Page numbers refer to the print edition but are hyperlinked to the appropriate location in the e-book.
access, 25; as anonymous, 61, 67; to pornography, 91
activism: for netizens, 26; online and offline, 1–2; as pop, 78; pop activism as, 13; social media and, 10; state control versus, 4. See also pop activism
activism entrepreneurs, 97–99
Administration Measures on Internet Information Services, 66
After the Internet, Before Democracy (Lagerkvist), 153–54
Ai Weiwei, 48; netizens and, 99; responses of, 97–98
anti-extermination campaign, 12
anti-pornography campaign of 2009, 61, 75
Arab Spring, 140; contrast to, 1–3; social media and, 176, 183
astroturfing, 14, 45; for business, 247n12; for dissidents, 133; Internet commentators and, 107–9, 123; mobilization through, 241n53; propaganda and, 180; technique for, 112
authoritarian regimes, 203n46; capacity of, 128; digital empowerment and, 3–6; fragmentation of, 11, 17–18, 19, 50–53, 129; images of, 178; Internet forums between netizens and, 59–69; online expression for, 104; state adaptation and, 2–3
authoritarian resilience: digital empowerment and, 16–22; in digital era, 102, 176–87; as online, 175–91
backlash: enemies and, 135–43; on Mitbbs.com, 99
bargains, 70; platform size and, 74
Beijing Normal University, 159
Beijing Spring magazine, 189
Beijing University, 66, 84
boundary-spanning, 175; censorship as, 10; tolerance of, 13, 55–56, 74
bulletin board system (BBS), 6; 1984bbs.com as, 67; participation on, 10; self-censorship on, 219n40; server for, 221n56; trolling techniques for, 132; users on, 202n39
campaigns: anti-extermination campaign as, 12; anti-pornography campaign of 2009 as, 61, 75; online rectification campaign as, 50; propaganda as, 114–15; social media anti-rumor campaigns as, 44
Castells, Manuel, 14; on technology relevance, 17
categorized governance model, 41
censorship, 10–13; actors and, 12–13, 46–47; as boundary-spanning, 10; campus-bound platforms and, 59–60; guerrilla warfare against, 83–84; ideologies and, 98; intermediary actors and, 55–58; for netizens, 42, 189; Party-state and, 29–30; regulations and, 161; service providers and, 42; state adaptation beyond, 103–7; technical barriers to, 67; techniques for, 31
Central Propaganda Department, 41
Changsha Public Opinion Express, 117, 122
China: best years in, 65; birth control in, 159; constitution in, 214n71; cyberspace in, 77, 155; discourse competition in, 150–51; Internet and online forum population in, 8; Internet control regime in, 31–32, 33–34, 41–45; Internet in, 103; Japan and, 148; online expression in, 175–76; Party-state in, 2; urban consumerism in, 81; world and, 190–91
China Central Television, 42
Chinese Communist Party, 258n27; ideological divisions within, 52; socioeconomic reformation of, 177
Cjdby forum, 93; users on, 94
comments: anonymity and, 117; by Huang Qi, 188; by Hu Ping, 189; on QQ.com, 141, 142; samples of, 118; translation of, 119, 121
Communist Youth League, 111; Central Committee of, 52, 116, 245n85; Internet Propaganda Troop quota for, 124; Shanghai branch of, 114, 115
community, 154; as discursive, 131; voluntary fifty-cent army as identity and, 156–58, 262n62
conflict: functions and interests in, 50; ideologies in, 52
constructive noncompliance, 182
content: control of, 53, 70, 131; formality and, 82; governance of Internet and, 30–40; monitoring of, 7; pluralization of, 78; as pro-regime, 15, 180; violence and erotica as, 73
content providers: screening by, 43; state as, 131
creativity: Ai Weiwei responses as, 98; criticism and, 92; of online expression, 12, 55, 157, 180
criticism, 179; creativity and, 92; of regime, 150, 186; substantiation of, 181
cross-talk (xiangsheng), 162
culture: online expression as, 79–83, 152; politics and, 78
cyberculture, 85; nationalism and, 95
cybernetic model of organizational choice, 47
Cybersecurity Law (2016), 211n43
cyberspace: in China, 77, 155; discourse competition in, 102, 185; fluidity of, 92, 170; fragmentation of, 17–18, 19, 27, 153–56, 173; Lagerkvist on, 130; state media in, 104
Cyberspace Administration of China, 41
cyber-vocabulary, 86; examples of, 87; for military forums, 93
dalian (face-slapping), 161–62
debates: about ideologies, 71; among netizens, 52
