Authors: Maximilian Ernst, Cesare M. Scartozzi, Ceinwen Thomas, Yigong Wang.
Journal: Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, Vol. 51, no. 2.
Date: June 2022.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/18681026221104130
Abstract: This paper examines China’s international communication strategy during the initial phase of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In the spring of 2020, Western governments and media began criticising the systematic lack of transparency and accountability in the Chinese political system in relation to the failed containment of the Wuhan outbreak. Facing an unprecedented reputational crisis, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) mobilised its foreign-language media in an attempt to influence the international discourse on COVID-19. Surveying the English and Chinese editions of the People’s Daily, this study identifies CCP discourses aimed at foreign audiences and traces their evolution during the early stages of the pandemic. Overall, the study provides a comprehensive map of Chinese narratives on COVID-19 and generates fresh insights into CCP crisis communication.
Keywords: China, Chinese Communist Party, People’s Daily, discourse analysis, COVID-19, pandemic, crisis communication.
How to Cite:
Chicago Manual of Style 17th ed.:
Ernst, Maximilian, Cesare M. Scartozzi, Ceinwen Thomas, and Yigong Wang. “Chinese Crisis Communication in the Early Stage of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Discourse Analysis of People’s Daily News Articles in Response to Threatening International News Coverage.” Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, June 12, 2022, 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/18681026221104130.
APA 7th ed.:
Ernst, M., Scartozzi, C. M., Thomas, C., & Wang, Y. (2022). Chinese Crisis Communication in the Early Stage of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Discourse Analysis of People’s Daily News Articles in Response to Threatening International News Coverage. Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/18681026221104130