PORTRAYAL OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANISATIONS IN PRINT AND ONLINE NEWSPAPERS

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Institute for Studies of Society, Economy and Environment

PORTRAYAL OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANISATIONS IN PRINT AND ONLINE NEWSPAPERS

Authors:Dinh Thi Thuy Hang, PhD.

Nguyen Thanh Loi, PhD.Nguyen Thi Minh Hien, MA.

Vu Thi Phuong Thao, MA.

Thế Giới Publishers

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TABLE OF CONTENT

1. INTRODUCTION 7

2. OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 92.1. CONCEPTS AND PERSPECTIVES

ON CIVIL SOCIETY & CSOs 92.1.1. Concepts of civil society 92.1.2. Concepts of CSOs 92.1.3. Types of CSOs 112.1.4. CSOs in Vietnam 13

2.2. AIM OF THE STUDY 142.2.1. Goals 142.2.2. Specific objectives 14

2.3. METHODOLOGY 152.3.1. Sample 152.3.2. Sampling 152.3.3. Research methods 17

2.4. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 17

3. FINDINGS 193.1. SURVEY AND EVALUATION OF POTRAYAL OF CSOs

IN PRINT AND ONLINE NEWSPAPERS IN VIETNAM (from 7/2010 to 6/2011) 193.1.1. Form 19

3.1.1.1. Genre 193.1.1.2. Posting Location 203.1.1.3. Posting Time 21 3.1.1.4. Source 223.1.1.5. Organisational quotes 223.1.1.6. Illustration Pictures 23

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3.1.2. Content 243.1.2.1. Headlines 243.1.2.2. Topics 243.1.2.3. Forms Organisations 263.1.2.4. Fields of Operation 283.1.2.5. Locations of Operation 303.1.2.6. Contributions of CSOs 303.1.2.7. Attitudes toward CSOs 31

3.2. SURVEY AND EVALUATION ON SOME ARTICLES ON VIETNAMNET DISCUSSING CIVIL SOCIETY AND CSOs (From July 2010 to June 2011) 363.2.1. Role of civil society and CSOs 363.2.2. Attitudes of the state toward civil society and CSOs 373.2.3. Development of civil society and CSOs in Vietnam 38 3.2.4. Advocating for the development of civil society and CSOs 38

3.3. GENERAL EVALUATION OF THE SURVEY 393.3.1. Outstanding points about CSOs in the media 393.3.2. Shortcomings about CSOs in the media 40

3.4. EVALUATION OF INTERVIEW RESULTS 413.4.1. Content of in-depth interview 41

3.4.1.1. Results of interviews with leaders of management agencies of media organisations 41 3.4.1.2. Results of interviews with media leaders 423.4.1.3. Results of interviews with reporters 43

3.4.2. General Evaluation of In-depth Interviews 45

4. RECOMMENDATIONS 474.1. COMMON DIRECTION

(in promoting the image of CSOs in the Vietnamese media) 474.2. SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS 47

REFERENCES 50

APPENDIX 51

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I. INTRODUCTION

Globally, civil society organisations (CSOs) are very dynamic entities that play an important role in promoting social development. In Vietnam, since the country ushered in economic reforms and integrated well with the world economy, CSOs have developed rapidly and been accepted as significant contributors to the nation’s development. According to Dr. Thang Văn Phúc and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyễn Minh Phương, CSOs in Vietnam are dynamic particularly in serving the needs of individuals and social groups at the grassroots level. As of 2010, some 1,700 organisations had been registered to support society in carrying out socio-economic activities1. There are several other organisations working in the field of research, advocacy, and social and economic rights.

Though the institutions have made a substantial contribution to society, most people still lack or have just a vague understanding of the existence and role of these organisations. Many people are not clear about the role of CSOs and why they are important for the country’s development. It is because information disseminated through the media about CSOs is still limited. On one hand, the CSOs are not active in building and promoting their image. And they lack the experience to reach out to the media, send strategic messages, or mobilise societal support for their mission. On the other, information in the media about CSOs is neither catchy nor in-depth. The issue is how CSOs in Vietnam can become widely known, understood, and supported so that they can contribute more to national development.

Vietnam now has nearly 19,000 journalists working for over 800 media agencies. The Vietnamese media is a mouthpiece of the party and state and, as a forum for the people, has great influence in setting the agenda as well as on the country’s economic development. For many years, the Vietnamese media has contributed actively

1. Thang Van Phuc & Nguyen Minh Phuong, Roles of Society Organisations in Developing and Managing the Society, National Politics Publishing House, Hanoi, 2010.

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to the fight against corruption, negative acts, and surreptitious deeds of corporates. The media is always an important source for disseminating information to the public. Besides, people can express their thoughts and legitimate aspirations to authorities through the media. The media is an important source of information for both the government and public, and acts as a bridge between them.

Therefore, CSOs need to use the media as an effective communication channel to communicate messages to the public and promote their social roles and values. They also need to use the media to provide information to the government about their role and activities. Through this, authorities can better understand their role and activities. This can create links, mutual understanding, and trust between the authorities and CSOs. Besides, CSOs can promote their image to the public.

In Vietnam, the term “civil society organisation” is regarded as sensitive by the media and thus often avoided. The research group found the term “civil society” being mentioned only 30 times in 460 news articles selected. In some documents and articles, the term “civil organization” is used instead of “civil society organization.” Thus, in this study, the two terms are used interchangeably.

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2. OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY

2.1. CONCEPTS AND PERSPECTIVES ON CIVIL SOCIETY AND CSOs

2.1.1. Concepts of civil society

Civil society is a term defined in many different ways in the ideological, political, and legal history of the world. There are currently different approaches to this term. Civil society in the western lexicon is derived from social life in ancient Greece – the ancient Greek Polis and the Roman city with “free citizens” appeared for the first time in history. The term for civil society in Greek is koinonia politike2 (in French: Société Civile, in English: civil society, and in Russian: grazhdanskoe obchtsestvo). Sometimes it is translated as citizen society to emphasise the role of citizens in the society.

The concept of civil society appeared quite early in Europe. The common definitions of civil society emphasise the voluntary spirit of citizens in the protection of their legal rights and values. The concept of civil society appeared earliest in England (1594) when it was understood as people living in the community. The concept is then understandable from two different angles. Some Scottish philosophers (18th century) described civil society as a civilised society with a non-arbitrary state. By the 19th century, in Germany, in the political works of Hegel, the term civil society became distinct from the term state.3

Hegel described civil society as part of moral life, which is composed of three elements: family, civil society, and state. A self-organized civil society should be considered and regulated by the state, otherwise it would only serve selfish interests and not contribute to the common good. 4

2. Sketches on civil society in history and experiences in our country, updated on Wednesday, May 27th, 2009, at http://www.hcmulaw.edu.vn/

3. Developing civil society organisations in Nghia Binh Commune, Nghia Dan District, Nghe An Province

4. Developing civil society organisations in Nghia Binh Commune, Nghia Dan District, Nghe An Province

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K. Marx discussed civil society in his early works on German ideology and Jewish issues. Like Hegel, he regarded civil society as a historical phenomenon, the result of historical development that was a “gift” of nature, and temporary. The fundamental difference between the viewpoints of Marx and Hegel is the starting point in analysing the nature of civil society and the state, and the relationship between them. While Hegel started out from the view of “common sense” and “Absolute Idealism,” Marx took real life and mode of production as the starting point. He believed that only when human power was organised into social and political power would the emancipation of humans be complete.

