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Winning hearts and minds? Cadres as microbloggers in China
[journal article]
Abstract "China's local governments are facing a crisis of public confidence and have struggled to handle political dissent and popular protests. In an attempt to promote political stability, local officials around the country have utilized Twitter-like microblog sites (weibo) to upgrade their capability to ... view more
"China's local governments are facing a crisis of public confidence and have struggled to handle political dissent and popular protests. In an attempt to promote political stability, local officials around the country have utilized Twitter-like microblog sites (weibo) to upgrade their capability to influence citizens and engage in rapid information management. Through the analysis of microblogging by prominent propagandists whose identities and professions are known to the public, this article finds some evidence that microblogging could be helping cadres to win hearts and minds, although such microblogging poses new risks to the state as netizens challenge propagandists and state policies in exchanges that reveal political pluralism and disapproval of state policies. While venting on weibo may enable people to blow off steam, the reluctance (or inability) of official microbloggers to engage their critics in meaningful dialogue suggests the limited utility of official microblogging as a means of furthering political stability through the improvement of state-society relations." (author's abstract)... view less
Keywords
China; political opinion; public opinion; opinion formation; exertion of government pressure; propaganda; political leadership; Internet; mass media; social media; political stability; Far East
Classification
Political Process, Elections, Political Sociology, Political Culture
Interactive, electronic Media
Free Keywords
microblogging; Weibo
Document language
English
Publication Year
2015
Page/Pages
p. 69-103
Journal
Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, 44 (2015) 2
Issue topic
Stability maintenance and Chinese media
ISSN
1868-1026
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed