Li Mediatized China-Africa Relations

How Media Discourses Negotiate the Shifting of Global Order
1. Auflage 2017
ISBN: 978-981-10-5382-5
Verlag: Springer Nature Singapore
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 226 Seiten

Reihe: Progress in Mathematics

This cutting edge book explores the role of the media in the highly disputed area of China-Africa relations, notably how various aspects of the issue have been portrayed, negotiated and contested in media and academic discourses. As Africa's biggest trading partner and creditor, China explores Africa not only as a marketplace for importing primary commodities and exporting manufactured goods, but also as a preferred testing ground for its media and telecommunication sector aspiring for further internationalization. At a time when the influence from Global North has been on the wane in the continent, emerging powers are regarded as new inspirations for Africa's development. China in particular tries to bolster multipolarity in Africa by factoring in media influence and facilitating the digitalization process of the continent. This book offers an up-to-date geopolitical analysis of China-Africa, examining the role of communication and telecommunication in the power shift, especially in constructing social and cultural realities in which the idea of 'development' has been recurrently redefined and negotiated in the public domain. This volume tackles the issue from the new perspective of mediatization, considering how the media on the one hand shapes public opinion with its narratives and a logic of its own, and on the other hand simultaneously becomes an integrated part of other institutions like politics, trade, business as more of these institutional activities are performed through both interactive and mass media.

Dr Shubo Li is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Department of Media and Communication, University of Oslo, Norway. She has worked as journalist and media manager in China and received her doctorate in Communication from the Communication and Media Research Institute at the University of Westminster, United Kingdom.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Li, Shubo

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Acknowledgments;7
2;Contents;9
3;Abbreviations;12
4;List of Figures;14
5;Chapter 1: Introduction;15
5.1;The G20 Summit and China’s Media Involvement in Africa;15
5.2;Mediatized China–Africa Relations;18
5.3;China–Africa Communications;22
5.4;The Legacy of Researching China’s Media Diplomacy in Africa;24
5.5;Mediatization: Theoretical Framework and Organization of the Book;26
6;Chapter 2: International Debate over China–Africa Media Engagements;35
6.1;The Rise of China;35
6.2;The Neo-Colonialism Narrative Paradigm;40
6.3;The Pragmatism Narrative Paradigm;47
6.4;The Information Contra-Flow Narrative Paradigm;51
7;Chapter 3: Changing Africa’s Mediascape?;62
7.1;An Overview of Scholarship on Media in Africa;62
7.2;Precolonial and Colonial Legacies;64
7.3;Post-colonial Heritage and Media as a Nation-­Building Project;67
7.4;Dependence on Major “Wholesale” News Suppliers;70
7.5;Democratic Transitions Since the 1990s and Commercialization in the Twenty-First Century;75
7.6;Challenges as the Bedrock for Asian Influences;79
8;Chapter 4: China’s Media Involvement in Africa;87
8.1;Bandung Spirit: Anti-imperialist Comradeship and Nation-Building;88
8.2;New Players in the International Market;91
8.3;Matching “Industry Going Out” with “Culture Going Out”;95
8.4;Continuity and Non-continuity: The Various Forms of Media Involvement and Evolvement;99
8.5;The Invention of the Chinese Model;108
9;Chapter 5: How Chinese Media Houses Are Established in Africa;114
9.1;China Daily: The Chief Correspondent’s Story;114
9.2;Xinhua News Agency: Xinhua’s Localization;118
9.3;CCTV Africa: Covering Ebola;120
9.4;CRI: A Radio of Geniality;125
9.5;Expansion by Mandate: The Pros and Cons;129
10;Chapter 6: Contesting the Chinese Model of Telecommunication Expansion in Africa;134
10.1;Two Confusions Surrounding Chinese Telecommunication Engagement in Africa;135
10.2;The State’s Role in the Development of the Chinese Communication Equipment Industry;136
10.3;The Role of the State in Assisting Telecommunications Going Out: One Policy, Two Results;138
10.4;Angola: One Market, Two Business Models;143
10.4.1;The Bull: ZTE and Movicel;148
10.4.2;The Wolf: Huawei and Unitel;150
10.5;Contesting the Concept of “the Chinese Model”;152
10.5.1;Credit Lines: A Chinese Characteristic?;153
10.5.2;Foul Play: A Distinct Chinese Characteristic?;155
11;Chapter 7: New Prospects and Challenges: Mapping China’s Expansive Telecommunications Industry in Africa;163
11.1;The Drive from the State: Catalytic Policies;163
11.2;The One Belt One Road Initiative and the Promotion of Chinese Standard;164
11.3;A Historic Opportunity for the Chinese Fiber-Optic and Submarine Optical Cable Industries;166
11.4;The Deepening of China’s Engagement in Africa Marked by the 2015 FOCAC;168
11.5;The Push for Chinese Telecommunication Operators to Go Global;170
11.6;Conclusion;173
12;Chapter 8: How Chinese New Media Portrays Africa;178
12.1;Why Is the New Media So Important?;178
12.2;Online Public Space in China: A Filtered Space;179
12.3;Understanding How Chinese People Express Their Perception of Africa;181
12.4;Using Nvivo to Capture the Structure of Online Opinions;184
12.4.1;Case 1: The United Nations’ New Year’s Greeting;186
12.4.2;Case 2: Chinese Girls, African Boys—Interracial Relationships;189
12.4.3;Case 3: African Population in Guangzhou;192
12.5;Conclusion;194
13;Chapter 9: Conclusion: Unpacking Chinese Media Diplomacy in Africa;200
13.1;What Is China’s Media Diplomacy in Africa and How Does It Work?;200
13.2;Is China’s Media Diplomacy Effective?;203
13.3;Policy Implications;209
14;Index;213