This thesis analyzes the Chinese podcasting ecosystem as an interstitial space of non-aligned cultural proliferation. In this "gray zone," podcasters must simultaneously manage a triple negotiation: compliance with Chinese Communist Party sensibilities, optimization for platform algorithms (Xiaoyuzhou, Ximalaya, Lizhi), and production of "brand-safe" content for commercial partnerships.Chinese feminist podcasting demonstrates how creators and audiences continuously negotiate between censorship, commercialization, and creative autonomy. While the State represses feminist activism (arrest of the "Feminist Five" 2015, audio platform shutdowns 2019, LGBTQ+ content censorship 2021), branded content represents a form of depoliticized feminism that, while celebrating empowerment narratives, avoids collective mobilization and systemic critique. The podcasts Stochastic Volatility, Bitch-Up, and After School serve as case studies for understanding the dynamics of Chinese digital listening communities. The methodological approach integrates platform studies (Nieborg & Poell 2018; Gillespie 2010), feminist media studies (Ahmed 2004; Fraser 1990; Rodgers 2023; Yuan & Wang 2025), and surveillance studies (Foucault 1975; Zuboff 2019), applying them to the study of the Chinese digital ecosystem (Han 2018; Yang 2022). The research examines how digital control infrastructures (Great Firewall, algorithmic moderation) impact on platformization logics through analysis of cultural negotiation practices, state control, and resistance. The contribution lies in applying a "continuous negotiation" framework to the Chinese audio ecosystem, moving beyond simplistic dichotomies (freedom/censorship, resistance/conformity). Audio content is analyzed as "contingent commodities" (Nieborg & Poell 2018). Commodities continuously reconfigured by the producers of modular contents, based on listening data, algorithmic logics, and governmental sensitivities, revealing how creators operate within commercial and political control infrastructures.
La tesi analizza l'ecosistema digitale del podcasting cinese come spazio interstiziale di proliferazione culturale non allineata. In questa "zona grigia" i podcaster devono gestire simultaneamente una tripla negoziazione: conformità alle sensibilità del Partito Comunista Cinese, ottimizzazione per gli algoritmi delle piattaforme (Xiaoyuzhou, Ximalaya, Lizhi), e produzione di contenuti "brand-safe" per partnership commerciali. Il podcasting femminista cinese evidenzia come creators e audience negozino continuamente tra censura, commercializzazione e autonomia creativa. Mentre lo Stato reprime l'attivismo femminista, il branded content si è reso capace di incanalare una forma di femminismo de-politicizzato che, pur celebrando narrazioni di empowerment, evita mobilitazione collettiva e critica sistemica. I podcast Stochastic Volatility, Bitch-Up e After School rappresentano alcuni dei casi studio analizzati per comprendere le dinamiche delle comunità di ascoltatori digitali cinesi. L'approccio metodologico integra studi sul fenomeno della platformiziazzione (Nieborg & Poell 2018; Gillespie 2010), media studies da una prospettiva femminista (Ahmed 2004; Fraser 1990; Rodgers 2023; Yuan & Wang 2025) e studi sulla sorveglianza (Foucault 1975; Zuboff 2019), allo studio dell'ecosistema digitale cinese (Han 2018; Yang 2022). Si esamina come le infrastrutture di controllo digitale statale(Great Firewall, moderazione algoritmica) impattino sulle logiche delle pratiche di negoziazione culturale, commercializzazione e resistenza algoritmica. Il contributo della ricerca risiede nell'applicazione del framework di "negoziazione continua" all'ecosistema audio cinese, nel tentativo di superare la banalizzazione dello studio delle pratiche mediali attraverso dicotomie quali libertà e censura o resistenza e conformità. I contenuti audio sono considerati nell’analisi del mercato come "commodities contingenti" (Nieborg & Poell 2018). Strumenti che in mano a produttori di contenuti modulari vengono continuamente riconfigurati in base a dati di ascolto, logiche algoritmiche e sensibilità governative, rivelando come i creators operino come all'interno di infrastrutture di controllo commerciali e politiche.
Podcasting China: controllo statale, negoziazione culturale e commercializzazione nell'ecosistema audio più grande al mondo
SISTU, PAOLO MATTEO
2024/2025
Abstract
This thesis analyzes the Chinese podcasting ecosystem as an interstitial space of non-aligned cultural proliferation. In this "gray zone," podcasters must simultaneously manage a triple negotiation: compliance with Chinese Communist Party sensibilities, optimization for platform algorithms (Xiaoyuzhou, Ximalaya, Lizhi), and production of "brand-safe" content for commercial partnerships.Chinese feminist podcasting demonstrates how creators and audiences continuously negotiate between censorship, commercialization, and creative autonomy. While the State represses feminist activism (arrest of the "Feminist Five" 2015, audio platform shutdowns 2019, LGBTQ+ content censorship 2021), branded content represents a form of depoliticized feminism that, while celebrating empowerment narratives, avoids collective mobilization and systemic critique. The podcasts Stochastic Volatility, Bitch-Up, and After School serve as case studies for understanding the dynamics of Chinese digital listening communities. The methodological approach integrates platform studies (Nieborg & Poell 2018; Gillespie 2010), feminist media studies (Ahmed 2004; Fraser 1990; Rodgers 2023; Yuan & Wang 2025), and surveillance studies (Foucault 1975; Zuboff 2019), applying them to the study of the Chinese digital ecosystem (Han 2018; Yang 2022). The research examines how digital control infrastructures (Great Firewall, algorithmic moderation) impact on platformization logics through analysis of cultural negotiation practices, state control, and resistance. The contribution lies in applying a "continuous negotiation" framework to the Chinese audio ecosystem, moving beyond simplistic dichotomies (freedom/censorship, resistance/conformity). Audio content is analyzed as "contingent commodities" (Nieborg & Poell 2018). Commodities continuously reconfigured by the producers of modular contents, based on listening data, algorithmic logics, and governmental sensitivities, revealing how creators operate within commercial and political control infrastructures.| File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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Sistu_Podcasting China_marzo_2026.pdf
accesso aperto
Descrizione: L'ecosistema podcasting della Repubblica Popolare Cinese come spazio interstiziale di negoziazione culturale continua tra controllo statale, logiche algoritmiche delle piattaforme e dinamiche di commercializzazione.
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https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14239/35108