New Books Network

Frances Yaping Wang, "The Art of State Persuasion: China's Strategic Use of Media in Interstate Disputes" (Oxford UP, 2024)

Apr 6, 2025

Frances Yaping Wang, an assistant professor at Colgate University and peace scholar at the Minerva Institute, discusses her book on China's media strategies in international disputes. She explores why certain territorial conflicts are amplified while others are downplayed, focusing on the state's manipulation of public sentiment. Wang reveals the distinct approaches of mobilizing and pacifying propaganda in authoritarian regimes. Listeners gain insight into how China navigates public opinion, employing sophisticated techniques to bolster government legitimacy.

24:38

Episode guests

Frances Yaping Wang

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

China strategically uses state media to align public opinion with foreign policy aims during interstate disputes, balancing between mobilization and pacification campaigns.

The misalignment theory reveals how authoritarian regimes amplify media narratives to mitigate domestic unrest while addressing nationalistic sentiments without escalating conflicts.

Deep dives

Understanding Media Campaigns in Authoritarian States

Authoritarian states, particularly China, utilize media campaigns strategically to manage public perception during interstate disputes. These campaigns often aim to pacify domestic audiences rather than to galvanize aggressive foreign policy responses. For instance, the Chinese government's handling of the South China Sea arbitration case demonstrates this approach, where they projected a tough public stance but ultimately opted for conciliatory measures with the Philippines. By managing public discourse, these regimes can ensure stability while pursuing moderation in their foreign relations, especially when faced with rising nationalistic sentiments among their citizens.

Intro

3min

Media Manipulation in Territorial Conflicts

6min

Pacifying Propaganda Unveiled

7min

Understanding Public Sentiment in Authoritarian Regimes

3min

Understanding Authoritarian Media Strategies and Recommendations for Further Reading

3min

Why do nations actively publicize previously overlooked disputes? And why does this domestic mobilization sometimes fail to result in aggressive policy measures?

The Art of State Persuasion (Oxford UP, 2024) delves into China's strategic use of state propaganda during crucial crisis events, particularly focusing on border disputes. Frances Wang aims to explain the diverse strategies employed in Chinese state media, analyzing why certain disputes are amplified while others are downplayed. This variation, as proposed, is contingent on the degree of alignment between Chinese state policy and public opinion. When public sentiment is more moderate than the state's foreign policy objectives, the government initiates a "mobilization campaign." Conversely, if public opinion is more hawkish than state policy, the authorities deploy a "pacification campaign" to mollify public sentiment.

Through a comprehensive examination of medium-N and case-study analyses, Wang elucidates these arguments. The research incorporates extensive textual analyses of media reports, interviews with officials and journalists, and archival data. The book also illuminates the mechanics of mobilization and pacification media campaigns, enabling policy makers to distinguish varying state foreign policy intentions. This book not only acknowledges the significance of public opinion but also illustrates how fluctuating public sentiment is delicately managed by the state through diverse discursive tactics. By highlighting the existence and relevance of pacification campaigns, The Art of State Persuasion enhances our understanding of propaganda, and challenges the traditional view of China's propaganda as uniformly aggressive, bringing to light a more nuanced picture especially in the domain of foreign policy.

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New Books Network

Frances Yaping Wang, "The Art of State Persuasion: China's Strategic Use of Media in Interstate Disputes" (Oxford UP, 2024)

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Understanding Media Campaigns in Authoritarian States

The Barking Dog, Silent Dog Puzzle

Misalignment Theory in Authoritarian Propaganda

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts