Publication

This paper examines how the Chinese government controls state-society relations in the information age. More specifically, the author discusses 1) the annual growth in the number of citizens using the Internet in China; 2) the methods which the Chinese government has used to tighten its control of the Internet since August 2013; 3) how despite stricter internet control, criticism of the state and politicians has often been tolerated in social media, whereas any content that promotes offline collective action is systematically censored; and 4) how internet forums and increasing commercialization of the traditional media are contributing to anti-Japanese sentiment among the Chinese public.