Last week when I was in China, there was one word that seemed to be on everyone’s lips: Weibo, which is the Chinese microblogging platform that’s analogous to Twitter (but it should be noted that you can get more across in 140 spaces using Chinese characters compared to the Roman alphabet).

After a terrible train crash on the country’s celebrated new high-speed rail system, there was a tremendous outpouring of emotion from millions of people in China who were expressing their sadness over the loss of life, disbelief at the official reports, and anger at why the accident happened and what seemed to be an inadequate explanation afterwards.

Among other things, Weibo appears to have become an easy way for people to vent about things in a country where, while the mainstream media is relatively freewheeling covering the commercial sector, it is much more circumspect when it comes to the government domain. Even if Weibo is a way to sound off, I was told that there are certain taboo comments that are blocked when one tries to post them, and that censors will delete impermissible comments after they have been posted.

This train crash incident is the latest one I’ve noticed where anger is amplified so quickly online, with riots of rage breaking out on social networks especially in jurisdictions where there are people who have felt politically or economically constrained. In many parts of Asia, fitting in with the group harmony rather than standing out can be the governing dynamic, but social networks may be changing this cultural assumption.

I think we saw this most recently in the Japanese social media reaction in Japan and China last September, when Japan accused a Chinese fishing boat of deliberately ramming two patrol vessels near disputed islands in the East China Sea, causing a massive digital diplomatic row between the two countries.

What happened on social networks after this incident and after the recent train crash shows how the emotions of millions can be experienced as a community’s collective consciousness…like a national nervous system. I reckon there can be positive mass manifestation of strong sentiment, but sometimes there’s an ugly side to it as well. What I find intriguing is the speed and intensity with which anger can cycle up into outrage online.

Even if microblogs can play a useful role protecting the record and holding institutions to account, sometimes troubling is the lack of hard information possessed by those making summary judgments who often overrate what they know as the basis for forming opinions. Then there is the apparent digital reduction of empathy for other people, ironic inasmuch as the technology offers so many new ways to bring us together as never before.

Despite the bold and fearless talk on Weibo, during the nine media interviews I did in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, while all of the journalists evidenced intense interest regarding digital crisis communications in general, none of them asked about the train incident in particular.

I asked all of the reporters if they use Weibo themselves, and they all replied in the affirmative. Some said they use it for work. Others declared that they use it exclusively for personal purposes. Some declared that they use it for both.

In this respect, whether it’s the psychology of digital networks or how individuals are sorting out their profiles and personality online, despite a very unique social media ecosystem, in these respects China shares much in common with the rest of the digital world.

On August 31^st 1985, China Global Public Relations opened its doors for business in Beijing. This event marked the entry of Burson-Marsteller into the Greater China market through its joint venture with Xinhua News Agency. This predecessor entity lasted eight years, after which Burson-Marsteller opened offices under the B-M brand in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

Harold Burson once commented that his visit to China in 1986 was among his most memorable, but in those days it must have been difficult to foresee just how far and how fast Burson-Marsteller’s relationship with China would progress. Today, as B-M China celebrates its 25^th anniversary, we can look back on a quarter century of achievement during which time our China business has expanded to four offices with more than 150 professionals serving the growing needs of an expanding community of clients (foreign multinationals communicating with China, and Chinese multinationals communicating around the world).

It’s an understatement to say that the Chinese market is an important one for Burson-Marsteller both in Asia-Pacific and globally. Yes, it is important on account of the sheer size of its domestic market and strategic value to our clients. But its significance transcends the financial quantity of imported PR investment from overseas. When I think of B-M in China, I think in terms of the rising quality imperative, with excellent prospects for the expanding export of Chinese ideas, talent and client commerce to the rest of the world.

Under the leadership of Cindy Tian and her rising team, Burson-Marsteller China has continued to set the standard as a premier strategic communications consultancy. Our China business has client relationships stretching back for years with some of the firm’s flagship global clients. We have done groundbreaking client work in the digital, technology, industrial, brand marketing and corporate spaces and are now rapidly growing our business in the energy sector, among others. When I first visited B-M China earlier this year, I was immediately impressed by the sense of enthusiasm, professionalism and commitment to client service that characterize our offices around the country.

As Burson-Marsteller China celebrates its landmark history today, our Global CEO Mark Penn could not be stronger in his staunch support of building a successful China business for the future, so please join us in congratulating B-M China on 25 great years of business achievement, with best wishes for many years of continued prosperity to come.

Today in Shanghai it was my honor to address the China New Social Media Forum on the crafting and co-creation of persuasion narratives, digital storytelling through the news feed with stakeholders, producing and packaging content for the new public mind. I also spoke about how PR is the key marketing discipline when it comes to both promoting and protecting image in the modern world of social networks.

View more presentations from Robert Pickard.