GLOBAL BUSINESS JOURNALISM NEWSLETTER
February 2025
Global Business Journalism students did their share of globetrotting during the winter break (as you can read below), but they're back on campus for what is shaping up as an exciting and eventful spring semester.
Professor Rick Dunham's Hot Topics class is blazing hot, with new U.S. President Donald Trump ripping up 80 years of transatlantic alliances and global economic architecture in one month's time. (See the item below.)
The Tsinghua School of Journalism and Communication is committed to remain on the cutting edge of journalism technology, so we've added a new course in Business News Data Visualization, which has attracted a wide range of students from GBJ to the dual degree master's program in partnership with the University of Southern California.
Our second-year students are hard at work on their master's projects, whether that means a thesis or a journalism portfolio. Want to know the academic schedule for the rest of the year? Read on ...
New courses, new professors this semester
Professors Pam Tobey (left) and Cary O'Reilly (right)
Global Business Journalism students have the opportunities to take new courses and study new business-related topics for the first time this semester.
The Tsinghua School of Journalism and Communication has inaugurated a new course called Business News Data Visualization taught by Pam Tobey, an award-winning graphic artist with 30 years of experience at the Washington Post. Professor Tobey came to Tsinghua after nine years as visuals director at the Beijing Review, an English language newsmagazine based in Beijing.
The course is designed to teach students in the GBJ and Tsinghua-USC data science dual degree program to more effectively research, visualize and analyze economic data. The course will include lectures, hands-on workshops and in-class training, and sessions with globally respected graphic designers and data visualization experts.
GBJ also welcomes visiting professor Cary O'Reilly, a veteran reporter and editor with extensive experience at Bloomberg News and other business journalism news organizations. Professor O'Reilly has been based in Washington, D.C., Switzerland, Japan and Singapore in a three-decade journalism career. He will be teaching the journalism school's intercultural communication course.
He also will be introducing two new subjects to the GBJ curriculum in the Hot Topics course: the business of healthcare and the top of ESG, sustainability and corporate governance. Both of those topics are high priorities of the program's co-sponsors, Bloomberg News and the International Center for Journalists, and may become subjects of courses in future semesters.
2. Finnish journalist Matti Posio discusses how Donald Trump has shaken U.S. relations with Europe, world
Turmoil on the international political stage. A wake-up call for European leaders. And a global economy that is almost as uncertain as it is impossible to predict the U.S. president’s next move.
The discussion in the second ”Hot Topics of the Global Economy” class of the semester covered the seismic shifts in global economics and alliances created by the actions of newly returned American leader Donald Trump with expert insight from a respected Finnish editor-in-chief, Matti Posio.
”I’m sure we’re experiencing the biggest twist and turn there has ever been,” Posio told the Global Business Journalism students. ”We’re looking at sort of an existential shock to our worldview.”
Posio, a former Moscow correspondent who’s been covering international news since before Vladimir Putin’s rise to power in Russia, discussed the shifting geopolitical landscape, the Trump factor on the
global economy, NATO and the war in Ukraine.
”It’s a very interesting moment in time where we don’t really understand what the compass is pointing at,” Posio said.
Many financial experts and senior correspondents agree that massive uncertainty is hanging on President Trump’s actions, with their potential impact on a global scale being impossible to predict (or even imagine).
”The question is: How much damage will already have been done?” Posio stated. ”Not only to America's and the West's standing in the world, but also to the American political system and democracy internally.”
The veteran Finnish journalist said Trump's actions already had resulted in a "huge loss" in America's soft power around the globe while elevating the standing of China.
"China's influence is the world is on the rise just by the Americans going away," he said.
3. Winter break: GBJ students travel the world for fun, appear on the biggest TV show in China – and do some serious academic research, too
The semester break saw our Global Business Journalism students fan out around the world. No one more so than Viktoriia Markova. Here's our. report:
Viktoriia Markina of Russia:
"During the holidays, I felt like I mastered all four elements: spent 30 hours in the air, witnessed wildfires in LA, reflected on my life while gazing at the Black Sea in Crimea and recharged with the powerful energy of my motherland in Moscow. And, of course, meeting my friends brought everything together with their grounding warmth."
Alexandre Guery of France:
" 🎶✨ I was honored to have performed on CCTV-1’s New Year's Gala! 🎶 For those who might not know, CCTV-1 is China’s biggest national TV channel, and its New Year's Gala is one of the most-watched TV events in the world. Millions of people tune in every year, and this time, I had the incredible opportunity to be part of a special Guangxi folk music performance on Feb. 1. I was lucky to share the stage with the amazing Wang Ou (王鸥), a talented actress and singer known for her role in the hit historical drama Nirvana in Fire (琅琊榜). We sang a multilingual version of "Folk Songs Are Like Spring River Water" (山歌好比春江水), blending Guangxi’s beautiful folk melodies with different musical influences."
Jhane Cago of the Philippines:
"If the United Nations were a country, its name would be Dubai. This winter vacation, I traveled to Dubai to attend the 2025 Arab Health Conference. There, I witnessed groundbreaking advancements in pharmaceuticals, the integration of artificial intelligence in medicine, and the vital role women play in the advancement of healthcare. My experience at the trade fair sparked a strong interest in pursuing health communication for my GBJ thesis, with a particular focus on developments in the pharmaceutical industry."
Zuzanna Bialas of Poland:
"I traveled to the 望仙谷 Wangxian Valley during winter break."
