Chinese Social Media

This book, the first of a two-volume collection, presents a contemporary analysis of Chinese digital platforms from an insider's perspective. It examines the evolution, phenomena and underlying logics of Chinese social media platforms and practices. Bringing together insights from dedicated researchers, successful practitioners and keen observers of Chinese social media, this volume sheds light on various facets of Chinese social media. It explores issues such as social media governance, platformisation, creativity, censorship, media affordance and representation. The chapters also investigate distinctive Chinese social media phenomena and practices, including the 'momo army', the trend of sending text as voice messages, various humorous meme cultures, and the unique 'danmaku' (bullet screen comments) feature prevalent on live-streaming and video-on-demand platforms. The industry-related chapters provide valuable insights into the intersection of social media and contemporary art, music, e-music and NFTs in China. This volume is a valuable resource for academics and students in media and communication studies, as well as social media researchers, China studies enthusiasts, industry professionals and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of Chinese social media dynamics.