defamation, 16; ubiquity of, 21
democracy, 3; expectation of, 28; Internet and, 20–22; Jasmine Revolution and, 179; nationalism and, 19
digital contention, 80; embedding of, 82; genres of, 228n47; pop activism and, 83–95
digital empowerment: authoritarian regimes and, 3–6; authoritarian resilience and, 16–22; threat and, 183–87
digital hidden transcript, 85
disaggregation, 5; of state and Internet, 17–18
discontented compliance, 13, 26, 55; forum managers and, 60–64; spectrum of, 69–75
discourse: community and identity in, 156–58, 262n62; for netizens, 85; social construction of enemies through, 143; studies on behavior and, 81
discourse competition, 14–16; for actors, 96; in China, 150–51; in cyberspace, 102, 185; multiplayer model for, 143–47; Party-state alternatives and, 19–20; perspective of, 2, 11
dissidents: books and, 257n23; enemies as, 138; identities of, 133; idioms of, 157; magazine for, 189; from overseas, 134; perception of, 139
distrust: manufacturing of, 130–51; regime-challengers and, 20
documents, 112; as internal, 109; leak from state agencies, 25
East China Normal University, 116
e-government platforms, 104
Emperor Looks Happy series, 92–93
enemies: backlash and, 135–43; as dissidents, 138; stereotypes as, 151
engagement: as civic, 1, 155; social media and, 105
entrepreneurs, 58; censorship and, 60; Party-state and, 181–82; pop activism and, 95–99
Evolution of Internet Control by the State, 33–34
expressive resistance, 84–90
face-slapping (dalian), 161–62
Federation for a Democratic China (FDC), 186
filtering: Great Firewall tracking and, 4, 43; of keywords, 12; netizens and, 49
for-profit forums, 72; unofficial campus forums as, 73
forum management, 7, 23; bargains with, 70; discontented compliance and, 60–64; restrained discontent and, 64–69; studies on, 202n35
fragmentation, 3; of authoritarian regimes, 11, 17–18, 19, 50–53, 129; of cyberspace, 17–18, 19, 27, 153–56, 173; as internal, 26
goals: pleading for achievement as, 126; of voluntary fifty-cent army, 161
Google, 57, 72; government and, 135, 149; search results from, 134
governance: Internet content and, 30–40; legitimacy and crises of, 181, 188; models of, 41
Great Firewall, The, 201n23; construction of, 29; filtering and tracking with, 4, 43; wall-climbing and, 91
group identity, 15–16; voluntary fifty-cent army as, 158–60
H1N1 influenza virus, 114
Heavenly Web website, 188
history: animosity throughout, 148; of Chinese Internet politics, 8; data from, 24; memorialization of, 116
Hung, Chin-fu, 108; on propaganda, 110
identities: anxiety about, 178; bias and, 145; of dissidents, 133; mechanisms reinforcement of, 160; voluntary fifty-cent army as community and, 156–58, 262n62
ideologies, 269n55; conflicts and, 52; confrontation of, 100; debates about, 71; legitimacy and, 177; for netizens, 14, 185; of state, 98; trends in, 111
ideotainment, 45; strategy of, 106
information: anonymous exchange of, 45; context of, 6; control and manipulation of, 178, 182; homogeneity and, 157; pop activism and, 18; technology and, 30
innovation: as local, 129, 180; in propaganda, 125
intelligence (zhishang wenti), 160
intermediary actors, 26, 202n35; censorship and, 55–58; state control over, 176; strategies for, 76
Internet, the: access on, 25; authoritarian regimes and, 2, 3–6; challenge and opportunity of, 187–90; in China, 103; China online forum population on, 8; democratization and, 20–22; disaggregation of state and, 17–18; expansion of, 179; governance of content and, 30–40; harmonization of, 29–54, 211n39; state control and, 57
Internet Administration Center of Wenzhou report, 113–14
Internet commentators: in action, 113–22; astroturfing and, 107–9, 123; “fifty-cent army” as, 102, 110, 152; introduction of, 110–12; as paid, 27; students as, 116, 125; system evaluation of, 123–28
Internet forums, 219n36; categorization of, 23–24, 70; diversity and number of, 76; management of, 7, 23; military forums as, 93, 170, 173; public expression on, 6–10, 11; server for, 220n54; between state and netizens, 59–69; user accounts for, 247n10
Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, 7
Jasmine Revolution, 136; as pro-democracy, 179
Jincheng News Online, 127
