Media Commercialisation and Political Control in Authoritarian Regimes: Explaining the Rise of We-media in China

The relationship between state political control and media commercialisation has been a pervasive and longstanding subject of academic debate. Drawing upon experiences from Western countries, this debate is conventionally framed within the paradigm of political control versus media commercialisation. However, in China, the dynamics and interplay between media and the state present a more nuanced and complex picture compared to conventional understandings. The emergence of We-media (Zimeiti or 自媒体), a new form of digital media, illustrates a distinctive trajectory of development and commercialisation, indicating a shifting media landscape in contemporary China. On one hand, the Chinese government, under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, has significantly tightened its control over the media. On the other hand, the rise of We-media highlights the potential for media development in today's China. This research seeks to address the central puzzle: why and how has We-media risen despite the increasing control strategies deployed by the state?
To resolve this puzzle, this study conceptualises the trajectory of We-media's rise in China and its interaction with state control. By examining the state's policies on We-media and the responses of We-media practitioners, this research argues that the growth of We-media in China is largely attributable to the interplay between the regulatory framework established by the state and the proactive strategies of We-media, epitomized by its distinctive Strategic Diversification (SD) Model. Consequently, the relationship between state control and media commercialisation in China is not binary, as suggested by conventional studies, but rather can be interpreted as a symbiotic relationship.