"Nowadays, even a small bit of military news about the army in Guangzhou can become a global headline the next day," said Lieutenant Tian, who has called for an end to the traditional mindset. "There is no easy way for the PLA press officers to separate what is fit for domestic readers from military-specialized readers."

After passing the media boot camp, Ma Lan, 36, said she had been shocked by some of the questions she was asked in the mock press conferences.

"I never imagined I'd be asked at a press conference about my salary being raised as part of the growing defense budget until I actually was," said Ma, who works at the National Defense University, the PLA's top academy. "But these questions are closer to the reality. This is what the outside world wants to know."

Professor Meng said: "This is just the beginning. There are young lieutenants now, as well as experienced colonels, who are aware more openness is needed for the army's modernizing."

Military officers and scholars suggested there were plans to increase the number of spokesmen and women in units across the nation. But the Ministry of National Defense said it had no immediate plans to do so.

In the meantime, Lieutenant Tian and his 50 colleagues are eager to start changing the face of the PLA.

"We need more transparency and we need to hone the skills to make it happen," he added.

(China Daily July 23, 2009)