BEIJING, July 13 (Xinhua) -- A national training session for spokesmen from multiple government departments concluded Friday, with the officials receiving training to help them deal with the media.
The five-day training session, the first of its kind organized by the State Council Information Office and the National School of Administration, is intended to become a standard training platform for high-caliber government spokesmen.
Spokespersons from more than 32 central government agencies and 26 provincial-level governments attended the session, which included courses on releasing news through both conventional and new media.
"News releases are a way to boost the openness of government affairs, maintain credibility and ensure people's rights to knowledge, participation, expression and supervision," said Wang Chen, director of the State Council Information Office.
Government news releases are also a channel for the international community to understand China's development and policies, Wang said.
He stressed the importance of "seeking truth from facts" in being a spokesman, as "public trust cannot be gained if this is not done."
Lecturers included officials, scholars, veteran journalists and experienced spokesmen.
Since 2003, the State Council Information Office has held one or two training sessions annually for government spokesmen.
Liu Jianming, spokesman for the Ministry of Water Resources, said spokesmen have become more important, as the public is paying more attention to government transparency.