Foundations of the Chinese Internet: Calculations, Concepts, Culture
Edition: 1
Copyright: 2023
Pages: 256
Edition: 1
Copyright: 2023
Choose Your Format
Choose Your Platform | Help Me Choose
$84.00
Ebook
$42.00
You are likely reading this because you have a curiosity about the state of the world's largest and most influential country - the People's Republic of China (PRC). China is an emerging power with aspirations to reclaim world dominance, but its motivations for doing so are more nuanced and complex than many observers - including the Western public - would like to admit. In this work, we will explore the social, cultural, and political dynamics truly involved in the making of the modern PRC state.
As the book suggests, we will be doing such an analysis through the prism of the internet. From a business perspective, we will see that China is both a brand and a multinational corporation posing as a unified state and culture (in a reversed role from that of a Facebook or a Google in the West). From this we will see that there is a great shift going on in China as directed by its supreme leader, Xi Jinping. I believe that the dual lenses of the tech industry and tech policy bring this shift into a focus that is easier to digest. We have also seen that a variety of tech products have emerged in China to meet the needs and roles of the Chinese public in a way that diverges from the global unity aspired by other forms of social and digital media (such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.). This book will explore the dynamic and interdisciplinary elements that go into the creation of these products, as well as the unique ecosystem that they support.
CHAPTER 1 Setting the Scene
Key Initial Considerations
Development Trends
Defining the Chinese Internet
A Crash Course in Understanding the Internet Today
Contributors to Chinese Internet Construction
Sociotechnical Systems: An Overview
Western Case Studies
“Slacktivism”
The Business of the Internet (in China)
Internet Construction
The Rise of Cybersecurity
Cyberwarfare
China’s Internet Regime
CHAPTER 2 What You Need to Know about China’s History
Understanding China’s Ancient Past
Foundations of Modern China
The Last Interregnum
Forced Trade
Reform and Breakup: The Fall of the Qing
Intellectual Awakenings from the “May Fourth Movement”
The Beginnings and Struggles of Mao and the CCP
A New Country
Resurrecting Society and the Economy: The “Reform and Opening” Era
Into the Xi Jinping Era
CHAPTER 3 China Today (2012–Present)
The Power of Travel
Studying Populism
Global Case Studies
Foreign Policy Considerations
Policymaking through Social Relations
Sociological and Economic Factors
Usage Patterns
Identity
Key Influences and Initiatives
CHAPTER 4 Chinese Society Online
Evaluating the Outsider
Activism in Society: A Short Synopsis
Review of Basic Trends
Implications and Inputs
New Imagery
China’s Sociotechnical System
Policies Targeting the Individual Citizen and Netizen: Hukou and the Social Credit Score
Primary Observations about Political Culture
CHAPTER 5 Chinese Social Media
Revenue Generation
The Menu of Social Media (and Advertising) Platforms in China
Broad Regulatory Parameters
Acceptable Content
Affordances Countering PRC Censor Influence
Chinese Social Media Platforms
CHAPTER 6 The Chinese Perspective
Philosophy
Language
Innovation
Making the “Sinosphere”
Conflict and Control
Cultural Notes
Profile of Defined Actions
Historical Influences
“Networked” Opinion
Core Technologies
Covering Stories and Demographics
Becoming More Individualist and Uncivil
CHAPTER 7 Inside the Censorship Regime
Internet Governance and Structure
Affordance-Driven Politics and Regulation
Corruption and “Accountability”
Covering Topics
System Inputs
Conflict against the System
Bureaucracy
Underlying Technology
Legal Codes
Censorship for Continued Sovereignty
CHAPTER 8 What’s Trending
Defining Celebrity
Market Constructions
Defining Popularity
Ideological Promotion
Cultivating National Interests
Film and Music
“Oh My Lady Gaga!”
A Note on Media and Racism
Content Categorization
Sociological Observations and Expression
Citizen Calculations
Sharing Acceptable Content
CHAPTER 9 Business and Payments
Driving Factors
Business Benefits of the Internet
Systems and Processes
Reimagining Money
Revisiting Development Trends
Comparing Payment Apps
Sociotechnical Considerations
Cultural Notes
Corruption and the Economy
Consumption Patterns
The Social Credit System
The Business of AI and the Singularity
CHAPTER 10 Politics and Policy
Ideological Self-Perception and Background
Power Construction in a Digitized World
Policy Prescriptions
Challenges to the Ruling Authorities
Institutionalization
Political Economy Concerns
Global Business Involvement and Roles
Sociotechnical and Philosophical Impacts
Introduction to Media, Press, and Speech in China
CHAPTER 11 News in an Authoritarian State
Defining the News
News Distribution Pattern
Chinese Media Institutions
Topics Covered
The Role of Media
Media Citizenship and Citizen Journalism
Conducting Journalism in China
Journalist Management Policies
Trendsetters in the News
Agency and Accountability
CHAPTER 12 Activism
Taming the “Wild West” in a Remote and Virtual Environment
Usage Patterns among Netizens
The Effect of Populism
The Sobering Reality of Revolutionary Movements in China
Re-Examining Virality and Accountability
Historical Reassessments
The CCP Response to Activist Movements
Continuing Activism Amidst Challenges
Current Contributing Factors
Psychology
Activist Targets
Interest Groups
CHAPTER 13 Information Manipulation
International Law and International Relations
The Bureaucracy of Cyberattacks
Striving for Superpower Status
Strategic Considerations
National Security
Borders and Surveillance
Social Manipulation Factors
Economics and the Truth
Content Analysis
Law and Policy
Culture and Information
More on Malicious Actors
Considering the Diaspora
CHAPTER 14 Concluding Notes on Foreign Exposure
Foreign Ideologies and Their “Chinese” Applications
Foreign Policy Influences
Communism with “Chinese Characteristics”
Flashpoints
Bans, Their Impacts, and Cross-Pacific Relations
Foreigners Engaging in China
Foreign Resources and Investment
Non-Profits and NGOs
External Reporting
Messaging Foundations for the Future
William J. Vogt is an Adjunct Professor of Communication, Culture, and Technology at Georgetown University and has taught Chinese Internet Studies at Catholic University of America. Vogt has published articles on modern China and the impact of information technology in emerging market countries. He has previous experience in global risk management and served as Founder and Managing Principal of Weilian Poder Global Consulting, a firm which facilitated client engagements with senior business leaders in mainland China.
Vogt is a two-time graduate of Georgetown University with a B.S. from the School of Foreign Service and an M.A. from the Communication, Culture, and Technology program. At Georgetown, he founded and led the university’s New Media in Asia Research Group and won a Hanban (Confucius Institute) scholarship to visit Nanjing University. He has also studies at Capital University of Economics and Business in Beijing. He lives near Washington, D.C. with his wife and cats.
You are likely reading this because you have a curiosity about the state of the world's largest and most influential country - the People's Republic of China (PRC). China is an emerging power with aspirations to reclaim world dominance, but its motivations for doing so are more nuanced and complex than many observers - including the Western public - would like to admit. In this work, we will explore the social, cultural, and political dynamics truly involved in the making of the modern PRC state.
As the book suggests, we will be doing such an analysis through the prism of the internet. From a business perspective, we will see that China is both a brand and a multinational corporation posing as a unified state and culture (in a reversed role from that of a Facebook or a Google in the West). From this we will see that there is a great shift going on in China as directed by its supreme leader, Xi Jinping. I believe that the dual lenses of the tech industry and tech policy bring this shift into a focus that is easier to digest. We have also seen that a variety of tech products have emerged in China to meet the needs and roles of the Chinese public in a way that diverges from the global unity aspired by other forms of social and digital media (such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.). This book will explore the dynamic and interdisciplinary elements that go into the creation of these products, as well as the unique ecosystem that they support.
