Radio And Social Transformation In China

The first systematic, comprehensive and critical English-language study of radio in China, this book documents a historical understanding of Chinese radio from the early twentieth century to the present. Covering both public matters and private lives, Radio and Social Transformation in China analyses a range of themes from healthcare, migration and education, to intimacy, family and friendship. Through a concentrated and thorough scrutiny of a variety of new genres and radio practices in post-Mao China, it also investigates the interaction between radio and social change, particularly in the era of economic reform. Building on the core theoretical concept of ‘compressed modernity’, each of the radio genres explored is shown to embody China’s efforts to achieve modernity, while simultaneously exemplifying radio’s capacity to manage the challenges that have arisen from the country’s distinctive and perhaps unique process of modernization. Written in an engaging style, this book makes an important contribution to radio history internationally. As such, it will be of great interest to students and scholars of broadcast media, radio and Communication Studies, as well as Chinese culture and society.

This book focuses on the influence of social media on Chinese society. The respective chapters present research by top-tier communication scholars from prominent Chinese universities and offer revealing findings on the interplay between media / social media, economics and politics. To that end, both qualitative and quantitative methods based on classical theories of communication and economics are drawn upon. The book explores four main areas: the challenges and opportunities for Chinese journalism and communications, changes in Chinese economic development, influences and forecasts for Chinese politics, and the impacts on Chinese culture. As the chapter contributors hail from diverse regions within China and represent three generations of communication scholars, the book offers a comprehensive guide, helping readers understand the impact of social media on China’s development from a broad range of perspectives, and sharing insights on its impacts around the world.

Language and Social Change in China: Undoing Commonness through Cosmopolitan Mandarin offers an innovative and authoritative account of the crucial role of language in shaping the sociocultural landscape of contemporary China. Based on a wide range of data collected since the 1990s and grounded in quantitative and discourse analyses of sociolinguistic variation, Qing Zhang tracks the emergence of what she terms “Cosmopolitan Mandarin” as a new stylistic resource for a rising urban elite and a new middle-class consumption-based lifestyle. The book powerfully illuminates that Cosmopolitan Mandarin participates in dismantling the pre-reform, socialist, conformist society by bringing about new social distinctions. Rich in cultural and linguistic details, the book is the first of its kind to highlight the implications of language change on the social order and cultural life of contemporary China. Language and Social Change in China is ideal for students and scholars interested in sociolinguistics and linguistic anthropology, and Chinese language and society.

This is the first volume in a series of three exploring modern Chinese theology. This volume covers "Mainland and Mainstream"--church theologians of mainland China who were predominantly associated with mainline or missionary-established denominations. In the post-1949 era of the People's Republic this translates into theologians and theological movements associated with the state-authorized church: the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the (Protestant) Three-Self Patriotic Movement. The volume is broadly chronological, with each Part forming a thematic unity. Part I covers "Republican and Wartime Theologies," with seven chapters exploring theologies of resistance, ethics, and themes of indigenization and Sinicization. Part II considers "Protestant Denominational Developments" in the first half of the twentieth century: the complex legacy of mission history in China and the relationship between denominational church belonging and theological development. Part III, "Reform Era Theologies and Methodological Considerations" begins in the height of the Maoist era, and addresses the changing relationship between Christian and Communist thought in the writings of TSPM theologians; the theological use of China's Christian past, and the development of Roman Catholic theological education in the twenty first century. The sixteen essays of the volume represent a new generation of critical voices from the mainland, Hong Kong, and North America. The volume opens up the critical questions that have galvanized the modern Chinese church--who are we, as Chinese Christians? How can our Christian faith serve the nation? What form should an indigenous church take?--and offers new perspectives for a contemporary audience.

Contemporary developments in communications technologies have overturned key aspects of the global political system and transformed the media landscape. Yet interlocking technological, informational, and political revolutions have occurred many times in the past. In China, radio first arrived in the winter of 1922-23, bursting into a world where communication was slow, disjointed, or non-existent. Less than ten percent of the population ever read newspapers. Just fifty years later, at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, news broadcasts reached hundreds of millions of people instantaneously, every day. How did Chinese citizens experience the rapid changes in information practices and political organization that occurred in this period? What was it like to live through a news revolution? John Alekna traces the history of news in twentieth century China to demonstrate how large structural changes in technology and politics were heard and felt. Scrutinizing the flow of news can reveal much about society and politics—illustrating who has power and why, and uncovering the connections between different regions, peoples, and social classes. Taking an innovative, holistic view of information practices, Alekna weaves together both rural and urban history to tell the story of rise of mass society through the lens of communication techniques and technology, showing how the news revolution fundamentally reordered the political geography of China.

Starting from a history of new media, this book presents the development of network technology and media applications in China, while also examining the relationship between new media and politics, economy, culture, lifestyle, traditional media, law, knowledge, etc. As of 2014, China had been connected to the Internet for 20 years. During those two decades, China has witnessed drastic changes, from its national makeup to people’s daily lives. The book analyzes the changes in China brought about by the new media on the basis of large-scale data. Further, through comparisons with international trends in new media development, it seeks to clarify the new media development in China and comprehensively demonstrate the revolution and brand-new faces of Chinese society over the past two decades in the wake of new media. As such, it outlines the bright future of new media by revisiting and summarizing the developmental courses of new media and Chinese society.

China's success on economic growth and its exploration on political reform in the past few decades have attracted the attention from worldwide economic and political experts. This book studies China's transformation and experience from a sociological perspective, which broadens the research horizons and explores more complexity in contemporary China. This book examines China's social structural transformation, especially its implications on resource allocation and expounds on China's sociology academic history. In addition, it covers a broad range of issues including China's experience of reform and development, urbanization, social hierarchy change, social conflicts, social management, mass consumption, etc. Lastly, it investigates China's "urban village" as a byproduct of economic development and urbanization, which is rarely seen in other countries. These themes are key to understanding contemporary Chinese society, which makes this book a valuable reference for specialists on Chinese studies and those who are interested in contemporary China.

Chapter Introduction: How I conducted this China Study -- chapter 1 Why has China's economy grown so fast? -- chapter 2 Comprehensive national power (1980-2000): A comparative study of the US, Russia, Japan, India and China -- chapter 3 Why has China's TFP dropped in 1995-2001? -- chapter 4 From unevenness to coordination for China's regional development (1978-2004) -- chapter 5 China's economic growth and poverty reduction (1978-2002) -- chapter 6 China's macro-economy and health -- chapter 7 Health insecurity: The biggest challenge to human security in China -- chapter 8 Developing human resources to cope with an aging society -- chapter 9 China's urban unemployment and social security (1993-2000) -- chapter 10 Genuine national savings and natural capital cost in China (1970-2001) -- chapter 11 Corruption: an enormous black hole: Public exposure of the economic costs of corruption -- chapter 12 Second transition of the Communist Party of China: From economic development to institution building -- chapter 13 Making policy decision-making more scientific, democratic, systematic and specialized.