Lost in the Message: Nationalist Propaganda as a Tool of Control in China (2013)

Undergraduate: Derrick Flakoll

Faculty Advisor: Emi Bunner
Department: Political Science

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China has an established tradition of using nationalistic propaganda -- media and educational messages intended to promote an ideal of an independent, powerful China -- as a means of controlling its populous. This paper will predict the likely effectiveness of this propaganda in the future by examining the results of its use in two case studies: the Northern Expedition of 1926-1927 and the Tibetan unrest in 2008. I will prove that in both cases, propaganda, though useful for gaining the support of the populace at first, ultimately caused a backlash against the ruling party. As such, the Chinese government should reduce its propagandistic influence on the media to preserve China¿s stability and reputation.