Bishops of Taiwan take lessons in communications
Taipei (AsiaNews) - The bishops of Taiwan are at communications school. Two archbishops, four bishops and the communicators of each diocese are concluding a three-day practical exercise on how to respond in television interviews, and how to be more aware of the mode of communication in the world of mass media.
In the early morning on January14, the university professor He Jiaju (何家驹) led an introduction on the integration of old and new media in the sphere of global and especially Chinese influence. In the afternoon, Father Martinson (丁松筠 神父) conducted a session on the management of crises based on the guidelines of Jim McDonnell "Managing your reputation, a guide to Crisis Management for Church Communicators" translated into Chinese during this workshop (教会对 大众传媒 的 形象 维护 管理 与 危机 处理).
The aim of the session was to focus on the style and elements of communication in a crisis that can put the Christian community or some of its members in a bad light.
All points studied were demonstrated practically in live interviews with uncomfortable questions in which all participants took their turn under the spotlight and in front of cameras. Having been filmed, one by one, the respondents then underwent a thorough analysis of their interview that highlighted their weaknesses and their shortcomings. The two most frequent reactions were arrogance towards the interviewer or the tendency to become defensive when asked uncomfortable questions.
Yesterday morning, the participants presented a personal story, or experience. If within the first 30 seconds at the microphone, the respondent did not present a well structured story, in its beginning, development and end, the person in charge of the workshop halted the interview and made the respondent undergo a new trial after another 30 minutes preparation. The first to be "postponed" was one of the two archbishops.
In the afternoon session mock press conferences were staged. Again the participants were filmed and their attitude and their answers evaluated in the playback. The facial expression, their calm in responding, willingness to clarify obscure points of each story and to referral to reliable sources, are all important points in the relationship with journalists. Attention to the use of a simple and clear language that everyone can clearly understand. In short: "make friends with the camera and the interviewer," repeated Father Martinson. A special moment was dedicated to posture during the interview, the use of the microphone and the line of vision, demonstrating an attitude of interest and not distance. These are all elements that allow fluid coherent and touching communication.
The participants were the Archbishop of Taipei, Msgr. John Hung Shan-chuan (洪山川) and Kaohsiung, Msgr. Peter Liu Cheng-chung (刘振忠), the bishops Msgr. John Baptist Lee Keh-mien (李克 勉), of Hsinchu, Msgr. Martin Su Yao-wen (苏耀文), of Taichung, Msgr. Bosco Lin Chi-nan, of Tainan (林吉 男), Msgr. Thomas Chung An-zu of Jiayi (钟 安 住). The course was prepared by the bishop of Hualian (黄兆明), Msgr. Philip Huang Chao-ming who had arranged the same workshop for his diocese in April 2012. Enthusiasm for the possibility of learning how to communicate with the television, led Msgr. Huang (黄兆明) to push for the entire Episcopal Conference to have the opportunity to experience the same workshop.
It is all aimed at living greater visibility of the Catholic world in Taiwan, so that the rich initiatives present on the island can be communicated to the general public. The invitation to the bishops was to appear more on TV, especially after the death of Cardinal Paul Shan (单 国 玺) who was the church point of reference for media in Taiwan. A very concrete example, seen in the screening of several videos, was Cardinal Tagle of Manila, who is very experienced and at ease in being on TV. At the end of three days of workshops, and bishops in charge of communication learned important tips in publicizing the many works that are carried out by the dioceses and the great work of evangelization for the new generations.
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