keywords: blacklisting of, 48–49; censorship system and, 84; cyber-vocabulary and, 86; filtering of, 12
King, Gary, 25; methods by, 108
Lagerkvist, Johan, 18, 269n46; on acquiescence to control, 185; After the Internet, Before Democracy, 153–54; on anonymity, 247n8; on Chinese cyberspace, 130; on entrepreneurs, 58; on regime delegitimization, 21, 52
Laojiang (old general), 145–46
leadership: as ideational, 117, 126; Internet comment activity on, 122
legitimacy: crises of governance and, 181, 188; ideologies and, 177; of Party-state, 27, 184
Lhasa riot (2008), 96, 136
Li, Yonggang, 32; on censorship, 57; on content control, 131; on governance models, 41
liberalization, 5; liberalization-control and, 100
literature, 56, 206n72; depictions in, 58; dissidents and, 257n23; on implications of online expression, 82
little red guard (Xiaojiang), 145–46
Ministry of Education, 46, 51
mobilization: through astroturfing, 241n53; as collective, 179; of Falun Gong, 132–34; of netizens, 137; Party-state and, 123; at universities, 115
models, 47; categorized governance as, 41; multiplayer model as, 143–47; statist model as, 56
monitoring: agency directives for, 44; of content, 7; prevention through, 62; on Qiangguo Luntan forum, 70–71; by service providers, 46; of taboo words, 47
multimedia commentary, 88
multiplayer model: complications with, 148–50; discourse competition and, 143–47
Nanfang Zhoumo (Southern Weekend), 53
National Campus Bulletin Board System Managers Conference, 64; in Beijing 2010, 63; in Suzhou 2009, 65
National Day for Nanjing Massacre Victims, 115, 116
nationalism: bias and, 136; cyberculture and, 95; cyber-nationalism as, 92; democracy and, 19; for netizens, 150, 159, 170
netizens, 2; activism for, 26; allies for, 144; ambition for, 205n64; animosity among, 178; attention of, 82; censorship for, 42, 189; complaints of, 122, 181, 182, 230n63; in cyberpolitics and pop activism, 77–100, 234n108; debates among, 52; discourse for, 85; diversity of, 11; filtering and, 49; group identity for, 15–16; ideologies for, 14, 185; interactions with, 117; Internet forums between state and, 59–69; learning from, 109; manipulation and, 134; mobilization of, 137; nationalism for, 150, 159, 170; online expression for, 13; product reviews by, 204n52; as pro-liberal, 143; as pro-regime, 93; regulations and, 258n27; strategy for, 226n27; term use by, 148, 231n78
Nobel Peace Prize, 48, 138
norms: as social, 4, 31; state and erosion of, 21
old general (Laojiang), 145–46
One-Percent Population Survey (2005), 159
online crisis management, 44; Internet commentators for, 113–14
online expression, 101, 204n55; anonymity of, 128, 144, 180; authoritarian rule and, 104; in China, 175–76; culture and politics of, 79–83, 152; dominance in, 142; format convergence in, 78; Internet forums and, 6–10, 11; for netizens, 13; party-state challenges by, 45–49; pluralization of, 102; as policy feedback, 103; propaganda troops for, 111; representativeness of, 206n75; state adaptation and, 15, 19; state control over, 13, 28, 29–54; volume and creativity of, 12, 55, 157, 180
online rectification campaign, 50
online surveillance, 219n32; screenings as, 43
opportunity, 112; Internet as challenge and, 187–90
organizational adaptation, 37–38
Party-state: capacity of, 123; censorship and, 29–30; challenges of, 187–90; in China, 2; discourse competition discredits alternatives to, 19–20; entrepreneurs and, 181–82; fragmentation across levels of, 53; institutional framework of, 76; Internet commentators for, 152; invisibility to users, 59; legitimacy of, 27, 184; online expression challenges to, 45–49; transformation of, 177; trolling for the, 101–29
patriotism, 144; fifty-cent army and, 159
Peking University, 61, 68; motto of, 65
perspective: of discourse competition, 2, 11; liberalization-control as, 100; as state-centric, 29
platforms: bargains and size of, 74; new types of, 7; survival of, 68
policy: for BBS, 220n52; Mitbbs.com and, 234n109; online expression as feedback on, 103; for registration and licensing, 66; regulations and enactment of, 35–36
politics: culture and, 78; in cyberspace, 92; cyber-vocabulary for, 87; history of, 8; Internet impact on, 5; labeling and, 161; literature on, 56; online expression and, 79–83, 152; opposition online, 130–51; participation in, 184; PR techniques for, 107; studies on Internet and, 101; YouTube and, 3, 227n36