Thus, the term civil society has had different connotations and implications through various historical periods. The common point is the adjective “civil” which describes social relations adjusted from a civil orientation, as distinct (relatively of course) from the state. Thus, this term should be used to refer to institutions “outside of the state.”

2.1.2. Concepts of CSOs

In the simplest sense, “organisation is a group of people working together.” In the broader sense, “organisation is the assembly of many people into a group, committee, and association for the purpose of operating or managing a job.”5

According to the World Alliance for Citizens (CIVICUS), civil society is “the arena outside of the family, state, and market where people associate to advance common interests.” Accordingly, to improve the effectiveness of the state, it is necessary to base on the relative power of market and civil organisations. Civil organisations can be both partner and competitor of the state in the provision of public services; they can bring positive pressure to bear on the government to improve the supply and quality of public services.6

Due to the historical context and the different relationships between the state and society, there are different approaches and perspectives

5. Concept on civil society organisations, published on October 29th, 2009 at http://www.ytecongcong.com/index.php?

6. PhD Thang Van Phuc, Asst. Prof. Nguyen Minh Phuong, Roles of society organisations in developing and managing the society, National Politics Publishing House, Hanoi, 2010.

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on CSOs. According to Dr. Irene Norlund, there are three approaches to CSOs. The neo-liberal theory suggests that CSOs should exist independently, belong to the “third area,” be a “voluntary sector” in which citizens organise themselves into groups and solve arising problems through “civil” dialogue and non-violent measures. The role of these organisations is to control and balance the relationship between the state and the market. According to the Model of Good Society, a civil society organisation is a component part of society, not entirely separate from the state, market, and family, which is located in the intersection of three sectors; its boundary is not well-defined, there is an interaction among the state, market, and CSOs in order to bring about agreement between everyone. The post-modern model sees CSOs as belonging to the third world and enhances the role of sharing, understanding, connection, and cooperation among parties involved in dialogue and discussion.

With regard to range, according to Linz and Stepan, CSOs belong to the intermediate space between the private sector and state, which is called the third area.

With regard to functions, Anirudh Krishna identifies CSOs as performing at three different levels: 1) Demonstrate the benefits and needs of citizens; 2) Protect the rights of citizens; 3) Provide goods and services directly without relying on state agencies.7

With regard to network, Andrew Wells Dang proposed the concept of civil society networks to emphasise the close links between CSOs, informal groups, and individual activists, rather than non-governmental organisations alone.8

In short, civil society organisations can be understood as a voluntary assembly of individuals or groups, linking up to promote positive changes for a better society.

2.1.3. Types of CSOs

There are many ways of classifying CSOs. But the research group has opted for the viewpoint of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham 7. Le Thi Thanh Huong: Civil society in Malaysia and Thailand. Social Science

Publishing House, Hanoi, 20098. Andrew Wells-Dang, Informal Pathbreakers: Civil Society Networks in China and

Vietnam, University of Birmingham Research Archive, 2011, p.24.

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Bich San and the ADB research document of 2009 on CSOs. Assoc. Prof. Dr. San believed that there were 3 types of society organisations in Vietnam: Fully government-funded organisations such as the Trade Union, Women, Youth, Farmers, and Veterans Associations; Partly government-funded organisations such as the Union of Science and Technology, Union of Literature and Arts, Journalists Association; and Civil society organisations consisting of non-governmental organisations, self-funded, and community-based organisations.9

According to the Asian Development Bank (2009), CSOs are classified into 9 types as follows:

- The non-governmental organisation (NGO): NGOs are professional, intermediate, and non-profit organisations that provide or support provision of services related to social and economic development, human rights, public welfare, and emergency relief.

- The professional association: These organisations represent the interests of their members who operate in a specific career field or work in a particular job. Professional associations can create standards related to their members’ occupations -- such as associations of architects, public accountants ...

- The fund: Funds are charity organisations founded by individuals or entities of a legal status to support the business in line with the objectives of the fund. For example, the Ford Foundation (USA), Aga Khan Foundation (Switzerland)...

- The independent research institute: These organisations mainly carry out research and analyses related to public policy issues and disseminate their research findings and recommendations in the hope of influencing decisions and policy makers.

- The community-based organisation (CBO): These organisations often resolve immediate concerns of their members. The basic characteristics of CBOs are that they can mobilise the community through an expression of need, organise and implement a

9. Pham Bich San, The Cooperation between Non-governmental Organisations and State in Vietnam: the Prospect of Restructure?, Annual Conference of Non-governmental Organisations in Vietnam, 2011

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participatory process, access development services from outside, and share interests among their members.

- The religious organisation: Religious groups established around an area of worship or congregation, a religious institution, a registered or unregistered institution having religious characteristics and principles.

- The people’s organisation: They are organisations consisting of common volunteers that promote economic and social prosperity of members.

- The social movement and trade union: These are large-scale unofficial groups, including many individuals or organizations and aiming at social change through collective, organized, and long-term activities.

As we see, the Asian Development Bank classifies CSOs based on the nature of their activities. Assoc. Prof. Dr. San classifies CSOs based on whether or not an organisation receives state funding.

2.1.4. CSOs in Vietnam

The first Constitution of Vietnam in 1946 and subsequent Constitutions drawn up in 1959, 1980, and 1992 acknowledged that citizens have the right to assemble and forming associations in accordance with legislative regulations. Decree No. 52-SL dated 22/04/1946 prescribes the establishment of associations: “Associations are unions having a permanent character, consisting of two or more people in a covenant to achieve a common purpose, which is not profit.”

Indeed, CSOs operating on voluntary bases have existed in Vietnam for a long time. Especially during times of natural disasters and wars, the activities of these organisations showed even more clearly the spirit of voluntary, mutual assistance existing among people to mitigate the misfortune. The development of CSOs is very diverse, with many different types and names such as unions, associations, societies, federations, clubs, foundations, institutes, centres, councils, committees, voluntary groups ...

Decree No. 45/2010/ND-CP on 21/4/2010 by the government

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defines associations as “voluntary organisations of Vietnamese citizens and organisations of the same profession, same gender, with common interests, that share the common goal of uniting members for regular non-profit activities in protecting rights and interests of associations, members and communities, contributing to the social and economic development of the country...”10

Thus, the activities of such organisations as groups, unions, and associations in Vietnam are similar to that of CSOs in other countries that operate publicly and widely, based on the voluntary participation of individuals into any organisation for a positive purpose.

2.2. AIM OF THE STUDY

2.2.1. Goals

Based on the analysis and evaluation of media coverage of CSOs in Vietnam, the study will recommend strategies for CSOs to (i) engage with the media in promoting its image among the public as well as among policy makers; and (ii) enhance its internal strength to better brand itself.

2.2.2. Objectives

• Analyse the image of CSOs portrayed in 5 print and 2 online newspapers in Vietnam between 7/2010 and 6/2011 quantitatively and qualitatively

• Analyse and compare the portrayal of CSOs in print and online newspapers through the survey findings.

• Conduct in-depth interviews with leaders of media management bodies, leaders of media editorials, and journalists; then analyse their viewpoints on CSOs and how CSOs are covered in the Vietnamese media.

• Based on the results of content analysis and in-depth interviews, the study will provide an overview of the current media image of CSOs in Vietnam and make recommendations on communication and branding strategies for CSOs.

10. Thang Van Phuc & Nguyen Minh Phuong, Roles of Society Organisations in Developing and Managing the Society, National Politics Publishing House, Hanoi, 2010.