CHAPTER 1 Setting the Scene
Key Initial Considerations
Development Trends
Defining the Chinese Internet
A Crash Course in Understanding the Internet Today
Contributors to Chinese Internet Construction
Sociotechnical Systems: An Overview
Western Case Studies
“Slacktivism”
The Business of the Internet (in China)
Internet Construction
The Rise of Cybersecurity
Cyberwarfare
China’s Internet Regime
CHAPTER 2 What You Need to Know about China’s History
Understanding China’s Ancient Past
Foundations of Modern China
The Last Interregnum
Forced Trade
Reform and Breakup: The Fall of the Qing
Intellectual Awakenings from the “May Fourth Movement”
The Beginnings and Struggles of Mao and the CCP
A New Country
Resurrecting Society and the Economy: The “Reform and Opening” Era
Into the Xi Jinping Era
CHAPTER 3 China Today (2012–Present)
The Power of Travel
Studying Populism
Global Case Studies
Foreign Policy Considerations
Policymaking through Social Relations
Sociological and Economic Factors
Usage Patterns
Identity
Key Influences and Initiatives
CHAPTER 4 Chinese Society Online
Evaluating the Outsider
Activism in Society: A Short Synopsis
Review of Basic Trends
Implications and Inputs
New Imagery
China’s Sociotechnical System
Policies Targeting the Individual Citizen and Netizen: Hukou and the Social Credit Score
Primary Observations about Political Culture
CHAPTER 5 Chinese Social Media
Revenue Generation
The Menu of Social Media (and Advertising) Platforms in China
Broad Regulatory Parameters
Acceptable Content
Affordances Countering PRC Censor Influence
Chinese Social Media Platforms
CHAPTER 6 The Chinese Perspective
Philosophy
Language
Innovation
Making the “Sinosphere”
Conflict and Control
Cultural Notes
Profile of Defined Actions
Historical Influences
“Networked” Opinion
Core Technologies
Covering Stories and Demographics
Becoming More Individualist and Uncivil
CHAPTER 7 Inside the Censorship Regime
Internet Governance and Structure
Affordance-Driven Politics and Regulation
Corruption and “Accountability”
Covering Topics
System Inputs
Conflict against the System
Bureaucracy
Underlying Technology
Legal Codes
Censorship for Continued Sovereignty
CHAPTER 8 What’s Trending
Defining Celebrity
Market Constructions
Defining Popularity
Ideological Promotion
Cultivating National Interests
Film and Music
“Oh My Lady Gaga!”
A Note on Media and Racism
Content Categorization
Sociological Observations and Expression
Citizen Calculations
Sharing Acceptable Content
CHAPTER 9 Business and Payments
Driving Factors
Business Benefits of the Internet
Systems and Processes
Reimagining Money
Revisiting Development Trends
Comparing Payment Apps
Sociotechnical Considerations
Cultural Notes
Corruption and the Economy
Consumption Patterns
The Social Credit System
The Business of AI and the Singularity
CHAPTER 10 Politics and Policy
Ideological Self-Perception and Background
Power Construction in a Digitized World
Policy Prescriptions
Challenges to the Ruling Authorities
Institutionalization
Political Economy Concerns
Global Business Involvement and Roles
Sociotechnical and Philosophical Impacts
Introduction to Media, Press, and Speech in China
CHAPTER 11 News in an Authoritarian State
Defining the News
News Distribution Pattern
Chinese Media Institutions
Topics Covered
The Role of Media
Media Citizenship and Citizen Journalism
Conducting Journalism in China
Journalist Management Policies
Trendsetters in the News
Agency and Accountability
CHAPTER 12 Activism
Taming the “Wild West” in a Remote and Virtual Environment
Usage Patterns among Netizens
The Effect of Populism
The Sobering Reality of Revolutionary Movements in China
Re-Examining Virality and Accountability
Historical Reassessments
The CCP Response to Activist Movements
Continuing Activism Amidst Challenges
Current Contributing Factors
Psychology
Activist Targets
Interest Groups
CHAPTER 13 Information Manipulation
International Law and International Relations
The Bureaucracy of Cyberattacks
Striving for Superpower Status
Strategic Considerations
National Security
Borders and Surveillance
Social Manipulation Factors
Economics and the Truth
Content Analysis
Law and Policy
Culture and Information
More on Malicious Actors
Considering the Diaspora
CHAPTER 14 Concluding Notes on Foreign Exposure
Foreign Ideologies and Their “Chinese” Applications
Foreign Policy Influences
Communism with “Chinese Characteristics”
Flashpoints
Bans, Their Impacts, and Cross-Pacific Relations
Foreigners Engaging in China
Foreign Resources and Investment
Non-Profits and NGOs
External Reporting
Messaging Foundations for the Future
William J. Vogt is an Adjunct Professor of Communication, Culture, and Technology at Georgetown University and has taught Chinese Internet Studies at Catholic University of America. Vogt has published articles on modern China and the impact of information technology in emerging market countries. He has previous experience in global risk management and served as Founder and Managing Principal of Weilian Poder Global Consulting, a firm which facilitated client engagements with senior business leaders in mainland China.
Vogt is a two-time graduate of Georgetown University with a B.S. from the School of Foreign Service and an M.A. from the Communication, Culture, and Technology program. At Georgetown, he founded and led the university’s New Media in Asia Research Group and won a Hanban (Confucius Institute) scholarship to visit Nanjing University. He has also studies at Capital University of Economics and Business in Beijing. He lives near Washington, D.C. with his wife and cats.