影像大使与影像外交——论纪录片在现代国际关系中的作用

Image Ambassador and Image Diplomacy:Ducumentary Film in the Modern International Relations

作为最具影响力的传媒,电影、电视与互联网在现代国际关系中履行着重要的外交职能。“装在铁盒里的大使”曾是人们对电影外交职能的描述,电视时代和网络时代到来之后这种提法应该扩展为“影像大使”,以便将更多种类的影像的外交职能涵盖进来。对现代外交产生最直接影响的往往是纪录片,一部纪录片的历史可以说是一部由活动影像构建的现代国际关系史。电影在诞生之初就已具备外交职能,但当时人们对这种职能的认识和利用是不自觉的,早期的电影外交职能虽然带有官方色彩,实质却是民间的。纪录电影被自觉用作官方外交手段大约始于一战时期,并在二战时期得到广泛运用。

As the most influential media,cinema,television and internet are playing an important role in the modern international relations.'Ambassador in the Iron Box'has long been the description of the important diplomatic function of cinema.Today this description shoud be changed into'Image Ambassador 'in order to include the diplomatic function of more kinds of images.The diplomatic function of images is in most cases realized by documentary film.The history of documentary film could be considered as the history of modern international relations composed by motion picture.The conscious application of cinema by government in diplomacy began from the World WarⅠ,and was put in to an important position during the World WarⅡ.