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2.3. METHODOLOGY

2.3.1. Samples

The study applies content analysis to articles published in print newspapers Nhan Dan, Thanh Nien, Tuoi Tre, Nong Thon Ngay Nay, and Phu Nu Viet Nam, and online newspapers Vietnamnet and VnExpress. With a sampling period of one year (July 2010 to June 2011), the research team hopes to be able to assess how the media currently covers CSOs in Vietnam.

The research team selected the newspapers based on the following criteria: large circulation, large number of readers, and representing different groups in society. The seven newspapers selected to analyse are:

• Nhan Dan (the mouthpiece of the Communist Party, the voice of the state and people of Vietnam, published daily)

• Thanh Nien (the forum of the Youth Union of Vietnam, daily)

• Tuoi Tre (the Communist Youth Union of Ho Chi Minh City, daily)

• Nong Thon Ngay Nay (Forum of the Farmers Association, 4 issues a week)

• Phu Nu Viet Nam (the Central Body of the Vietnamese Women’s Union, 4 issues a week)

• Vnexpress.net (the most visited online newspaper in Vietnam, ranking 3rd in Vietnam in number of visitors, and 379th in the world)11

• Vietnamnet.vn (one of the first and most favourite online newspapers, ranking 17th in Vietnam in number of visitors, and 2380th in the world)12

2.3.2. Sampling

Samples were selected by using a list of keywords (See list of keywords in Appendix), list of international non-governmental organisations (288 organisations), “List of foreign non-governmental 11. Alexa.com on 18 Nov 201112. Alexa.com on 18 Nov 2011

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organisations operating in Vietnam”- NGO Resource Centre, 2009, and list of non-governmental organisations in Vietnam (including approximately 365 organisations, sourced from VUSTA).

Regarding the scope of the study, it is acknowledged that the characteristics of CSOs in Vietnam are very different from those in other countries around the world. Some organisations labelled “non-governmental” are actually professional associations (farmers, writers, journalists, etc.) with an apparatus akin to governmental agencies and funded by the government. Therefore, these professional associations are not the subject of this study. The subjects of the study are international non-governmental organisations in Vietnam (INGOs); Vietnamese non-governmental organisations in Vietnam (VNGOs); and community-based organisations (CBOs). On the other hand, the research team did not survey television news because the time available for the study was only 3 months, while it was feared that collecting data from television could be difficult and time-consuming.

After evaluating pilot samples from all newspapers for one week, the research team decided to take the samples from all newspapers over a one-year period. Preliminary sampling resulted in up to 957 items. The research team screened the items, put aside some inappropriate ones, then used the randomise command in Excel to randomly reduce the number of samples to 538.

The research team again reviewed and put aside items that were out of the scope of the research -- for example, articles introducing Vietnamese CSOs operating overseas or foreign CSOs operating in other countries.

The final number of samples was 460, of which 447 were coded according to the code book developed by the research team. The other 13 articles posted on Vietnamnet were not coded but analysed separately, because:

- First, the articles were not written by journalists but by experts, politicians, or researchers on civil society in Vietnam.

- Second, the articles did not name or discuss any specific CSOs; they actually published the views of experts and scholars on civil society.

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- Third, unlike other newspapers, Vietnamnet has a separate column for comments and opinions by experts on current social issues.

2.3.3. Research methodology

- Quantitative method

The study analysed the contents of the 460 news items and articles collected from seven newspapers over one year from July 2010 to June 2011.

For content analysis, the researchers developed a code book consisting of 23 questions based on the theories of CSOs and based on the actual content of the articles. Excel spreadsheet was used for coding and analysing. The research team believed that quantitative results of the research were not so complicated that statistics software SPSS needed to be used. Results of the quantitative analysis are one of the inputs for designing in-depth interview guides for qualitative research.

- Qualitative method:

Qualitative method includes in-depth interviews and discussions. For in-depth interviews, the research team developed a set of interview questions based on the results of quantitative analysis, based on the theory of civil society and CSOs, media theory, and the professional experiences of the researchers. The content of in-depth interviews was then analysed based on groups of issues that respondents mentioned.

2.4. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This is the first study on the media image of civil society organisations in Vietnam, so literature is scarce. Literature that the research team could access mostly discussed the role of social organisations, not the media image of CSOs in Vietnam. In addition, there were no situational assessments of communications and media relations of CSOs.

Furthermore, the research team met with difficulties in interviewing leaders of media management agencies, leaders of media houses, and reporters because they were either reluctant to

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talk about civil society or did not know clearly what civil society meant.

Another limitation related to doing research of online newspapers. As the interface of online newspapers changes with time, it was difficult for the team to define the location of articles.

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3. FINDINGS

3.1. SURVEY AND EVALUATION OF PORTRAYAL OF CSOs IN PRINT AND ONLINE NEWSPAPERS IN VIETNAM (between 7/2010 and 6/2011)

Of 460 articles surveyed, 447 articles were coded and 13, not. To get the findings of this survey, the form and content of those articles were evaluated. With regard to form, the six main sections being evaluated are Genre; Posting Location; Posting Time; Information Source; Quotes from Concerned Organisations; and Illustrations. With regard to content, the seven main sections being evaluated are Headlines, Subjects, Organisations’ Form, Fields of Operation, Locations of Operation, Contribution of CSOs, and Attitudes towards CSOs.

3.1.1. Form

3.1.1.1. Genre

The research group adopted the criteria that a piece of news consists of 300 words at most and a feature consists of 300 words at least. This is the norm for most media organisations in Vietnam. According to surveys and statistics about the five print newspapers, 75.8% of the samples were news pieces while only 24.2% were features. In contrast, in the two online newspapers surveyed, news stories accounted for 1.7% while features accounted for 98.3%. (See Chart 1)

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This difference may be due to the limited space in print whereas online newspapers can post long articles words on their website. Also, media organisations generally have strict rules -- based on royalty -- about which events should be reported in the form of news and which as features.

Another reason for the fewer number of features on CSOs in print newspapers is that CSOs usually provide information of a PR nature, which is not “hot” enough to attract the attention of readers.

3.1.1.2. Posting Location

Articles about CSOs were mainly carried in the inside pages of print newspapers (accounting for 98.5%). This is because the information was not important to society. Due to the nature of online newspapers, it was difficult to evaluate the importance of stories based on their location. A number of stories may have been posted on the homepage of online newspapers but moved to the inside pages by the time the study was conducted. On Phu Nu Viet Nam and Nhan Dan in particular, some articles appeared on both the front and inside pages, so the total number of pages were more than 100% (see chart 2). Some articles on the front page mentioned the eight Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations. For example, an article titled “Impressions of 2010 and the way ahead” on Nhan Dan, issue No. 52, published on 26 Dec, 2010, said Vietnam had completed 5 of the 8 Millennium Development Goals ahead of schedule. This article appeared on both the front page and inside, illustrated with a photo of primary school students in Hoang Giang (Nong Cong District, Thanh Hoa Province) giving flowers to Mr Christopher Carpenter, president of the Foundation for Microprojects in Vietnam (FMV) on the occasion of his return to the school, which was built with FMV funds.

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3.1.1.3. Posting Time

It was found that the peak time for articles about CSOs is the last two months of the year (November and December). This was the opposite of what the research group expected at the beginning of the study -- that articles on CSOs would be published more during the flood and storm season when many relief organisations step up their activities.

