Anthem Studies in Soft Power and Public Diplomacy – serie

Chinese Television and Soft Power Communication in Australia discusses China’s soft power communication approach and investigates information handling between China and its targeted audiences in the eyes of key influencers – intermediate elites (public diplomacy policy elites in particular) in China and Australia. It explores CGTN (with staff from several professional cultures) and conducts a systemic test of how successful/unsuccessful China’s soft power message projection is in terms of congruence between projected and received frames as a pivotal factor of its power status. The analysis is based on a case study of frames in the messaging on Chinese international TV about China’s Belt and Road Initiative and in the minds of Australian public diplomacy policy elites. The question raised is whether and how Australia is listening.

Good governance and anti-corruption efforts were expected to enhance soft power overseas. The party-state successfully governed China for decades relying on its controversial governance approaches. The country has visibly demonstrated economic and social development. However, China's growing influence has failed to be recognised as soft power, being viewed rather as sharp power most times. The monograph investigates whether China is mindful of exporting its political ideas and whether it considers its governance model to be the pillar of its soft power portfolio. Through framing analysis of media coverage and in-depth interviews with Australian public diplomacy experts, the monograph presents how Australia, a western country with close economic ties with China, interprets China's intended narrative regarding its governance model and development. Examining the congruity between China's projection and Australia's mediation sheds a new light on the relationship between domestic governance, soft power, and sharp power. By sketching out Beijing’s ambitions and attempts, the monograph draws implications about China's public diplomacy and the future global order.