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Chinese State Power in the Information Age; An Analysis on the Chinese Informatization Using the Concepts "Pastoral Power"" and "Information Power"

Hur Jung Su

서강대학교 동아연구소

Published: January 2012 · Vol. 63, No. 0 · pp. 3-44

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33334/sieas.2012.31.2.7

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Abstract

Not a few studies have already introduced to the cases of authoritarian states, such as China, trying to control the Internetwork( INTERNET) within their territories, and their political implications. In particular, the studies in regard to China`s case generally focused on how successful the government has been to make use of such kind of network as INTERNET as a measure of state power to ``control`` over its market and civil society. And there have been two main points view, one of which claims the ever-growing influence of the Inter-network would eventually serve as leverage to restrain Chinese state power, the other claiming Chinese government, which has little hesitation and a lot of measures to actively control over INTERNET users, wouldn`t be stopped succeeding in making the optimal informatization to the extent it attains only the effect of INTERNET Economy but such political instability as coming up with the worldwide open network, easy for people to express and circulate their idea. As of now, the latter viewpoint seems more likely in view of the successful performance in regulating the INTERNET, just until now, of Chinese government, which never guarantees its future success to control over its market or civil society. This study, other than the advanced studies referred above, abstains from normative perspectives on Chinese state-driven informatization or its intervention in the local INTERNET users, and does not intend to foresee Chinese future politics through information network including INTERNET. Rather, it pursues to analyze Chinese state power in the information age using the concepts ``Pastoral Power`` and ``Information Power``, thereby identifies the operation mode of Chinese state power(modus operandi) as the two-faced character, one of which is a ``guardian`` and the other ``surveillant``. ``Information Power`` is the concept to manifest the measures of Chinese government in the information age to exercise its power and control over the civil society. ``Pastoral Power`` is the concept to argue what the purpose and properties of Chinese ``Information Power`` are.
Keywords: 중국정보화 시대정보화정보권력사목권력권력운영방식, China