In the article "Search for the Real China", the author argues that "the assumptions about reality and representation made by both Chinese and foreign media are often unhelpful for the tasks of understanding contemporary China" (Latham 27). In the first part of the article, there is a lot of discussion around how foreign media took this opportunity to create backlash towards China. Even the opening ceremony that was carefully crafted to impressed the world received backlash, such as saying the footprints that was shown was "fake". While I actually found this to be quite unfair, this shows how inviting the world into your country can open up a door that will be hard to manage. I think when it comes to China, due to the sometimes negative or rather "unsophisticated" image that they had, they might have had to understand the weight that would come with taking on something with as much media attention as the Olympics. I definitely think that there were a lot of positives that came from hosting the Olympics. After all, as said by Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge, "Through the games, the world learned more about China, and China learned more about the world" (Latham 26). That being said, I felt like they needed more work in terms of not just refining their image, but also being more prepared for what was to come. When it came to my project, I've spent a lot of time with my partner trying to come up with an idea rather than thinking about the way we would need to market it. China reminds me that it is not necessarily the product that is being sold but rather the image that people want to buy into.
Works Cited
Kevin Latham (2009). Media, the Olympics and the Search for the “Real China”. TheChina Quarterly, 197, pp 25-43 doi:10.1017/S0305741009000022
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