Jacky Ma of Singapore:
"I went back to Singapore and then traveled to Bintan Island. We watched fireflies by boat at night in the rain forest."
Salisa Vajrabhaya of Thailand:
"I went to Shenyang and tried snowboarding for the first time…"
Emiel Bessem of Belgium:
"I traveled to Qiqihaer to visit two English teachers that I met on my flight to Beijing in August. They allowed me to stay at their home and it felt like I was adopted into a Chinese family for a few days!"
4. GBJ students visit the Financial Times offices
Global Business Journalism students visited FT Chinese editor Wang Feng at his news organization's office in Beijing's Chaoyang district on March 25.
After an office tour, where Business News Writing course students got a glimpse of how the Financial Times uses AI to produce news articles, Wang Feng treated students to some cake and hot drinks while
discussing current issues.
Here is some reaction from first-year GBJ students who attended:
Jhane Cago of the Philippines:
”I really like the fact that we can have lectures outside the classroom. Teacher and
student learning should not be in a classroom set-up where the atmosphere is so rigid.
"We learned about the discipline of journalism and the challenges and opportunities in
its industry with a sip of a coffee (not to mention also in a luxurious hotel). Just a cup of coffee with teacher and students that is so open and relaxed [gives you an] opportunity to expand your thought process more and learn so many things.”
Viktoriia Markina of Russia:
”The opportunity to step into the Financial Times office is enough to send a thrill of
excitement through you. But what made the visit truly special was seeing Professor
Wang not just as a guide on our academic journey, but as a person. Meeting him in a
more relaxed setting served as a gentle reminder that behind every great teacher is a
human being with their own stories and perspectives.”
Zuzanna Bialas of Poland:
”I really enjoyed seeing the work environment at the Financial Times and getting a
firsthand look at how a leading media company operates.
"The most insightful point was when the professor emphasized the importance of
adaptability in journalism, especially with how quickly the media landscape is evolving. It
really highlighted the need for continuous learning and staying ahead of industry
trends.”
5. Tsinghua sets June 22 graduate commencement date
There's not much time off for our GBJ students this spring in the sprint to the end of the academic year.
There's a single day off for the Tomb Sweeping Festival: Friday, April 5. The Dragon Boat Festival of May 31—June 2 will affect classes on Monday the 2nd. But stay tuned in case the university later decides that those classes must be made up.
The one break week for everyone will be April 30—May 5 for the national Labor Day holiday.
Another special celebration this spring will be the 114th anniversary of Tsinghua University, to be celebrated on April 26 and 27. That weekend of festivities does not affect our GBJ classes, however.
Although Tsinghua University's graduate-student commencement is scheduled on June 22, the Tsinghua journalism school commencement has not been announced. If past is prologue, it will be held a few days before the university-wide ceremony. Final announcements of a schedule for thesis defense and GBJ graduate ceremonies are expected in April or May.
And, oh, yes, summer break ends on Aug. 31.
6. Bakhtawar Tauseef takes us to Yiwu, the global trading hub that's partners with startups
For entrepreneurs looking to start a business, there’s an unlikely gem in China that offers
unmatched benefits — Yiwu. Known as the world’s largest small commodity wholesale market, Yiwu has evolved into an international trade powerhouse, attracting businesses from every corner of the globe.
During the Spring Festival break, Global Business Journalism reporter Bakhtawar Tauseef journeyed to Yiwu, located in eastern China's Zhejiang province, to examine the bustling hub where small businesses can thrive in a unique international economic ecosystem. Unlike major economic centers like Shanghai or Beijing, where high operational costs can
be a barrier to enter into the market, she found, Yiwu offers a more affordable, accessible alternative with a well-tested supply chain network. With a dynamic marketplace that’s over 2 million products across 75,000+ booths, its trade center offers entrepreneurs access to an extensive range of goods at competitive prices, making it an ideal location for sourcing and exporting.
7. GBJ reporters offer advice on how to create viral videos for social media
GBJ's Multimedia Reporting course trains our students in the latest tools to become multimedia journalists. Now, our students are giving advice to train other journalists to become beter multimedia reporters.
This month, we've posted two articles on the GBJ website offering advice from GBJ reporters on producing video content and using your short videos to build a community on social media. Make sure to check out Jhane Cago's thoughtful piece, "From news to Reels: 5 ways to transform your reporting into engaging videos." Jhane explains how video storytelling differs from other journalism mediums and describes multiple strategies to attract and reward viewers. Here's one: In contemporary news video, you have just three – yes, three! – seconds to hook the viewer.
Salisa Vajrabhaya takes a different approach in her article, "6 essential tips to help you navigate TikTok’s algorithm." She uses the popular short-video platform as a case studio and explains the importance of mastering a social media platform's algorithm if you want your videos to reach the widest-possible audience.
The difference between a successful and an unsuccessful video is not always a question of quality, she notes. It's your ability to master the algorithm.
Check out our Global Business Journalism tipsheets homepage to see our advice on a wide range of journalism topics.
Or you can read the latest GBJ journalism tips on our newsfeed.
8. Catch up on other headlines from GlobalBusinessJournalism.com
Here are some other stories we've published on our website since our last newsletter, in case you've missed them:
Thanks for reading the February GBJ newsletter. We'll be back with more news and updates from students, alumni and faculty next month. If you want to be the first to read each GBJ newsletter, subscribe here and receive an email notification when a new newsletter is published.
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