Bachelor of Arts, Wittenberg University, 2020, Communication

Beginning in April of 2019, protestors in Hong Kong, in response to an extradition bill allowing to detain and transfer individuals wanted in other countries, demanded amnesty for arrested protestors, removal of the label `riot' for the protests, inquiry on police brutality, the implementation of universal suffrage in Hong Kong, and the withdrawal of the extradition bill. After the bill was withdrawn, protests continued after as the remaining demands were not addressed. Media coverage, being a major source of communication to those within and outside of the nation, must use language in a way that creates a coherent ideological framework. This study examines coverage on the 2019 protests to observe the presentation of the events in Hong Kong to English-speaking audiences.

Committee: Sheryl Cunningham (Advisor); Mary Zuidema (Committee Member); Kelly Dillon (Committee Member) Subjects: Asian Studies; Communication; Journalism; Mass Communications; Mass Media; Political Science

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2017, History

This dissertation charts the path by which an idealized understanding of the Soviet Union aided the transformation of Marxism from a counter-hegemonic to a hegemonic discourse within China over the course of the four decades from the 1917 October Revolution until Nikita Khrushchev's 1956 “Secret Speech.” It probes previously unexamined commercial, political, and student presses, as well as organizational records, to detail ways by which the “image” of the Soviet Union was employed by separate groups to critique domestic political forces during China's Republican era (1912-49), challenge capitalism and international imperialism, and secure popular support during the early years of the People's Republic (1949-). Such inquiry sheds light on the conflicting ways in which Chinese imagined themselves and their world, and reveals an alternative conception of modernity that promised to bridge “East” and “West.” Chapters One, Two, and Four through Six provide a chronological reading of the “Soviet Union” in Shanghai and Beijing presses. As China experienced the consecutive pangs of revolutionary upheaval, state consolidation, foreign invasion, and civil war, the “meaning” of the Soviet Union also changed. Activists in the 1920s viewed the October Revolution as the opening salvo of a growing international movement against all forms of oppression. Over the following decades, however, “modernization” eclipsed “internationalism” as the USSR's chief selling point. The Soviet Union came to be portrayed as an industrialized nation with high rates of economic growth, able to provide for its citizens, and withstand foreign aggression. By depicting New China as the “younger brother” of the modern USSR, the Chinese Communist Party upon taking power implied that it would be able to replicate Soviet successes domestically. Chapters Three, Seven, and Eight examine organizations that defined their respective eras: the proletarian women's movement of the 1920s, and Shangh (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Christopher Reed (Advisor); Ying Zhang (Committee Member); David Hoffmann (Committee Member); Judy Wu (Committee Member) Subjects: Asian Studies; History; Mass Media; Modern History; Political Science; Russian History

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2016, Geography

The dissertation explores two aspects of China's urban transition: 1) the often overlooked planning practices of local states, and 2) the now hotly debated new town boom in China. Using two case studies, one about the shifting planning practices in Nanjing (1978-now), and the other on the birth and growth of Nanjing's Hexi New Town (2001-2016), the dissertation contributes to the study of Chinese cities and urban studies in general in two significant ways. Firstly, it reconstructs the evolution of planning practices and new town movements in China at both national and local levels. Secondly, it reveals how plan-making and new town development at a locality are assembling processes of heterogeneous social relations across time and space. It also shows, however, that the Chinese state remains a paramount power in city-making. Local leaders continuously search fresh territories for economic growth and institutional legitimacy, giving rise to a geography of accumulation as well as a geography of state ambition. Through ethnographic studies, the dissertation further suggests that to comprehend China's urban change and politics, scholars should conceptualize the state-party-society triangulation.

Committee: Max Woodworth (Advisor); Nancy Ettlinger (Committee Member); Ed Malelcki (Committee Member) Subjects: Asian Studies; Geography; Political Science; Public Policy; Urban Planning

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2023, History

This dissertation examines the intersections between Chinese popular culture and propaganda from 1927 to 1991. I argue that the Party's propaganda changed as the relationships between the CCP, the state, and the individual underwent significant transformations. This study begins with China's revolutionary period from 1927 to 1949, the CCP used folk music, folk dance, comics, and operas to advance wartime propaganda and promote the CCP's policies. In the Maoist period from 1949 to 1976, the Chinese government pivoted away from the rural revolution towards a nationwide revolutionary socialism. At this time, the Party and Mao Zedong used state-control of popular culture, including Soviet literature and movies, Chinese movies, and Yangbanxi (the revolutionary model performances), to mobilize Chinese people to participate in mass campaigns and the cult of Mao. In the Deng Xiaoping era from 1978 to 1991, the Party shifted away from revolutionary socialism and emphasized individualism and emotions in literature, music, movies, and television dramas. Deng's overarching goal was to end poverty in China by encouraging Chinese people to embrace consumerism. During the same period, China fought a border war with Vietnam, and Chinese wartime propaganda relied heavily on popular culture to convey messages to the Chinese people related to individualism, nationalism, sacrifice, and empathy.