pornography: access to, 91; campaign of 2009 against, 61, 75
preventive measures, 43, 62
promotion-and-protection strategy, 72
propaganda: antipathy toward, 127; astroturfing and, 180; campaigns for, 114–15; challenge of online, 106; Hung on, 110; ineffectiveness of, 15, 123; innovation and, 125; official language codes for, 117; parody of, 85–86; troops for, 111
public relations (PR), 51; astroturfing as, 107; strategies for, 15
Public Security Bureau, 112
RAND global policy think tank, 133
Ranxiang microblogger, 139
regime: critics of, 150, 186; defense of, 152–74; delegitimization of, 21, 52, 133–34; Internet control for, 31–32, 33–34, 41–45; Lagerkvist on delegitimization of, 21, 52. See also authoritarian regimes
regime challengers, 27; distrust and, 20
regulations: censorship and, 161; expansion of, 32; forums and, 62–63; implementation of, 66; netizens and, 258n27; policy enactment and, 35–36
research: data from, 22–25; site included in, 23–24; on social consensus, 174
resistance: compliance or, 55–76; as expressive, 84–90
restrained discontent, 64–69
scandals, 67; forum management and, 68; Wen and, 86–88
screening, 43; taboo words and, 63
Selected Most Frequently Used Online Services (2009-2016), 9
service providers: censorship and, 42; enforcement by, 55; monitoring by, 46
servo-mechanistic pattern, 47, 54
social media, 1; activism and, 10; anti-rumor campaigns on, 44; Arab Spring and, 176, 183; engagement through, 105; new platforms of, 7
Southern Metropolis Daily, 127
Southern Weekend (Nanfang Zhoumo), 53; Obama interview with, 143
standpoint (lichang wenti), 160
state, the: as content providers, 131; tools of, 26
state adaptation: authoritarian regimes and, 2–3; authoritarian resilience and, 178; beyond censorship, 103–7; Internet commentators as, 110; online expression and, 15, 19; organizational adaptation as, 37–38
State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television, 51, 213n67
state agencies, 53; documents leak from, 25; Internet forums and, 61; monitoring directives for, 44; role of, 17; state control and, 11, 208nn21–23
state-capitalist cooperation, 58
state control: acquiescence to, 185; activism versus, 4; agencies and, 11, 208nn21–23; intermediary actors and, 176; Internet and, 57; over online expression, 13, 28, 29–54; studies on, 80
State Council Information Office, 66
state-society interaction, 153
studies, 202n35; on astroturfing, 108; on digital empowerment, 183; on discourse and behavior, 81; on Internet politics, 101; by Repnikova, 105; on stability maintenance, 215n82; on state control, 80
surveys, 159; of citizens, 80
taboo words and topics, 62; discussion of, 253n66; list of, 210n29; monitoring of, 47; as playful, 89; screening for, 63
Technical and Administrative Control, 39–40
technical architecture (code), 4, 31
technology: Castells on relevance of, 17; information and, 30
Tiananmen: The Gate of Heavenly Peace, 130, 246n1
Tianya, 74, 219n36; Free board on, 132; Grassroots Voices board on, 224n77; Outlook board on, 172; users on, 89
tools: pop activism as, 78, 82, 100; of state, 26
trolling: on Mitbbs, 226n27; for the Party-state, 101–29; techniques for, 132
Tsinghua University, 61, 68
University of California, Berkeley, 25
users: accounts for, 247n10; avatars of, 146; on BBS, 202n39; data from, 62; invitations to, 67; party-state invisibility to, 59; profit generation through, 71; sample profile of, 120; Tianya for, 89
violence, 14; as content, 73
websites: registration for, 50; for research, 23–24; shut down of, 75, 213n59
Weibo microblog service, 58, 74, 244n79; national memorial day on, 116; Ning Caishen on, 140; Ranxiang, 139
Weng’an riot, Guizhou, 108, 113
xiangsheng (cross-talk), 162
Xiaojiang (little red guard), 145–46
Xi Jinping, 101, 106; “Chinese Dream” of, 115; image of, 117; online commenting on, 126
Yang, Guobin, 23; on activism online, 79, 81; on genres of digital contention, 228n47; on public sphere, 153; on regulatory evolution, 32; on rightful resistance, 85
Zheng, Yongnian, 21, 30; on mutual transformation, 32
zhishang wenti (intelligence), 160
Zine, al-Abidine Ben Ali, 1