This dissertation studies the construction of Chinese nationalism by the Chinese government and media companies through mass communication of government-staged and abrupt events in the reform era... Show moreThis dissertation studies the construction of Chinese nationalism by the Chinese government and media companies through mass communication of government-staged and abrupt events in the reform era between 2008 and 2012. It examines how Chinese audiences express online nationalist sentiments, representing whether the communication of media events meets the social demands established by “dream discourses.” Using mixed qualitative and quantitative methods, it focuses on two case studies: the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2012 Diaoyu (Senkaku) Islands incident. The dissertation finds that these mass media events play a significant role in shaping Chinese state nationalism and popular nationalism. The related mass communication helps the Chinese government increase or, at least, maintain its legitimacy through various strategies. The findings of this dissertation also show that as Chinese audiences have increasingly voiced themselves in the information age, the government will keep treating the robust, uneasy entanglement of nationalism, globalization, and digital media more cautiously for its social development and stability. Show less
My research includes both qualitative and quantitative analyses of the public discourse in Chinese online media platforms. Throughout my research, I have incorporated a variety of digital tools for... Show moreMy research includes both qualitative and quantitative analyses of the public discourse in Chinese online media platforms. Throughout my research, I have incorporated a variety of digital tools for data analysis. My study of China’s geopolitical strategy with respect to the current Belt and Road Initiative and its challenges ahead is to understand how digital media are shaping the communicative strategies of the traditional mass media in contemporary China. By examining the intertwined relations among traditional mass media, social media platforms, China’s cultural governance and policy-making mechanisms, my research also expands our understanding of how the advances of the ICTs influence the government’s communicative strategies. Show less