The reason could be that CSOs usually need to spend their fund and report about their activities to donors by the end of the year (this is also common to many organisations and agencies in Vietnam). November was the peak time, with 17.4% of all articles published, four times higher than in February (4.5%). (See Chart 3)

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3.1.1.4. Source

95.3% of 447 articles being coded carried reporters’ bylines. If a journalist has his or her name in an article, it means he or she personally attended the event, activity, or press conference, or got information from a press release. Their presence offers opportunities to CSOs, but it is essential that communications officers of CSOs actively create relationships with the media and enhance their skills in providing interesting information to attract audiences and have an influence on society.

3.1.1.5. Representatives’ quotes

According to the research findings, 82.4% of articles about CSOs published in print newspapers had no quotes from their representatives, which means the voices of the CSOs were only heard faintly. Quotes from a CSO executive in an article reflect the voices and opinions of his/her organisation. As stated in section 3.1.1.1, most of the items published in print newspapers were brief news about the CSOs. As a result, their representatives’ voices were absent from those news items.

In contrast, 82.1% of stories on online newspapers directly or indirectly quoted CSO representatives. One explanation is that online newspapers have a larger number of feature stories, and, unlike news

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stories, it is necessary to have quotes in features (See Chart 5).

For example, in VnExpress, an article titled “The tearful letters sent to Santa Claus” and published on 24 Dec, 2010, said, “Mr. Tuan (of Dong Nai province) is one of the volunteers participating in donating money and Christmas gifts to disadvantaged children. He said that every Christmas, members of voluntary groups put a gift bag on their shoulders, wear Santa suits and go to each and every alley to hand out gifts to kids in poor houses, orphans, and street children”.

Features with a name and the voice of a specific person like that create a close connection with readers who can visualise the organisation’s activities through real stories being told by an insider.

3.1.1.6. Illustrations

89.7% of the news and features about CSOs’ activities were published with illustrations. Of this number, print magazines accounted for 36.1%. Tuoi Tre was top of the list with 54.4% of its articles published with illustrations.

As mentioned before, print newspapers usually report briefly on the activities of CSOs. So pictures are not necessarily attached to stories about CSOs, and this may have a negative bearing on the attention readers pay to them. (See Chart 6)

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3.1.2. Content

3.1.2.1. Headlines

The research found that a majority of the news and features (88.1%) did not name civil society organisations in their headlines. In fact, news and features reported the activities carried out by the CSOs, so their names were not important to the media. Most headlines did not mention the names of CSOs: “Developing drought-proof maize seedlings” (The Rural Today, January 4, 2011), “30 gifts for Agent Orange victims” (The Rural Today, January 6, 2011), “Project ‘Rainbow’ for visually impaired students” (The Vietnamese Women, November 19, 2010), “Youth celebrate Earth Hour” (Tuoi Tre, March 7, 2011).

Some news and features mentioned the names of CSOs: “Reading with our Children Club celebrates its 1st birthday” (The Rural Today, June 7, 2011), “The warmth in An Phuc house” (Nhan Dan, March 20, 2011). When the name of an organisation is mentioned in the headline, it helps promote the organisation because its name is visible immediately.

3.1.2.2. Topics

The most popular topics in the media today are relief assistance, donation, charity and compassion, accounting for one third of all

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news and features (30.2%). The other popular topics are education, development, and community support, accounting for 18.8%. People may think poverty and hunger eradication efforts will feature a great deal in news and features about CSOs. However, the topic was not mentioned much, accounting for only 3.1%. The reason is that news about poverty reduction and hunger eradication is usually reported to raise donations and these programmes are mostly launched by media organisations. For instance, some newspapers have set up humanitarian funds with names such as “The leaf helps the torn leaf” and “Golden hearts” …to get donations from the public. However, activities related to poverty reduction and hunger eradication usually take place in localities and are reported by local newspapers, which are not included in the scope of this research.

The research also shows that some hot topics in society such as HIV/AIDS, violence, gender equality, and climate change are not mentioned much in news and features about CSOs. This may be because these issues are among the Eight Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations and are reported in other forms. UN organisations usually cooperate with Vietnamese governmental agencies to organise events related to these topics. The media had lots of news stories and features about UN activities and their big events jointly held with governmental agencies. However, those articles were not included in this research.

By comparing, we can see that the rate of the news and features relating to relief assistance, donation, sponsorship, charity, and compassion were equal in print and online newspapers. However, the rate of education, development and community support stories in print was four times higher than online (accounting for 23.6-5.1%). It should be noticed that of news and features in the print, the Vietnamese Women reported 34% of articles on education, development, and community support. This newspaper belongs to the Vietnam Women’s Union, so the activities of the union are actively reported in the newspaper. In addition, information about relief assistance, donation, and charity appeared usually in Thanh Nien (accounting for 68.1%).

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3.1.2.3. Organisational Forms

In general, the names of civil society organisations were mentioned in news and features. Print newspapers mostly mentioned just CSOs’ names while online sites carried further information about them.

Of 447 news and features being coded, INGOs got reported the most, accounting for 43.2% of all organisations named; CBOs followed at 37.6%; and VNGOs were less mentioned, accounting for 19.2%. These figures can be assessed as follows:

INGOs are usually big with many relief assistance and sponsorship activities that have influence on and attract the attention of the media. INGOs also have more funds, so they can allocate more for communication. Some INGOs such as Oxfam and Operation Smile were often mentioned in Thanh Nien and Vietnamnet. Lien Aid (a Singaporean NGO) got regular mention in Nhan Dan and Vietnamnet.

As for CBOs, news and feature stories usually reported about the activities of clubs, voluntary and charity activities of youth, Buddhist charity groups, and community groups (reading books, learning foreign languages, protecting the environment…). These activities are usually undertaken by youths. The media tends to report about disadvantaged people. It also mentions the role of youths in development activities in society and community. News and features about youths account for most stories about CBOs

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because university students taken part in social activities organised by their universities. The press has a tendency to praise youths when they join these activities.

Among CBOs, funds such as the Fund for Study Encouragement and Disaster Relief often get a mention. Some funds like Vinamilk’s Fund for Vietnam’s Height have been set up by companies. These funds contribute to the community and add to the fame of the companies. Many businesspersons today understand that social responsibility plays an important role in improving the image of their organisation among the public.

As for VNGOs, the press reported much about vocational centres’ activities for disadvantaged and disabled people and homeless children, and those related to healthcare, community support and environmental protection. The organisations often reported about were East & West Centre, Live and Learn, and KOTO. They were mentioned in Nhan Dan in an article titled “Phu Yen implements education support programme,” in Vietnamnet in an article titled “Youth enjoy Earth Hour,” and in VnExpress. The reason VNGOs are reported less in media may be because they have not really cared about public communication.

There is a big difference between news and features relating to INGOs, VNGOs, and CBOs in the print and online media. In print, news stories on INGOs were the most common, accounting for nearly half (49%), followed by CBOs (34.7%) and VNGOs (16.7%).

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In online media, news on CBOs was the most common, accounting for 45.4%. INGOs were second (27.7%) and VNGOs ranked third (26.9%). This can be explained by the fact that INGOs understand their international status and usually approach the whole media, including print, to cover their activities. INGOs’ activities can also be of larger scale. CBOs and VNGOs are smaller, have less funds, and undertake activities on a smaller scale, and so tend to approach the online media for easier publication.

3.1.2.4. Operation Fields

The research group learnt about the operational areas of the civil society organisations from the news and features published. Then it measured the coverage levels by media organisations. Chart 9 shows that nearly half of the news and features on all media mentioned the operational areas of the civil society organisations, with the most frequently reported being education, development and community support (50.7%) and environmental protection (12.9%) while HIV/AIDS was reported least (6.2%).

