AUDIENCE TARGETING IN CHINESE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF WOLF WARRIOR RHETORIC

In recent years, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has adopted an increasingly combative and assertive approach to diplomacy worldwide, dubbed “wolf warrior diplomacy.” It is particularly evident in PRC diplomats’ communication strategies, known for their individualistic and aggressive rhetoric on Western media platforms like Twitter. This communication strategy, however, is not conducted in the same way across all countries. With that in mind, this study analyzes the tone PRC diplomats use in their wolf warrior–style rhetoric. Furthermore, it considers the host country’s characteristics and cultural differences, in particular cultural individualism, which makes that country a more suitable target for wolf warrior diplomacy. Using Twitter messages collected from PRC diplomats’ official accounts, the study applies structural topic modeling and text analysis to show the correlation between the rhetoric and the characteristics of the host country as the intended audience. The findings reveal that individualistic and aggressive rhetoric is more likely to target culturally individualistic host countries. At the same time, various country-based factors also affect online rhetoric and influence the use of the wolf warrior strategy. Researching this area from a different perspective and presenting claims with data-driven evidence provides valuable guidance and learning opportunities essential to the public and policymakers.

Department dc:contributor.department

Defense Analysis (DA)

Grantor dc:publisher

Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School

Year dc:date.issued

2022

Author dc:creator

• Roxas, Maria C.

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Warren, Timothy C.

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright is reserved by the copyright owner.

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10945/71538

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:calhoun.nps.edu:10945/71538