The author investigates crisis communication strategies used by the Chinese government during the H7N9 bird flu crisis and the influence of contextual factors like cultural, socio-political, and technological factors, along with public reactions to the communication process. She uses government newspapers, press conferences, and government social media posts on Weibo to illustrate the government perspective, along with metropolitan newspapers and public Weibo posts to illustrate the viewpoint of the public. She describes the definition of a crisis from Western and Chinese perspectives, crisis communication theories, crisis communication in the Chinese context from a cultural perspective and the influence of visual media, and the influence of power distance, collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, Confucian humanism, and saving face, as well as the development of digital media and online censorship in China. Chapters then address strategies by the Chinese government during the H7N9 crisis, cultural factors impacting the crisis communication process, and how public attitudes were presented in newspapers and Weibo posts, as well as the interaction between the government and public. Distributed in North America by Turpin Distribution. Annotation ©2022 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
While past public crises were addressed by focusing on protecting the public safety and maintaining public order, public crises today, such as the COVID-19 outbreak, require different responses and face more challenges. Crisis Communication in China examines crisis communication strategies taken by the Chinese government during public crises and discusses how the public react to these strategies, exploring the cultural context and the development of digital media as critical factors underlying the strategies adopted.
Much of the previous research on crisis communication in China adopted Coombs Situational Crisis Communication Theory. However, as a theory proposed and developed in the West, its application in a non-Western culture requires testing. In addition, cultural influences and the role of digital technology have been discussed in some existing literature, but few studies have attempted to integrate these elements into crisis communication theories. In order to fill these two gaps, this research analyses the Chinese governments crisis communication strategies during the H7N9 crisis, examining not only the governments management of the crisis but also the publics reaction to the official communication process. It also explores the cultural context and the development of digital media as critical factors underlying the strategies adopted. The analysis contributes to development of a comprehensive theory that incorporates these two elements, which shows and identifies related crisis communication strategies emerged from cultural traditions and the development of digital media.
Crisis Communication in China examines crisis communication strategies taken by the Chinese government during public crises and discusses how the public react to these strategies, exploring the cultural context and the development of digital media as critical factors underlying the strategies adopted.
While past public crises were addressed by focusing on protecting the public safety and maintaining public order, public crises today, such as the COVID-19 outbreak, require different responses and face more challenges. Crisis Communication in China examines crisis communication strategies taken by the Chinese government during public crises and discusses how the public react to these strategies, exploring the cultural context and the development of digital media as critical factors underlying the strategies adopted. Much of the previous research on crisis communication in China adopted Coombs Situational Crisis Communication Theory. However, as a theory proposed and developed in the West, its application in a non-Western culture requires testing. In addition, cultural influences and the role of digital technology have been discussed in some existing literature, but few studies have attempted to integrate these elements into crisis communication theories. In order to fill these two gaps, this research analyses the Chinese governments crisis communication strategies during the H7N9 crisis, examining not only the governments management of the crisis but also the publics reaction to the official communication process. It also explores the cultural context and the development of digital media as critical factors underlying the strategies adopted. The analysis contributes to development of a comprehensive theory that incorporates these two elements, which shows and identifies related crisis communication strategies emerged from cultural traditions and the development of digital media.