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Comparison between the print and online media revealed the operational areas of CSOs (See Chart10).

As analysed above, some major issues such as poverty reduction and hunger eradication, gender equality, and climate change are among the United Nations’ Millennium Goals. Governmental agencies annually organise activities relevant to them which are mostly reported, sometimes even live on television. The operational areas of the civil society organisations in this research tended to focus on development and community support.

On March 10, 2011, VNExpress published an article titled “Ngo Bao Chau honoured Young Global Leader”, in which the writer wrote: “Together with Prof. Ngo Bao Chau, a Vietnamese origin was also recognised as Young Global Leader this year. Jimmy Pham, founder of KOTO, an organisation that provides vocational training to street children in Vietnam, was honoured for helping more than 300 Vietnamese juveniles escape poverty over the years.” Though this feature had a headline with Ngô Bảo Châu’s name in it, the content mentioned the organisation KOTO and the field in which KOTO works, namely providing vocational training to street children in Vietnam.

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Other areas of operation can be seen in the following examples:

“Go Green Club directly implements and mobilises people to clean up streets and lanes; provide students at Dong Tan Secondary School with basic knowledge of the environment such as hygiene practice, sorting, recycling, and reusing waste through interesting learning and playing activities.” (“Go Green Club helps farmers manage their waste” in Tuoi Tre on June 9, 2011).

“On the morning of June 13th, though it was during the summer vacation, hundreds of students, teachers, and parents eagerly gathered at Trung Thanh A Primary School in Vung Liem District, Vinh Long Province, for the opening ceremony of the Information Technology Course, the first course in the “Mobile School” project funded by the Swiss Dariu Fund.” (“Class in the container” in Thanh Nien on June 14, 2011)

3.1.2.5. Operational Locations

The research found that news and features mentioned the places and setting (where the activities took place) of the civil society organisations. Only 17.9% of the news and features mentioned the specific circumstances of the activities, of which the urban setting was mentioned (4.5%) much more frequently than rural (3.4%). The Vietnamese Women mentioned rural settings 25% of the times but Tuoi Tre and VnExpress did not. It can be understood that due to the policy of the Vietnamese Women, it reports more activities related to education, development, and community support. In Vietnam today, women living in rural areas have more difficulties than those in urban areas and so become the focus of the society organisations. Tuoi Tre and VnExpress reported more about the activities of youths, mainly students, because they mainly live and study in big cities.

3.1.2.6. Contributions of CSOs

The research group sought in the content of the news and features and discovered details reflecting the contributions of CSOs. It is very important because the task of the research is to see how the real image of the CSOs portrayed through Vietnamese media outlets. The study found that 113 of 447 pieces of news and features (accounting for 25%) showed the achievements of the organisations with specific statistics or general estimates. This confirmed the contributions of

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CSOs in several areas of operation such as education, community aid, and HIV/AIDS.

For example, in the field of education, the feature “Free libraries are available at many parks” indicated the contribution of Gop Sang Volunteer Group by saying “by bringing books to Le Van Tam Park (District 1) to share with others, they hope to contribute to the reading culture. They brought the message of sharing books. Now the programme is operating smoothly and getting an active response from the community, said Hien happily.” (Thanh Nien, May 4, 2011)

The contributions made by the Gop Sang Group were clearly established with the increase in the number of books, the places where the library operates, and the number of readers. “In the early weeks, there were about 500 books but now they have more than 2,000 books in many fields. To share the books with more readers, they decided to launch the programme in different parks in the city.” (Thanh Nien on May 4, 2011)

To fight against HIV/AIDS, an article titled “Whispering on the streets with the sound of the scissors” showed the contribution of Family Health International, HIV/AIDS Prevention Office under the Ministry of Health, and Thinh Quang Ward to forming a haircut team that helps spread the message of HIV/AIDS prevention. Team captain Pham Quang Anh’s enthusiasm is captured: “Over the years, thousands of people have been counselled on the risk of contracting the virus.” (Thanh Nien, July 7, 2010)

As for community support and development, the feature titled “Practical women union models” provided specific statistics showing the contribution of a society organisation to the community: “The model ‘Women group saves each day each one’ has been spread around the district with 199 groups and 7,134 members. By contributing just VND500 to 2,000 a day, the women have saved more than one billion dong to provide loans to 252 women in difficulties to improve their families’ economic situation.” (Nhan Dan, November 21, 2010)

3.1.2.7. Attitudes toward CSOs

- Attitude of public groups

The research studied the attitudes towards society organisations of politicians/authorised people, community/citizens, representatives of

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society organisations/society staff, experts/researchers, and other groups. In the 447 news and features coded, there were 128 comments. Thus, on average, there was one comment made on every 3.5 news and features.

In general, the public group had the most positive comments on the articles which had organisation representatives telling their story (accounting for 64.8%) (See Chart 11). It shows that representatives of civil society organisations have a chance to express their comments in media publications. Most of the comments from this group were positive. For example, the introduction of the news “The girl ‘singing with her hands’ stirs up Internet community” in VnExpress on June 30, 2011: “With supple body movements, Hoang Nhu expressed many songs in a new and unusual way that received positive comments from the Internet community. In her opinion, that is the way to help hearing-impaired people integrate into the society.”

With regard to the second group of comments (politicians/the authorized), the research group noted the difference between print and online stories (See Chart 12). In print, they were mostly politicians/authorised people. However, in online stories they were ordinary citizens. One explanation is that the print media reports more on INGOs and thus has a stronger voice from the authorities. But online reports more on CBOs, thus it has more citizens’ voices. Another explanation is that the print media usually quotes carefully, so it uses the voices of authorised people and politicians. The online

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media do not focus too much on quotes from officials and politicians, only on the speed of publication.

Below are some examples of news and features posting the opinions of the public groups.

An article titled “The delegation of Vietnamese Agent Orange/dioxin victims works in the U.S,” published in Nhan Dan on December 9, 2010, carried comments from politicians/ authorized people in the US about supporting Vietnamese Agent Orange/dioxin victims. “The delegation worked with Representative John Conyers, President of the House Judiciary Committee; Representative Eni F.H. Faleomavaega, President of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific and Global Environment Issues under the House Foreign Affairs’ Subcommittee; Representative Bob Filner... At these meetings, the US congressmen expressed their support for Vietnamese Agent Orange/dioxin victims.”

VnExpress reported often about activities of CBOs with comments from the community and people who benefit from those activities. For example, on September 26, 2010, VnExpress published an article titled “The tears of the poor father who nourishes his cancer-stricken daughter” with comments and expressions about the grief of the father who was struggling to save his sick daughter. “’My wife and I have had to struggle hard to get treatment for our daughter for nearly a year. We borrowed money from everyone we could and we do not know what to do now. My wife has to stay at home to take care of the field to get enough food for our 10-year-old child. She is in second grade. We are miserable since we need every cent we have for getting treatment for our child,’ Mr. Tuoi said while wiping tears from his thin face. His eight-year-old daughter, who looks like a five-year-old, saw him crying and cried too.”

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In the article, a representative of a society organisation shared his feelings about the situation of Tuoi’s family: “Colonel Hoang Dung Tuan, head of the Green Tamarind Voluntary Group (a voluntary group that comes to a cancer hospital in Tam Hiep every Sunday) said: “Bui is little but has to suffer from the grief of illness and miserable family condition. Every week, our group visits her and other child patients, helping them with a small contribution ...”

