenrechte z.T. missachtet werden.
Ich denke das muss man nun wirklich von der Wirtschaft trennen.
Es ist nun mal ein Kritikpunkt! Der tatsächlich so vorhanden ist. Dies sagt nicht nur die westliche Medien etc.
dies sagte mir damals eine Austauschschülerin aus Shanghai.

Sie war sicherlich sehr stolz wie Du, jedoch weist sie auf die starken Probleme von China hin.

Ich möchte gerne von Dir auch mal Einträge über Taiwan lesen, und über das Kopieren von Produkte anderer.
Dies war auch ein sehr beschämendes Thema, vorallem neulich auf der Messe IFA.

Ehrlich gesagt, ist es mir schon recht peinlich in einem Laden zugehen und dort, wenn ich etwas witziges finde, was ich meinen Freunden gerne zeigen möchte, und es fotografiere.
Ich befürchte schon, dass man denkt ich möchte davon billig Kopien in China anfertigen lassen.

Das ist vorerst mein Kommentar, ggf. könnte ein Nachtrag kommen.

I’m not sure which link you were talking about, could you please be more specific?