1. Winning Hearts and Minds? Cadres as Microbloggers in China
- Author:
- Ashley Esarey
- Publication Date:
- 06-2015
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- China’s local governments are facing a crisis of public con- fidence 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 microblog- ging by prominent propagandists whose identities and professions are known to the public, this article finds some evidence that microblog- ging 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.
- Topic:
- Protests, Propaganda, Local, and Oppression
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia