Arresting a Chinese Tech-Princess: discourses in the Canadian national news media by Daniella Silva B.A. (International Communications), Walla Walla University, 2018 Extended Essay Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the School of Communication (Dual Degree Program in Global Communication) Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology © Daniella Silva 2019 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Summer 2019 Copyright in this work rests with the author. Please ensure that any reproduction or re-use is done in accordance with the relevant national copyright legislation. Approval Name: Daniella Silva Degree: Master of Arts Title: Arresting a Chinese Tech Princess: discourses in the Canadian national news media Program Director: Katherine Reilly Sarah Ganter Senior Supervisor Assistant Professor Katherine Reilly Program Director Associate Professor Date Approved: August 15, 2019 ii Abstract By arresting Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou, Canada lit the fuse for an international incident that has had serious consequences for the nation and its allies. Meng’s arrest is therefore a valuable case study to identify whose voices have the most power over messaging in the Canadian national news media. Using a critical discourse analysis of news quotations, this study identifies three main discourses circulating in news about Meng’s arrest and provides insight into how those discourses are linked to powerful individuals and interest groups at five levels of analysis. This study finds that the national news media positions Meng’s arrest as part of a larger geo-political struggle between East and West. An analysis of quotation patterns and citation routines show that Chinese government quotes are positioned less objectively than quotes from either the US or Canadian government suggesting a bias toward “Western” elite sources, especially governments and experts. Keywords: Meng Wanzhou; Canadian national news; Huawei; hierarchy of influences; critical discourse analysis iii Acknowledgements This project would not have been possible without the support of many individuals. I would especially like to thank my advisor, Dr. Sarah Ganter, for her detailed feedback and commitment to critical scholarship. I would also like to thank this year’s GCMA co-directors and professors, Dr. Adel Iskandar, Dr. Katherine Reilly, Dr. Enda Brophy, and Dr. Kirsten McAllister for their ongoing support and outstanding classroom management during the program’s core seminars. The seminars greatly contributed to my thought processes and pointed me in the direction of invaluable literature for my project. Each of these individuals greatly contributed to my growth as an academic and helped prepare me for the program’s upcoming year in Beijing. The acknowledgement section would be remiss without mentioning my wonderful cohort. Throughout the year, they have been a source of community and a safe space to destress and just have fun. Many of them have also provided thoughtful feedback on my work. I am excited to spend the next year with each of these individuals. A special thanks to Maxine Yeo, Muyi Yang, Ejilayomi Mimiko, Abdelrahman Fakida Amr, and Cecilia Shi. My loving family and boyfriend have also been an endless source of love and support whenever I was feeling overwhelmed. At times, they graciously listened to my rants and helped make sense of my abstract thoughts related to this project. Without them, I would not be where I am today. Thank you Debbie Silva, Lucas Silva, and Michael Jensen. You mean the world to me. Finally, I would like to thank my co-workers at Playland Guest Services who took such an interest in what I was writing. A special thank you to my supervisor, Tony, and my manager, Connor, for their insights and enthusiasm for the project. iv Table of Contents Approval .......................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .......................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ iv Table of Contents ............................................................................................................ v List of Tables ................................................................................................................. vii List of Figures................................................................................................................ viii List of Acronyms ............................................................................................................. ix Chapter 1. Introduction .............................................................................................. 1 Chapter 2. Huawei as a Political Economy of Communications Case Study ......... 3 Controversy and the Failure of American Market Penetration Efforts ........................... 3 Huawei as a Benevolent Corporation: Win-Win Rhetoric ............................................. 6 Chapter 3. Literature Review ..................................................................................... 8 Western Media and China Representation ...................................................................... 8 Common Approaches to studying China Representation and Critiques ..................... 10 Responding to the Critiques: Media Sociology and the Hierarchy of Influences Approach ...................................................................................................................................... 11 Chapter 4. Methodology ........................................................................................... 14 Describing the Sample .................................................................................................. 14 Critical Discourse Analysis ............................................................................................ 16 Citation Routines ........................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 5. Hierarchy of Influences: Findings and Analysis .................................. 19 Ideological Analysis ....................................................................................................... 19 Rule-of-Law Discourse............................................................................................... 20 Political Economy Discourse ...................................................................................... 22 Immoral Act Discourse ............................................................................................... 25 Organizational Analysis ................................................................................................. 28 Extra-Media (Social Interest Groups and Institutions) .................................................... 29 Linking Interest Groups to Discourses ....................................................................... 32 Linking Interest Groups to News Organizations ......................................................... 34 Individual Level ............................................................................................................. 36 Authors ...................................................................................................................... 36 Quoted Individuals ..................................................................................................... 39 News Routines Analysis: A micro-case study ................................................................ 40 Quotation Types ........................................................................................................ 41 Reporting Verbs ......................................................................................................... 42 Chapter 6. Interpretation of Findings ...................................................................... 44 Chapter 7. Conclusions ........................................................................................... 47 v Acknowledgement of Limitations ................................................................................... 47 References ................................................................................................................... 49 Appendix A: Coding Manual ....................................................................................... 55 Appendix B: Quoted Institutions (> 1% coverage) .................................................... 59 vi List of Tables Table 1: Risks associated with Chinese TNCs in the "West" ........................................... 5 Table 2: Major discourse groups and sub-categories .................................................... 20 Table 3: Interest groups and sub-categories represented in news quotations................ 31 Table 4: Representation of discourses according to interest groups .............................. 32 Table 5: Top 10 quoted institutions ................................................................................ 33 Table 6: Top authors (> 2% coverage) and affiliations ................................................... 39 Table 7: Top 10 quoted individuals ................................................................................ 40 Table 8: Comparison of quotation types (Western vs Chinese government) .................. 41 Table 9: Reporting verb comparison (Western vs. Chinese government)