Chapter 13 China’s Use of Military Propaganda Technology
2022.06.07
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Introduction
Propaganda has always been China’s important rule for dominion. To the PLA, propaganda is pertinent to the stability of military morale and the support from the people and to the goal of “the enemy surrendering without even fighting”. The PLA has been faced with the challenge of military recruitment and is eager to expand its talent pipeline. Internally, there are generational problems. Military propaganda is an important task in meeting the expectations of society and young soldiers. As communications technology develops rapidly, the PLA emphasizes the importance of “keeping up with the times” by adapting to the internet era and speaking to the heart of youngsters.[1] This chapter seeks to understand how the PLA propaganda uses technology in cyberspace and the effects it creates.
Unlike other chapters that examine state-of-the-art weapons and cutting- edge technological development, this chapter focuses on the use of propaganda technology and highlights the characteristics of technological tools for propaganda. Further, this chapter is founded on the belief that the PLA’s internal propaganda emphasizes the use of technology, while its external propaganda is the accumulation and extension of internal propaganda. Hence, the logic of its internal propaganda sheds light on the PLA’s direction in external propaganda. The article also articulates the strategy and the characteristics of China’s military propaganda by analyzing its animation, “Demonstration of Concerted Firing on Taiwan”, in order to highlight the PLA’s direction in the development of external propaganda technology.
[1]For China’s military propaganda, see Kristin Huang, “Can Chinese Military’s Hip New Propaganda Strike Chord with Generation Z?,” SCMP, May 30, 2021, https://reurl.cc/q1Zlqp.