<
https://theconversation.com/is-china-the-new-cool-how-beijing-is-using-pop-culture-to-win-the-soft-power-war-254923>
"IShowSpeed, a 20-year-old American YouTuber and internet star, recently
livestreamed hourslong tours of Chinese cities including Beijing and Shanghai,
showcasing the locations to some of his nearly 40 million viewers.
During the March events, IShowSpeed, whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins
Jr., marveled at friendly locals, spotless streets and the high-speed Wi-Fi
available on the subway; Chinese fans mobbed him for selfies on the Great Wall.
Beijing’s state media lapped up the attention, with one Chinese blogger
proclaiming that the American influencer had “eliminated all Western propaganda
about China” in the eyes of a new generation.
IShowSpeed’s YouTube page attests to this assessment.
“China is so underrated wtf,” reads one top comment. “After watching this
video, I realized how foolish my previous views on China were,” reads another.
The [provenance] of such comments isn’t clear. Nonetheless, to someone who
researches the use of Chinese soft power, I find the spectacle of a young
American burnishing China’s image to Western audiences hugely significant. It
provides an example of how soft power norms have been upended in recent years –
and how China appears to be having some success in winning over the global
youth."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
