How China can win friends and influencers to help tell the country’s story well

Tourists, international students and foreign employees of Chinese companies could serve as grass-roots ambassadors, helping China’s story to resonate with audiences worldwide, according to one of the country’s leading political advisers.Zhang Bo, a professor at Beijing-language-and-culture-university" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="43287" data-entity-type="organization">Beijing Language and Culture University who is also a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, made the suggestion on the sidelines of the annual “two sessions” meeting.Speaking to the China-morning-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="12558" data-entity-type="organization">South China Morning Post, Zhang noted that international students, as digitally connected young people, could actively share their experiences of the country through social media.“Young people are often quick to notice new things … Through messaging apps and social media, they frequently post photos, videos and texts, telling stories about China and sharing their experiences with family, friends and communities in their native languages, which could exert a strong influence on other young people,” she said.For years, Beijing has invested heavily in expanding its soft power, in line with President Xi Jinping’s call to officials to double down on their efforts to “tell the China story well”. Beijing lays out its views on world order at Chinese Foreign Minister’s press conference