May Newsletter: Final thesis defenses are completed! GBJ students celebrate Global Village Day. The top 5 cafés on campus. And a very (very) Special Scoop

GLOBAL BUSINESS JOURNALISM NEWSLETTER

May 2024

By VICKI CHALERMLAPVORABOON

Global Business Journalism reporter

Greetings, readers! I write to you in the sweltering heat of this particularly warm late spring day. As I currently sit in the library, surrounded by fellow students preparing for final exams, I'll take this moment to share some exciting news from our GBJ colleagues.

While many of us are facing the upcoming challenges of the finals, another cohort of students has successfully completed their final projects.

1. Hard work pays off: GBJ students successfully complete their thesis (and portfolio) defenses

On a tense Monday in mid-May, 14 final-year Global Business Journalism students completed their oral defenses of their academic theses and journalism portfolios – another significant moment in their master's journeys. Two weeks later, on May 29, the final revised versions of their projects were submitted to the Tsinghua University academic office successfully, clearing the path for university-level graduation on June 30.

Over the course of a year, the students from 12 different countries dedicated themselves to intensive research and portfolio development on a wide range of topics, including social media, branding, supply chains, Chinese traditional medicine, disinformation and cryptocurrency.

We extend our congratulations on this remarkable achievement!

(Photo gallery by Rick Dunham)

2. Happy Global Village Day!

Annually, Tsinghua University hosts an unforgettable event: Global Village Day, a celebration of the rich diversity and unique cultural offerings from around the world. This year marks the 12th Tsinghua University International Cultural Festival. Among the visitors were Evender Hsu from Malaysia and yours truly from Thailand, who had the opportunity to enjoy live performances and savor local delicacies like Thai Milk Tea and Nasi Lemak.

Participants in the national booths included 2023 GBJ graduate Maria Vula of Fiji, now an editor at Xinhua News Service, second-year GBJ student Nguyen Hà Linh of Vietnam and visiting fellow Bilge Bayar of Mongolia.

3. Popular content creator “Rachel Meets China” meets GBJ students

Rachel Weiss, the innovative video blogger (vlogger) and social media content creator behind “Rachel Meets China” visited Tsinghua University campus on May 28 to give a lecture to Professor Suzanne Struglinski's Intercultural Communication class. She told GBJ students of working as a content creator in China targeting an international, English-speaking audience. She offered advice about branding, having key pillars to make your content stand out and valuable insights on enhancing search engine optimization for the branded page.

Weiss also works as a new media editor and host of a travel program on CGTN. She graduated from Harding University in the United States in 2015 and has been working and living in China since graduation.

4. This month’s very (very) Special Scoop features Professor Rick Dunham

This is a long-anticipated (and long-delayed) edition of GBJ Special Scoop. In our latest GBJ newsmagazine, Professor Dunham, the current co-director of the Global Business Journalism program, shares his journey: growing up in an artistically rich family, attending one of USA’s top universities, becoming an established journalist for 40 years, and traveling across the world to become co-director of a master's program at China’s most prestigious university. Please enjoy this special Special Scoop!

5. A double dose of GBJ summer programs

GBJ never sleeps. While others take summer vacations, your favorite Tsinghua program will be busy operating academic programs for current and future students. In Beijing, GBJ co-director Hang Min has conceived of a two-week summer camp hosted by the Tsinghua School of Journalism and Communication for university undergraduates who are not Chinese citizens. The goal is to attract more international students to Tsinghua's graduate journalism programs, including Global Business Journalism.

While the China program will run from July 1-15, a summer journalism and leadership training program led by GBJ co-director Rick Dunham will take place in Washington, D.C., from July 28 to August 7. It will feature journalism skills workshops, mentoring sessions with leading journalists, policy briefings, reporting fieldwork, visits to media offices and cultural exchanges. It's the third GBJ-led international initiative in 13 months, following a program in Thailand in July 2023 and one in Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands in January. There's still time to apply ... if you do it very quickly. The deadline for GBJ students (or recent alumni) is June 7.

6. GBJ's Stephanie Fallas Sandi takes you on a search for the best coffee houses and cafés on the Tsinghua campus

There are many things to do on campus; visiting new libraries, unwinding in the park and treating yourself to an ice cream at QQ fast food. But a couple of days ago, Second-year GBJ student Stephanie Fallas Sandi from Costa Rica explored the campus to find the good places and hidden drink menu to order. I was lucky enough to join her on this journey.

Here’s all you need to know and where to visit in the “Discovering Coffee Delights at Tsinghua University.” (And some non-coffee drinks, too.) Read the full story here.

7. Catch up on other headlines from GlobalBusinessJournalism.com

It's been a great month for the Global Business Journalism website, with a wide variety of news stories making their debuts. Here are links to some of them, in case you've missed them before reading our GBJ newsletter: