After Silence, China Mounts Product Safety PR Offensive

By Ariana Eunjung Cha
Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, July 14, 2007; A01

BEIJING -- Scanning the headlines in the Chinese press, it's easy to conclude that the global brouhaha over product safety is not about China -- but about America.

Investigative reports in the state-run media delve into the case of an exploding cellphone purportedly made by U.S.-based Motorola that allegedly killed a young man. They warn consumers not to use contact-lens solution produced by U.S.-based Advanced Medical Optics, which has been linked to rare cases of blindness. And they play up recalls of U.S. beef.

Faced with mounting international concern over the safety of some of the products it exports, the Chinese government -- often perceived as defensive and clumsy in how it handles public relations -- is firing back.

In Washington, China has put together a team of lobbyists who have been practically living on Capitol Hill for the past few weeks. In Beijing, the government has taken the unusual step of seeking advice from outsiders, including public relations powerhouses Ogilvy and Edelman, about how to get positive messages out to Chinese and American consumers.

The result has been an aggressive campaign to save the "Made in China" label by presenting an alternate view on consumer safety and globalization. The message is that China isn't the only country that has had problems with the products it exports. China, as government officials have been pointing out in recent days, rejects U.S. imports at a rate that is just a little less than the 1 percent of Chinese products rejected by the United States.

"China feels it is getting beaten up for things that are happening on a reciprocal basis to them," said Scott Kronick, head of Ogilvy's China practice.

At the same time, the Chinese government is trying to show that it is taking seriously recent recalls by making examples of individuals and companies that allegedly contributed to the problems. The recalls have included pet food laced with an industrial chemical, toys coated with lead paint, defective tires and toothpaste made with toxic chemicals.

The government has played up the fact that Zheng Xiaoyu, country's former chief food and drug regulator, was executed this week and that 180 factories that put industrial chemicals into food have been shut down.

The approach represents a radical shift from how China has disseminated information in the past. Since the Communist Party rose to power in 1949, the job of propaganda offices has been largely to promote such slogans as "Serve the People" and "It is Good to Have Just One Child," which were written on chalkboards on almost every block.

Now the propaganda offices are being pushed to respond to breaking news and criticism from foreign governments and consumers half a world away.

When questions about Chinese food safety arose in March, following the death of scores of pets in the United States, the Chinese government's response was silence. Then it was denial, as officials brushed off the accusations as fabrications and called them another salvo in a growing trade war between the two countries.

But in recent days, the government has gone on the offensive. It is issuing almost daily statements saying how much it is doing to improve food and consumer safety. On July 3, it reported it was stepping up anti-corruption efforts. On July 4, it said it would ban firms that advertise medical claims that have not been approved by the government. On July 5 it said it was working on the country's first food recall system.

At a news conference last week, Qin Gang, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, uncharacteristically fired back at reporters who asked if he would comment on why the quality of Chinese exports had become an issue of such intense debate worldwide.

"Why don't you tell me?" he said. "If the media made less sensational news, the situation might not be so bad. . . . Chinese exports are at least as safe as U.S. exports -- if not better than them."

In a two-hour session with reporters on Tuesday, a panel of high-ranking officials from five agencies responsible for food safety handed out about 50 pages of information in Chinese and English about specific actions China is taking to overhaul its food and drug safety system. The officials repeatedly assured reporters that China's government is "a responsible government."

In Washington, when the pet-food controversy was growing, Chinese officials met twice with Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), both of whom have been vocal on Chinese import safety issues. The first meeting was in April, when the Food and Drug Administration was attempting to secure visas to send inspectors to China. The FDA inspectors were granted visas shortly after the meeting.

"They responded quickly," Durbin said. "I think they are sensitive to the fact that American consumers are concerned."

China has also hired Patton Boggs, one of the country's largest lobbying firms, for $22,000 a month for counseling on "United States Congressional matters," according to Patton's lobbying filing. The firm declined to comment on its work with China.

Kronick, who has worked in China for 12 years and has advised the central government and various cities on public relations, believes the openness is going a long way to address concerns. "Consumer populations buying those products want to hear someone is taking responsibility, someone is making assurances," he said.

On the other hand, Shi Anbin, an associate professor of media and cultural studies at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said that trying to turn the tables and focus attention on problems with U.S. products is "not a wise strategy."

"We need to face our own problems rather than pointing an accusing finger at a scapegoat," Shi said. "I believe Chinese officials still need to learn some PR and communication skills."

Sen. Charles E. Schumer, chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, which has been pushing for punitive trade legislation against China, described the execution of the former head of the Chinese food and drug administration and the country's new ban of a chemical that was mixed in toothpaste as "surreal actions."

These "prove that China just doesn't understand the real problems," the New York Democrat said.

Meanwhile, many Chinese companies that have been caught up in the recent recalls because they have produced shoddy products or because they compete with companies that do are taking their cues from the government and scrambling to distance themselves from the scandals. They frequently say it is unfair to treat all Chinese companies like criminal operations.

Contaminated wheat gluten is thought to have been the cause of the death of pets in the United States, and after the recall of pet food, the Chinese government started testing all sorts of wheat products before allowing them to be shipped overseas. "We are confident in our product. Our wheat-related products are all in accordance to national standards. The message to the U.S. is that our wheat products are all safe," said Zhao Yi, secretary general of the China Wheat Association.

"We won't avoid saying that of course there are some manufacturers that have problems, but in general it's a pretty good situation," Wang Liang, head of the China Catfish Association, which is affiliated with the Agriculture Ministry.

The catfish group is telling importers that its members are seeking independent verification of quality from an international inspection firm.

Meanwhile, the increasingly hostile trade conflict has left U.S. companies in a vulnerable situation.

Motorola has said it was helping the Chinese government investigate the allegedly exploding phone. But the Schaumburg, Ill., company believes it is "highly unlikely that the cellphone caused this accident," said Yang Boning, a Motorola spokesman in China. Motorola has said it thinks the phone or battery may have been counterfeit.

Nevertheless, the incident has brought out hostility in some Chinese consumers. The headline on one online bulletin board posting blares, "America's Motorola is following Bin Laden's example, killing Chinese with explosion." It quotes from the official New China News Agency in giving examples of past quality problems, though its main purpose seems to be complaining about Motorola's after-sales service.

Dan Harris, a U.S.-based attorney who runs a popular China law blog and represents small to mid-sized companies doing business with China, said the shift in the government's public relations strategy "is definitely smart on their part. They are not going to convince Americans that everything is okay just by denials."

He predicted it would take years, if not decades, to undo the damage done to the reputation of Chinese manufacturers in recent months. "My view is that no matter what they say they are going to do and no matter how much they want to do it, the problem is so massive and so deep-seated that I think it's going to take huge amounts of money and a very long time for it to be cleaned up," he said.

Staff writer Renae Merle in Washington contributed to this report.