Positive comments about CSOs and their activities are found in an overwhelming majority of both print and online media outlets. There is only one exception when the WWF’s listing tra fish in the Red Book led to negative comments in newspapers. However cases like this are rare.

Regarding negative comments on WWF’s listing tra fish in the Red Book in some European countries, an article titled “WWF uses outdated document to evaluate Vietnamese tra fish,” was published in Nhan Dan on December 9, 2010. “Vietnamese tra fish withdrawn from WWF’s European red book,” was published in Thanh Nien on February 10, 2011 and “WWF lists Vietnamese tra fish in the red book of consumption: Against the benefits of consumers” was published in Tuoi Tre on December 4, 2010. Many newspapers discussed this issue and commented that the WWF putting Vietnamese tra in the red book was an action aimed at smearing the image of the Vietnamese fish.

The research also reviews positive comments at different levels. The results show that:

• Most of the positive comments hold that the organisations or the activities of the organisations are useful for people (80 out of 106 positive comments, accounting for 75.5%);

• The rest hold that the organisations or the activities of the organisations are useful for the community or society.

• No comment says that the organisations or the activities of the organisations are useful for policies or the authorities. It means that the policy advocacy part of society organisations has not been reflected in the media or the influence of society organisations on policy and authority is less.

Similarly, the research also looks into the negative comments. The results show that:

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• There were only 12 negative comments out of 128 comments, accounting for 0.9%. All of these negative comments were about the case related to the WWF listing of Vietnamese tra fish in the red book.

• All of the negative comments held that the organisations or the activities of the organisations are harmful to people, the community, society, policy, and authorities.

Therefore, it can be said that society organisations are very positively viewed by the public groups through the media.

- Attitudes of journalists

The research learnt about the attitudes of journalists towards society organisations through the published articles. They commented on the image of organisations or the activities of the organisations on 239 occasions, out of 447 news and feature stories. A majority of positive comments could be seen clearly (237 out of 239, accounting for 99%). Comments on the positive impact of the organisations on the people accounted for 78%. The rest was about the positive impact on the community or society (accounting for 18.7%) and on policy and authorities (accounting for 3.3%). (See Chart 13)

For example, the article “Practical women union models” published in Nhan Dan on November 21, 2010, showed positive comments by the journalist on the society organisation. The author

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wrote: “Other different models such as ‘Women groups reading books,’ ‘Women groups of compassion,’ ‘Friendly women groups,’ ‘Women club for community,’… in the wards are maintained. The models to gather women in Hong Bang District, Hai Phong, are really practical, attracting a large number of women to join and develop sustainably.”

We can see that the journalist use the phrases “really practical,” “attracting a large number of women,” and “develop sustainably” to praise and show his/her agreement and expectation that other authorities can learn from this model for women’s development.

3.2. SURVEY AND EVALUATION OF SOME ARTICLES ON VIETNAMNET DISCUSSING ABOUT CIVIL SOCIETY AND CSOs (From July 2010 to June 2011)

The articles on civil society and society organisations on VietnamNet were long features, usually found on Tuanvietnam.net, a VietnamNet supplement. Journalists did not usually write these articles; experts in the field of civil society did that. So the articles usually consisted of research findings on CSOs’ characteristics, roles, and activities. They usually showed the writers’ support. And they helped society and authorities at all levels to better understand about civil society and have a positive attitude to them. Hereunder are some general viewpoints gleaned from the articles on VietnamNet.

3.2.1. The role of civil society and civil society organisations

The articles pointed out the role of civil society and civil society organisations as follows:

• Supplementing the state. For example, Vu Quoc Tuan wrote in an article titled “Civil society will become more necessary”: “Together with the state, the force contributes to building and enforcing laws, overcoming the bureaucracy, and corruption of the state apparatus and filling up the shortcomings of the market.” (TuanVietnam.net, February 13, 2011)

• Observing and examining the activities of the state agencies. Vu Quoc Tuan in an article titled “Salary and illegal income of officials” wrote: “ …Observing the power and income sources of the officials not only confirms the management scope of the state agencies, ensuring the state functions properly but also purifies the

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officials so that they will really be servants of people and businesses, get incomes commensurate with their efficiency, contributing to fighting corruption. In this effort, if only state agencies cross-check each other, misconducts could be easily tolerated. Therefore the monitoring of citizens, enterprises and civil society organisations is required.” (TuanVietnam.net republished from the Saigon Businessmen Weekly, September 11, 2010).

Except for a few in-depth and direct comments on the role and development of civil society, most articles only touch on civil society by raising different issues (usually hot-button issues like corruption, inflation, officials’ salaries, natural resource exploitation…). Some articles discussed the issues, came up with solutions, and in the end mentioned civil society as a force to monitor the implementation of the solutions or contribute to their implementation or even replace the state in implementing the solutions.

3.2.2. Attitudes of the state to civil society and CSOs

The attitudes of the state to civil society and civil society organisations in the media can be summed up as follows:

• Reluctance: Specifically, the article contends that today “we” (authorities at all levels) are still reserved about using the term civil society. The author pointed out that in the past Vietnam was also reluctant about using the terms “market economy” and “state of law” (Dinh The Hung, “State of Law, civil society and … Vedan”, TuanVietnam.net, August 19, 2010).

• Open ending: The author of the article “Only when the Party renews, can the country achieve a breakthrough” pointed out that “the issue of civil society in Vietnam has been raised and researched for a long time but has not yet reached a conclusion” (TuanVietnam.net, October 5, 2010)

• Linking to sabotage forces: Thuong Tung, author of the article “Without setting a good example on efficiency how can they lead?” said that “there is a concept that these organisations facilitate bad forces to intervene and implement peaceful evolution” (TuanVietnam.net, October 16, 2010).

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3.2.3. The development of civil society and CSOs in Vietnam

There are not many articles that assessed the growth of civil society and civil society organisations in Vietnam. However, some views contrasted with each other. For example, Vu Quoc Tuan in the article “Civil society will become more necessary” said civil society organisations in Vietnam have been developing rapidly in recent years. He wrote:

“Civil society organisations have been developing rather quickly and diversely and with voluntary involvement of people and they are self-managed, non-profit, and financially independent. Civil society has been established.” (TuanVietnam.net February 13, 2011).

On the other hand, Dr Nguyen Sy Phuong said in the article “See the basket to fill the rice, don’t count the crab in the hole”, said: “Civil society lags too far behind in comparison with other countries in the world” (TuanVietnam.net, 29/10/2010).

3.2.4. Advocating for the development of civil society and CSOs

Some writers showed their support for the development of civil society. Author Dinh The Hung wrote “Civil society needs to be officially recognised” (“State of Law, civil society and … Vedan”, TuanVietnam.net, August 19, 2010). Meanwhile, Vu Quoc Tuan said: “For the development of the country, it is necessary to get rid of sceptical views and create favourable conditions for civil society and civil society organisations to develop.” (“Civil society will be increasingly necessary”, TuanVietnam.net, February 13, 2011).

In short, by surveying some articles on VietnamNet, the research group found that VietnamNet usually republished these in-depth articles from Saigon Businessmen Weekly. The authors were usually experts, still there are just a few of them, names like Dinh The Hung and Vu Quoc Tuan are repetitive. VietnamNet’s reporters usually reported on meetings and workshops and quoted experts and officials rather than writing in-depth articles.

