追寻传播的“另类现代性”:重读斯迈思的《中国笔记》

In Search of a Communication Alternative Modernity: Revisiting Dallas Smythe’s China Notes

达拉斯·斯迈思被誉为传播政治经济学的开创者之一。他抱着寻找不同于西方发达国家的'另类现代性'的想法,于20世纪70年代两度造访中国,就传播制度设计与大众媒体生态等重要议题开展调研,积累了大量日记、手稿、调研笔记和报刊资料,并在此基础上撰写了多部重要论著。中国之行不仅影响了其学术思想的形成和发展,也深刻地改变了其人生轨迹。通过梳理斯迈思的中国传播研究相关档案,可以还原这一段西方传播研究和思想史中尘封已久的'中国时刻',并为发展中国家继续探索'另类现代性'和建立更为公平、公正、合理的国际传播新秩序提供思想上的启迪。

Dallas Smythe is widely acknowledged as the inaugurator of Political Economy of Communications Studies in the West.In order to unearth the modes of alternative modernity of media policy and communication systems away from the Western developed countries,he visited China in the 1970 s twice.During his two trips,Dallas Smythe wrote down plenty of diaries,manuscripts and notes,collected numerous newspapers,posters and journal articles,and composed several pivotal essays based on them.The China trips not only influenced the formation and maturation of his thoughts of communications,but also altered his life trajectory thereafter.By re-examining archives and historical materials on his Chinese communication notes,the overshadowed'China moment'in the Western communication studies and history of ideas can thus be foregrounded,which enabled us to reconsider the possible alternative modernity trajectory for the developing countries,therefore constructing and refreshing a more equal,justifiable and reasonable international communication and information order in the near future.