Copyright by Mei Huang 2010 The Thesis Committee for Mei Huang Certifies that this is the approved version of the following thesis: Obedience, Confrontation and Riposte: The Internet and The Traditional Media in Mainland China APPROVED BY SUPERVISING COMMITTEE: Supervisor: Chien-hsin Tsai Sung-sheng Yvonne Chang Obedience, Confrontation and Riposte: The Internet and The Traditional Media in Mainland China by Mei Huang, B.A. Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts The University of Texas at Austin May 2010 For My Country and My People Acknowledgements My thanks first go to Professor Chien-hsin Tsai, who not only acted as the supervisor, offering me generous support from the last fall to this spring, but also helped me with every step in the hard process, even proofreading. Without his boundless inspirations, disciplines and encouragement, I would not be able to accomplish my thesis like a miracle. Over the last three years, I have greatly benefited from Professor Sung-Sheng Yvonne Chang. She always gave me confidence and understanding in my hardest time, as well as substantial guidance and support. She extremely impressed me, and taught me even more. I want to express my thanks to the Department of Asian Studies at The University of Texas at Austin, which completely supported my studies throughout the three years. I appreciate many colleagues, classmates and friends in China, the United States and other countries, for their sincere concerns, warnings, comments, suggestions, so on and so forth. I especially thank Dr. Arlen Nydam for his crucial contribution to my writing. Last but not least, I owe my parents too much since I was born. Although they have never been to Texas, I can feel their love at any time, just like they were by my side. I love them forever, no matter I will be in which corner of the world. May 1st, 2010 v Abstract Obedience, Confrontation and Riposte: The Internet and The Traditional Media in Mainland China Mei Huang, M.A. The University of Texas at Austin, 2010 Supervisor: Chien-hsin Tsai This thesis discusses the relationship between the two forces—the Internet and the conventional media, and the rules and etiquette that have governed these media from the mid-1990s to present day. I divide the history of interaction between them into three phases, corresponding to different power balances and stances in the field of cultural production. By analyzing three Internet-themed TV talk show episodes, I probe how the Internet has gradually evolved into an active competitor, and how the conventional media have correspondingly changed their stance in response to their thriving counterpart. vi Table of Contents List of Tables ......................................................................................................... ix List of Figures..........................................................................................................x 1 Introduction...........................................................................................................1 I. The Internet and Internet Culture ..............................................................1 II. Previous Studies .......................................................................................5 III. Three Phases of Internet Development .................................................13 IV. A Micro Field, Approaches and Premises ............................................18 V. Thesis Organization ...............................................................................24 2 From Li Xunhuan To Lu Jinbo ...........................................................................27 I. Behind the Show: His Story and History .................................................27 II. Comparative Approaches and Triple Identity ..........................................31 III. Internet Writing and Hierarchical Significance ......................................35 IV. Show Strategy and Manipulated Identity .............................................39 V. The Ignored Internet: Era of Obedience ................................................46 3 Furong Jiejie is Coming......................................................................................48 I. Furong's Contextual Implications ............................................................48 II. Internet Star and TV Program ................................................................60 III. Visual Culture in Confrontation ............................................................66 IV. Changed Balance of Power: New Trend ..............................................69 4 When the Internet Encounters Professor.............................................................71 I. New Conditions: Era of Riposte ..............................................................71 II. New Internet and New Hierarchy ...........................................................76 III. Visual Evidence and Proxemics Significance .......................................80 IV. Kuso Subculture and Anti-intellectualism ............................................88 V. Externalized Inner Competition...............................................................91 vii 5 Conclusion ..........................................................................................................93 Glossary ...............................................................................................................97 Bibliography ..........................................................................................................98 Vita ...................................................................................................................104 viii List of Tables Table 1: Chinese Literary Website Summary .................................................28 Table 2: Major Internet video service providers in Mainland China..............74 Table 3: Yi’s seating in previous talk show episodes .....................................85 ix List of Figures Figure 1: Synchronic triple identity of Li.........................................................35 Figure 2: Distorted triple identity of Li ............................................................46 Figure 3: Frjj's famous picture, 1st...................................................................49 Figure 4: Frjj's famous picture, 2nd..................................................................49 Figure 5: Frjj in the China Internet Industry Leadership Forum......................51 Figure 6: Frjj's new picture in Xinhuanet.........................................................51 Figure 7: Frjj appeared in the talk show...........................................................62 Figure 8: Frjj showed her signature "S" pose in the talk show ........................64 Figure 9: Yi mocked picking cotton.................................................................81 Figure 10: Yi and the Comedian were seated shoulder to shoulder...................82 Figure 11: The long distance between Yi and the host ......................................85 Figure 12: A different episode of Special Internet.............................................86 Figure 13: Another episode of Special Internet .................................................86 Figure 14: Edward Hall’s body spacing circle ...................................................88 x 1 INTRODUCTION I. The Internet and Internet Culture As a new medium, the Internet challenges conventional media in Mainland China and struggles with them. In this thesis, I discuss the relationship between the two forces—the Internet and conventional media (such as television, radio, newspapers, magazines),1 and the rules and etiquette that have governed these media from the mid-1990s to present day. These relationships, unwritten rules and etiquette, which I will refer to as “codes”2 of their competition, form the ground of their existence and set the parameters for their competition with one another. By analyzing three Internet-themed TV talk show episodes, I examine three different phases of this competition, probing how the Internet has gradually evolved 1 In this thesis, “traditional media,” “conventional media” and “mainstream media”, all refer to all forms of media that appear in use by the official power before the Internet and have already been taken fully control of the official power. I emphasize television though, though my emphasis is on television. 2 Lessig first describes the term “code” of the Internet, which is comparable to the law in society: the Internet, the software, and the rules are created by various groups such as state organs, individuals, and companies. The code represents the combination and interaction of the software, hardware, and rules and etiquette of the Internet. The structure of the code derives, therefore, from the power struggles between different groups. As Lessig argues: “We can build, or architect, or code cyberspace to protect values that we believe are fundamental, or we can build, or architect, or code cyberspace to allow those values to disappear. [. .] Code is never found; it is only ever made, and only ever made by us.” See Lessig, Lawrence, Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace (New York: Basic Books, 1999), 6. Likewise, in this thesis, I draw this term back from cyberspace to real life, and define the “code” as the law in the media field. 1 into an active competitor in the field of cultural production, and how the conventional