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LIST OF 13 ARTICLES DISCUSSING CIVIL SOCIETY ON

TUANVIETNAM.NET

1. Civil society will become more necessary 2. If there is no exemplariness in productivity, how can one direct?3. Democracy, technology and speech are slow4. Only when the Party renews, the country can achieve a

breakthrough 5. Salary and illegal income of state officials 6. To fight against land corruption: To reduce the monopoly of the

administrative system7. See the basket to fill the rice, don’t count crabs in the hole 8. State of Law, civil society and …Vedan9. When all the decisions are collectively made

10. Multifunctional cadres and the hole in the mechanism 11. Administrative reform, why is it so tardy?12. To restrain inflation, don’t allow ‘fishing in troubled waters’13. Vietnam to avoid the ‘natural resource curse’

3.3. GENERAL EVALUATION OF THE SURVEY

3.3.1. Significant points about CSOs in the media

3.3.1.1. About the topics of the articles

The popular topics among the surveyed news and features were relief assistance, donation, charity, and compassion followed by education, development, and community support. Among the topics in the news such as HIV/AIDS, violence prevention, gender equality, and climate change, violence prevention and gender equality were not brought up much in the news and features about CSOs.

News and features on relief assistance, donation, charity, compassion appeared in equal proportion in print and online media. However, stories about education, development, and community support in print were four times higher than in online media.

3.3.1.2. About information relating to CSOs

In general, the print media only mentioned the names of society

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organisations. The online media had some in-depth articles about civil society organisations.

Among the organisations mentioned, INGOs were the most covered, followed by CBOs and then VNGOs. The research group contended that INGOs are bigger organisations with more sponsors and relief activities and their activities usually influence the media and attract its attention. They may have abundant financial resources for communications.

3.3.1.3. Contributions of CSOs

Only over a fourth of the surveyed news and features reported about the achievements of the organisations through specific statistics or general estimates. However, the articles mentioned achievements to confirm the contributions made by CSOs in such fields as education, community support, and combating HIV/AIDS.

3.3.1.4. Attitudes toward CSOs

In both the print and online media, the public groups quoted the most were representatives of society organisations/society staff. It meant that the representatives of society organisations had the opportunity to have their comments published in the media. Most of the comments from this group were positive. The public groups with the second highest number of comments in print were politicians and/or authorised people but online they were overtaken by community and/or citizens.

The research group also looked into positive comments at different levels and found that most of the positive comments agreed that the organisations or activities of the organizations are useful for people. Therefore, society organisations were positively viewed by the public.

A majority of journalists’ comments on society organisations were positive. Most of them were comments on the positive impacts made by the organisations on people.

3.3.2. Shortcomings of CSOs in the media

Through the survey, the research group noticed the following shortcomings in reporting about the activities of civil society organisations:

Firstly, the image of society organisations in the media was not

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sharp but blurred since they were reflected in short pieces of news, which somewhat obscured the objectives of the messages. Moreover, pictures were not usually included and were not placed in important positions. Such pieces of news do not create impressions or influences on society. There has been no real debate about civil society unlike other subjects such as businesses.

Secondly, the contents were not interesting and lacked human interest, so they were not attractive for readers. Some headlines were vague and uncreative.

Thirdly, the manner of reporting on society organisations appears unnatural, since the information was formalistic and unattractive, and the activities of CSOs were reported insipidly. It could result from the fact that society organisations did not work closely with media, or, even if they did, only provided information relating to events. Another possibility is that the events organized by the CSOs may not relate to hot, topical issues, and so failed to attract journalists’ interest. On the other hand, journalists may not have realised the importance of the activities held by the CSOs.

Fourthly, studying CSO-related articles published during the period of more than one year, the research team did not find any series of activities by any CSOs. This may mean CSOs had not had communications strategies. They seem to provide information about their organisations’ activities only when they needed it to be published. However, such articles with dry, insipid, and non-newsworthy content will not grab the public’s attention.

Finally, all the few articles published on TuanVietnam.net were written by experts or were interviews with experts. Some of them while providing a comprehensive view on civil society confirmed that civil society was still a “sensitive” issue.

3.4. EVALUATION OF IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW RESULTS

3.4.1. Content of in-depth interview

3.4.1.1. Results of interviews with leaders of media organisations.

The research group conducted in-depth interviews with some media bosses. They agreed that the image of civil society organisations

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was not deeply or clearly reflected in the Vietnamese media, except in the case when the WWF listed Vietnamese tra fish in the red book. Communication about society organisations in the media remained formal and lacks a good strategy.

The heads of media organisations thought that soon the Vietnamese media would need to pay more attention to communicating about civil society organisations.

Notably, an executive said that the media’s perception of civil society organisations should be corrected, so that media can contribute appropriately to the development and democratisation of the society.

3.4.1.2. Results of interviews with media leaders

The research group conducted in-depth interviews with some media leaders (four people) including an editor-in-chief, deputy editors-in-chief and a news general manager. The interviewees said newspapers wrote much about civil society because the activities undertaken by civil society organisations had a certain influence on social life and public interest. Information relating to Vietnam released by society organisations was a source reference and information for the media. Therefore, it could be seen that the media paid attention to the activities of civil society organisations when they had a strong influence on the public.

Most of the media managers do not give specific instructions to their reporters before they are sent out to write about the activities of civil society organisations.

But they basically required stories on society organisations to be in line with the motto of their media outlet and readers’ demands. The information had to be accurate, truthful, and not against the laws or policies of the state or habits and customs, or subvert the policy of national unity. The media chiefs did not differentiate between reporting on civil society organisations and government organisations. The most important thing for them was that the information must be of interest to the public.

In their interviews, they said that having stories with pictures depended on the information to be conveyed to the public. The reason that news and feature stories on the activities of society organisations

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did not usually carry illustrations or pictures was that the activities did not have much influence on society or pique public interest.

When editing news and features on civil society organisations’ activities, media bosses realised that most of the activities related to relief assistance, rescue, education, development, and community support because each society organisation had its own functions and goals. At industry and organisational newspapers, the editors also focused on the activities of society organisations which coincided with their own goals. For example, news and features in Thanh Nien are to a great extent about youth. Vietnamese Women and Rural Today usually report about associations and unions. Nhan Dan reports about central organisations. Two online media agencies, vnexpress.net and vietnamnet.vn, report mostly about events in the news and of interest to readers.

Generally, media managers are interested in the activities of civil society organisations. The interviewees confirmed that society organisations have a relatively important role to play in the society. One person referred to developed democracies where they encouraged the establishment of society organisations to represent different groups in society and operate within the legal framework of that country.

On the other hand, media managers want to have more voices from civil society organisations since society needs to listen to legitimate voices. Moreover, if these society organisations’ activities are for the common goal of advancing the community, they need to be supported and multiplied. The media in general thus has the responsibility of supporting those good goals.

But a media manager said that the publication of any information depends on whether the activities of a society organisation influences society and interests the readers.

3.4.1.3. Results of interviews with reporters

The research group interviewed four reporters from different media organisations.

Most of the reporters held that society organisations are important in any society. Most of these organisations’ activities are highly social

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and communal in character and there are positive activities that many people are interested in.

When asked about the number of news and features reported about society organisations’ activities, some of the interviewees said this number is small and did not reflect the activities of these organisations. One reporter said these organisations carry on with their activities every day and every hour with many outstanding events. If they had been truly reflected, the number of news and feature stories about their activities would be higher than the researchers found.

