Whataboutism with foreign affairs: How Chinese media leverage foreign news for distraction and legitimation

This dissertation examines the strategic use of foreign news as a propaganda tool in authoritarian regimes, focusing on China. While prior research emphasizes domestic narratives in authoritarian propaganda, this study highlights foreign news as a distinct form of propaganda for distraction and legitimation. Analyzing approximately two million social media posts from twelve major Chinese media outlets between 2011 and 2023, the dissertation first reveals that Chinese foreign news coverage focuses heavily on Western democracies, regional rivals, and the Middle East. Geographic and economic proximities increase a country’s media visibility, while cultural and political distances attract greater attention. The extensive coverage of foreign rivals rather than politically proximate countries as existing literature suggests indicates potential strategic intent. The dissertation then demonstrates that negative foreign news is strategically employed during economic downturns to distract public focus from domestic concerns. Statistical analyses link rising inflation and public attention to inflation and unemployment to increased negative coverage of foreign economic and political affairs. A pre-registered survey experiment confirms that negative foreign news effectively shifts attention away from domestic issues, outperforming positive domestic propaganda as a distraction instrument. Moreover, negative foreign news reinforces authoritarian legitimacy by exploiting national identity, anti-foreign predispositions, and cognitive negativity biases. Experimental and observational evidence confirms that such coverage undermines perceptions of foreign democracies while bolstering domestic regime support. Finally, the dissertation extends the study of foreign-focused information to foreign political entertainment, revealing that its influence on public perceptions is modest and inconsistent with a second survey experiment in China. By integrating insights from communication studies, political psychology, and authoritarian politics, this research expands the understanding of propaganda strategies and the political influence of foreign-focused information in non-democratic contexts.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Political Science

Grantor

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2025

Author dc:creator

• Shen, Shuyuan

Contributors dc:contributor

• Althaus, Scott
• Winters, Matthew Stephen
• Webb Williams, Nora
• Yang, Yujeong

• Chinese Politics
• Authoritarian Propaganda
• Foreign News

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2025 Shuyuan Shen

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129698

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F129698