On September 29, RUC and CMG held a signing ceremony in Beijing to establish a joint School of Journalism. The event was attended by Shen Haixiong, Vice Minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee and President of CMG, and Zhang Donggang, Chair of RUC Council. Together, they unveiled plaques for the “Joint Talent Training Base for Excellence in Journalism and Communication” and the “Intelligent Communication Innovation Lab.”
President Lin Shangli of RUC and Vice President Wang Xiaozhen of CMG signed the strategic cooperation framework agreement on behalf of both parties. According to the agreement, they will establish a joint school administration committee and foster collaboration between the university and the media group. This will provide a strong talent foundation to enhance the influence, reach, and impact of journalism and public opinion in China. Both parties aim to leverage their strengths in areas like talent cultivation, think tank development, and innovation platform construction to create a world-class new mainstream media and support the development of a university with Chinese characteristics and global excellence.
During the ceremony, Liang Jianzeng, Director of the General Editorial Office of CMG, and Zhou Yong, Dean of the School of Journalism at RUC, delivered speeches on behalf of the two institutions. Liang emphasized that the partnership aims to cultivate a large pool of outstanding cultural and media professionals, with projects such as the development of high-quality courses, key faculty, practical training bases, and high-end think tanks. The goal is to establish the joint school as a model for innovation in global journalism education and to contribute to enhancing China’s cultural influence.
Zhou Yong highlighted the collaboration as a demonstration of leadership in the field of media education. The partnership will focus on training integrated international communication talents, launching global media personnel training programs, and fostering research on global communication trends. They will also explore new products and ideas in the era of artificial intelligence, addressing the challenges of technological advancements in media.
The agreement also includes the creation of the “Intelligent Communication Innovation Lab” to promote the integration of intelligent communication technology with smart living. Additionally, both sides launched a research project to support student ideological and political education, featuring initiatives like bringing CMG intellectual property into campus and organizing immersive courses on national development and border security.
The signing event was attended by key figures from both institutions, including Jiang Wenbo and Zhou Zhenhong from CMG, and Feng Shizheng, Vice President of RUC. Faculty and student representatives from RUC also participated. This partnership builds on the ongoing collaboration between academia and the media industry, with both institutions committed to improving China’s international communication capacity and advancing the development of a university-media integration model.
