China's Propaganda Affects Chinese Diaspora's Attitudes on Domestic Politics

• In Event: Poster Session: Political Communication

Abstract

China regularly broadcasts its propaganda beyond its national borders. A common feature of Chinese propaganda is the notion that all foreign nationals of Chinese lineage can be subsumed under a larger Chinese nation led by the People's Republic of China. We argue that the presence of ethnic references in Chinese propaganda increases Chinese diaspora's perceived ethnic affinity to China. This in turn should lead to greater support for China's foreign policy. Exposure to Chinese propaganda should also increase outgroup prejudice among overseas Chinese, by exacerbating the ingroup-outgroup distinction between them and other ethnic groups in their host countries. We find support for our claims through an original survey experiment comprising 4,000 Chinese and non-Chinese respondents spread across five Southeast Asian countries. In addition, the effect sizes are significantly larger among overseas Chinese who perceived greater discrimination in their host countries. Our results underscore the transnational consequences of Chinese propaganda on domestic politics.

Authors

• Jeremy Siow, University of Oxford

• Minh Duc Trinh, Purdue University

• Tony Zirui Yang, University of Oxford