From Confrontation to Symbiosis: The Evolution of China’s Content Moderation and the State-Platform Dynamic (1994–2025)

• In Event: Political Sociology Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Politics and the Media (Table 9)

Abstract

Content moderation and censorship constitute a pivotal domain in the history of political communication in China. Classical state-society theories conceptualize power as a zero-sum game, positing that gains in power by societal actors inevitably erode state control. However, China’s state-platform relations present an alternative pattern: the state has bolstered its regulatory capacity while simultaneously nurturing powerful digital platforms that augment content control. Thus, this study aims to examine such a dual enhancement. Through a comparative analysis on the historical evolution of content moderation in China spanning 1994 to 2025, we propose a concept of “symbiotic dynamic” to explain the evolving state-platform relations. Our data reveals that China’s content moderation evolved through five phases: the Volunteer Moderators Era (1994–2008), Weibo Oversight (2009–2011), Government Censorship (2011–2013), the Commercial Content Moderation System (2014–2022), and State-Platform Cooperation (post-2022). This trajectory demonstrates a progressive shift from volunteer-led content moderation to algorithm-aided commercial operations, and ultimately then to state-certified professional censorship. Through this process, the state co-opts influential platforms into its bureaucratic apparatus, repositioning them as extensions of regulatory authority to augment the state’s autonomous power. These insights deepen scholarly understanding of authoritarian governance in the digital age.

Authors

• Keyu Zhang, City University of Hong Kong

• Fen Jennifer Lin, City University of Hong Kong