Committee: Roberto Padilla II (Committee Chair); Melvin Barnes (Committee Member); Barry Jackisch (Committee Member); Terry Jackson (Committee Member) Subjects: History; Modern History

Master of Arts (MA), Wright State University, 2021, International and Comparative Politics

This study identifies three tactics authoritarian leaders use to attempt to effectively coerce their citizens without losing power: 1) performance legitimacy, 2) nationalist legitimacy, and 3) institutional legitimacy. To demonstrate these tactics of what I call “coercive effectiveness,” the author employs a most-different-systems analysis on the regimes of Xi Jinping (2012 2015) and Bashar al-Assad (2000-2004). The author finds that coercion is more likely to be effective under the following conditions: 1) when leaders use economic performance and institutionalist strategies rather than nationalist tactics, 2) when an authoritarian leader climbs the ladder to power rather than inheriting leadership and 3) when a regime is structured around the party rather than those centered on an individual leader. These findings allow policy makers to make more informed decisions for interacting with leaders. For example, the more that a regime centralizes its power, the more likely they will lose their grip on coercion by making themselves the sole target for blame.

Committee: Laura Luehrmann Ph.D. (Advisor); Pramod Kantha Ph.D. (Committee Member); Vaughn Shannon Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Comparative; International Relations; Middle Eastern History; Political Science

Master of Arts (MA), Wright State University, 2018, International and Comparative Politics

How do authoritarian states prioritize between economic growth and territorial integrity? China, as an authoritarian state, is growing in political and economic capacity. By examining challenges to China's territorial integrity, this study examines Chinese responses to visits by the Dalai Lama with government officials in Germany and Austria, as well as official visits by Uyghur dissidents to Germany and Turkey. Analyzing quarterly trade data and specific trade sectors with author created rating schema, patterns emerge. Employing a hybrid framework introduced by Sverdrup-Thygeson (2015), this study analyzes Chinese actions against perceived offending states. This study finds that levels of threshold are present in Chinese responses to perceived dissident threats. The conclusions of this study help answer how China prioritize responses to individuals bringing international attention to domestic issues and challenging Chinese state authority, these findings help indicate thresholds for actions taken by other authoritarian states.

Committee: Laura Luehrmann Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Pramod Kantha Ph.D. (Committee Member); Kathryn Meyer Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Asian Studies; International Relations; Political Science

Master of Arts (MA), Wright State University, 2017, International and Comparative Politics

This study uses Margaret Hermann's Leadership Trait Analysis (LTA) to compare Mao Zedong and Xi Jinping and see if they have the same style. Through a content analysis of a leader's speeches, researchers can gain insight into a leader's motivation for obtaining office and power. In the course of this research, 167 speeches by Mao, and 79 Speeches by Xi were inputted into the content analysis program Profiler+ (Hermann, 2003). The analysis showed that Mao and Xi have some similarities in their LTA results, but the differences in their scores indicate different approaches to leadership. An analysis of the context of a sample of speeches indicated that Mao was more likely to break society into groups and to be distrustful of others than Xi. The research concludes, Mao was a revolutionary and Xi is a bureaucrat and they utilize different leadership styles in response to their environments.

Committee: Laura Luehrmann Ph. D. (Committee Chair); Judson Murray Ph. D. (Committee Member); Vaughn Shannon Ph. D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Political Science

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2008, Leadership and Change

The purpose of this study was to determine how the building of Shenyang Jianzhu University's new campus was accomplished under the leadership of Professor Fuchang Zhang, Secretary General of the Chinese Communist Party for the university, using his Communist Party network. This study was conducted in the city of Shenyang, Liaoning Province, Peoples Republic of China, using interviews with Professor Zhang, his peers, government officials, and other university presidents. Archival data is also included. There were limitations in the study that included personal and professional friendships, student recruiting issues, as well as methodological limitations because all interviews had to be translated from Mandarin into English and transcribed. The study surrounds the controversy of a proposed move of Shenyang Jianzhu University from its old campus to its new campus. There were university faculty, government officials, as well as other university presidents who resisted such a move based on government regulation, funding, and peer pressure for the other presidents to do the same. Professor Zhang assumed leadership of the university through a two-tiered system of a president and Communist Party Secretary General of the university upon the retirement of President Chen. This gave Professor Zhang the opportunity to build the new campus for Shenyang Jianzhu University. The study further focuses on Professor Zhang and his powerful role and paradoxical style of leadership. On the one hand, he is a strong, tough leader who is capable of taking full control of the university leadership formally, through his role as the Chinese Communist Party General Secretary (his official role) and informally, through the administrative apparatus. On the other hand, he is a team player, is persuasive, and is a dynamic, entrepreneurial leader who seems to create a great deal of trust in his Party and Liaoning Province peers. Combining these two sides together, this paradoxical leadership led to s (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Alan Guskin PhD (Committee Chair); Laurien Alexandre PhD (Committee Member); Elizabeth Holloway PhD (Committee Member); Lee Lu PhD (Other) Subjects: Education