New Insights on the Internet and Authoritarian Rule in China

Session Submission Type: Full Paper Panel

Session Description

In most advanced industrialized democracies, the Internet and other new media technologies are taken for granted, but in most developing countries the introduction of the Internet represented a radical break from the past. What are the effects of these trends for the continuation of authoritarian rule? Optimists have pointed to the possibility of the medium to facilitate mobilization and organization, to provide resources to fight repression of political activists, and to attract international attention to domestic protests. Critics argue that states not only resist the liberalizing impact of new technologies, but that they actively use them to their own advantage. In other words, new communication technology, such as the Internet, may prolong the rule of the authoritarian regime rather than dilute it.

In this panel, we explore the impact of the Internet on regime change by bringing evidence from China, the longest surviving and largest authoritarian regime in the World. China is the front runner in digital innovation and development. It has the largest Internet population, reaching about 802 million, more than twice the size of the population of the United States. Yet, despite rapid digital development in China, we had very little knowledge about Internet users and the role of the Internet in authoritarian rule in China.

This panel brings together four papers that explore the Internet and authoritarian rule in China from various angles. All four papers draw their evidence from the first nationally representative survey data on Internet user in China - the China Internet survey (2018). The China Internet Survey made use of iterative spatial sampling via global positioning system (GPS) in order to appropriately capture the large numbers of internal migrants who are not officially registered at their place of residence, a major source of bias in other surveys in China. A total of 4686 eligible samples were drawn, yielding a final sample size of 3,144. The response rate was 67.1%. Respondents were interviewed face-to-face by experienced and trained interviewers.

Focusing on the debate on technology and authoritarian regime legitimacy in China, Wenfang Tang explores the effect of the Internet on political attitudes, especially their trust in the Chinese government and policies. Focusing on political participation Ting Luo analyzes the effects of Internet use on people’s participation in village elections, including voting and other campaign and mobilization activities. Using a novel measurement instrument developed in the China survey 2018, Keri Hartman explores how personal, affective bonds tie citizens to political institutions with important implications for political participation. Pierre Landry explores a fundamental survey research methodological question – What influences survey responses in repressive authoritarian contexts like China. Through comparing interviewers’ answers and interviewees’ answers to the China Internet Survey 2018, he identifies factors that influence interviewees’ survey answers and provides implications for future survey research in authoritarian context.

By looking into China and making use of a unique and new dataset on Internet user in China, we address the debate about the impact of the Internet on authoritarian rule. We provide new evidence to discuss the impact of the Internet on public opinion and political participation in the context of authoritarian regimes. In our panel we bring together scholars from various subfields that address trust and regime legitimacy, local elections, the role of political networks and political sensitivity of survey research in non-democracies. The findings from these angles enrich existing understanding of politics in authoritarian regimes in the developing world.

Sub Unit

• DIVISION 12: Comparative Politics in Developing Countries

Individual Presentations

• Interviewer Effects in Face-to-face Survey in Politically Sensitive Context - Pierre F. Landry, Chinese University of Hong Kong

• Political Ties and Political Participation in China - A Novel Instrument - Keri Hartman, Hertie School of Governance

• The Internet and Electoral Participation in China’s Rural Villages - Ting Luo, Hertie School of Governance

• Internet and Authoritarian Regime Trust - Wenfang Tang, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Chair

• Daniela Stockmann Hertie School of Governance

Discussants

• Martin Dimitrov Tulane University

• Melanie Frances Manion Duke University