Most of the reporters said information about society organisations’ activities were mostly in the form of reportage and short news, not commentary. The reason is that many civil society organisations do not care about providing in-depth information to the media. Moreover, some media organisations in Vietnam tend to focus on hot-button issues and problems in the society and report more about negative than positive events. Some positive features about the activities of society organisations were considered to be PR to polish their names and so were not published as in-depth articles illustrated with pictures. One reason why the activities of the society organisations did not attract the attention of the public was that many readers mainly read articles about negative things and crime. They ignore development and community support activities and in-depth information.

The interviewees said stories about civil society organisations usually focus on the three following aspects:

- Activities that are highly social and communal in nature

- Projects and events pertaining to the community

- Issues of social concern

The topics that reporters are interested in while reporting about civil society organisations are what they do for the community e.g. relief assistance, helping the poor, building infrastructure in disadvantaged regions, socio-cultural issues, education and healthcare.

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Asked about the sources for their stories, most of the interviewees said they attended press conferences and joined activities undertaken by society organisations. Some reporters said they got information from people who benefited from projects launched by society organisations. Following that, they approached official sources from other society organisations.

The purpose of reporting on these society organisations was to help the public know if the activities of these organisations influenced them. For example, when a society organisation warned the public about a disease, the reporters immediately find ways to approach the source to have news and features about measures to deal with it. Therefore, this information, once published in the media, helps society organisations work more efficiently to serve society better. A reporter said some news and features about society organisations could influence the awareness of local authorities, helping the localities develop.

Generally, the reporters said, citizens-based, community-based organisations, NGOs, funds, and associations have an important role in society because they are trying to serve the community. For instance, the Association of Parents with Autistic Children and organisations to support abnormal children are places for those who are in similar situations to help one another. Most of the reporters said that any activity performed by legal organisations that benefit the people and community should be given importance.

The view of reporters specialising in this field is that the media should regularly report about civil society organisations to help the public understand more about their activities. The public can then find support and assistance from them when required.

3.4.2. General Evaluation of In-depth Interviews

By interviewing the chiefs of media organisations, media managers, and reporters about the activities of civil society organisations, the research group learnt that they all deeply appreciated them. They said that these activities have a positive impact on society and facilitate its development.

However, some leaders of media organisations said relations

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between civil society and media organisations are not close and the former only contact the latter when they need. Besides, some information they provide the media does not interest the public.

The journalists said CSOs’ public images should be further promoted, so as to get the public understand CSOs’ important role in social development.

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4. RECOMMENDATIONS

4.1. GENRAL DIRECTION (in promoting the images of CSOs in the Vietnamese media)

Civil society organizations are considered components of a modern society, so media management agencies in Vietnam should have a more comprehensive and broader view on the activities of civil society organizations. The activities conducted by civil society organizations should be considered impetus to develop the society.

Besides, the civil society organizations should build strong relationships and collaboration with legislatures, like the Legislative Committee of the National Assembly, and with a number of central departments of the Party and the government, to advocate for the support of these agencies for the activities implemented by the CSOs for the benefit of the community and society.

Civil society organizations should have communication strategies, with short, medium and long term action plans. The relationships with media organizations from central to local levels should be built up. Civil society organizations should take into account the role of media while designing community and social activities.

The civil society organizations themselves should also have new, creative activities, for the public to easily realise their significant role in the country’s development. The quality in their activities should be improved, new way to reach the media should be found out, so that CSOs could become a focus of media and the media could actively communicate about CSOs.

4.2. SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS

To consolidate and improve the image of society organizations in Vietnamese press, society organizations should be proactive in the communication process in the upcoming time.

First, leaders of society organizations need to change their mindset of communication, diversify their events and activities and to make

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the events become engaging and attractive to the public. Especially, leaders of civil society organizations should consider the press as the most efficient communication channel to promote their images among the public. They can sign long-term cooperation agreements with media organizations to sponsor information about their activities.

Second, CSOs should have a communication officer or even a communication department responsible for preparing communication plans and contacting the press and monitoring how the press cover the organizations. The person in charge of communication should have knowledge about the press, and skills of gathering and processing information, writing and editing stories. He or she should have a dynamic personality and good foreign language competence. Also, CSOs need to train, or send their communication officer and other staff to training courses on communication so that they can provide the information journalists need, not only the information they have.

Third, CSOs should establish a network of reporters who work closely with society organizations and write about their activities. Monthly reports on activities of the organizations should be sent to the reporters so that they are fully informed and actively contact the organizations to get specific information of their concern.

Fourth, CSOs should have their own websites which link with social networks that Vietnamese people favour such as facebook, twitter, zingme. This is a cheap but effective communication channel. However, to do this, civil society organizations should have IT staff to maintain the operation of the website. The website should be updated regularly with the information about the activities of the organizations so that reporters and the public can have chance to get more information from the website and have closer relations with the society organizations.

Fifth, CSOs should work more closely with experts and researchers on civil society to promote deeper and broader discussions in the society. They are effective communicators for CSOs as in the case of articles published on Vietnamnet. The opinions of experts and researchers who understand civil society will give the public a correct understanding of civil society.

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Sixth, groups or associations of civil society organizations that have common goals should be established to utilise common resources. These groups/associations have the responsibility to advocate the press to improve the public images of their groups/associations and members. Within those groups/associations, there should be a communication department that works independently with independent budget. When one member of the groups/associations organize an event, all members are responsible to help and share information. This model of communication can help small and newly-established organizations, which are unable to have their own communication personnel, to promote their images in the media.

Seventh, the last but very important recommendation, CSOs should co-ordinate with capable media agencies or with Vietnamese Journalists Association to organize training courses for reporters in political and social fields on civil society and activities of CSOs. On the other hand, civil society organizations working in the same field can co-organize specialized conferences and workshops, inviting reporters to take part not only to write about the events, but also to have chances to understand better and have closer relations with civil society organizations.

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REFERENCES

1 Alexa.com on November 18th

2 Andrew Wells-Dang, Informal Pathbreakers: Civil Society Networks in China and Vietnam, University of Birmingham Research Archive, 2011, p.24.

3 Concept on civil society organizations, published on October 29th, 2009 at http://www.ytecongcong.com/index.php?

4 Developing civil society organizations in Nghia Binh Commune, Nghia Dan District, Nghe An Province.

5 http://www.hcmulaw.edu.vn/

6 Le Thi Thanh Huong: Civil society in Malaysia and Thailand. Social Science Publishing House, Hanoi, 2009.

7Pham Bich San, The Cooperation between Non-governmental Organizations and State in Vietnam: the Prospect of Restructure?, Annual Conference of Non-governmental Organizations in Vietnam, 2011.

8Thang Van Phuc & Nguyen Minh Phuong, Roles of society organizations in developing and managing the society, National Politics Publishing House, Hanoi, 2010.

9 Sketches on civil society in history and experiences in our country, updated on Wednesday, May 27th, 2009, at http://www.hcmulaw.edu.vn/

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APPENDIX

LIST OF KEY WORDS FOR SAMPLING

Form of Organisation Field of Operation

Organisation - Non-governmental (NGO)- Not-for-profit- Civil Society (CSO)- Community- Community-Based (CBO)- Social

Fund - Education- Philanthropic- Golden Heart- For the Poor- Charitable- Community Development- Supporting

Group - Charitable- Working- Volunteer- Community

Association - Education - Rescue- Charitable- Philanthropic- Natural disaster mitigation- HIV/AIDS- Anti-violence- Natural conservation

Club - Philanthropic- Volunteer- Environment protection- Climate change- Community education- Natural conservation- Innovative

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Cooperative group - Poverty reduction- For the poor- Farmer/rural area

Establishment - Philanthropic- Charitable

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