Online Society in China: Creating, celebrating, and instrumentalising the online carnival

This book discusses the rich and varied culture of China's online society, and its impact on offline China. It argues that the internet in China is a separate 'space' in which individuals and institutions emerge and interact. While offline and online spaces interact with and influence each other, the Chinese internet is more than merely a technological or media extension of offline Chinese society. Where existing studies which locate online China in offline society, this book discusses the carnival of the Chinese internet on its own terms.Examining the complex relationship between government officials and the people using the Internet in China, it demonstrates that culture is highly influential in how technology is used. Discussing a wide range of different activities, this book examines what Chinese people actually do on the internet, and how their actions can be interpreted within the online society they are creating.