The real culture war: China vs U.S. | Thomas Barker ? (2023)

The era of America’s cultural supremacy may be coming to an end. In Southeast Asia, China is gaining influence not only through PR campaigns like mask and vaccine diplomacy, but through its cultural exports. TikTok, pop music and the Chinese equivalents of Netflix and HBO might seem of little consequence to hard geopolitical power struggles. But these exports are winning over hearts and minds and normalising China’s autocratic government, Thomas Barker argues.

As the old maxim says, “Never let a good crisis go to waste”. Covid-19 is the great crisis of our time. Mostly refracted through the “great power competition” between the incumbent hegemon the United States and the rising power, the People’s Republic of China, the Covid-19 pandemic is proving to be a fecund ground for soft power projection, national image management, and public diplomacy.

Southeast Asian countries are viewing this ongoing conflict with interest as the two superpowers engage in ideological debates and tit-for-tat accusations. As the virus arrived, and then spread, Southeast Asian countries readily accepted gifts of masks, PPE, and other equipment. These appeared as good news stories in the local press, accompanied by official photographs of crates arriving at airports adorned with flags, messages of friendship, and officials giving a thumbs up. In the ongoing battle for ideas, legitimacy, and recognition, Covid 19 quickly became another ‘space’ in which governments could posture and engage in public diplomacy or “mask diplomacy” as it became known. Observers have framed this as part of a soft power play in Southeast Asia where China in particular is gaining goodwill and improving its image in the region, often as leverage for political favour. Thinking in terms of soft power though both underplays and overstates what is going on at the moment.

Rather than coercing a country through the use of military force or economic power, soft power works to co-opt and convince through the power and attraction of ideas.

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On the one hand, these contemporary forms of soft power are iterations of what used to be called psywar in the Cold War era, associated with efforts by US state agencies to shape and influence opinion in target populations. On the other, some efforts like mask donations are just the latest form of ‘public diplomacy’, namely efforts by states, usually through their diplomatic service, to create a positive image of their country.

Either way, this challenges the concept of soft power as first articulated by Joseph Nye in the late 1980s. Nye suggested that a country can exert influence over another by the power of ideas and culture. Rather than coercing a country through the use of military force or economic power, soft power works to co-opt and convince through the power and attraction of ideas. For Nye, the United States was the preeminent soft power nation with its global cultural industries such as Hollywood and the ideological substance of its values and way of life condensed into concepts like freedom, liberty, or what President Reagan called a “city on the hill”.

Yet we readily forget that Nye’s conception was formulated in the context of America’s “victory” in the Cold War, accompanied by economic globalisation and the adoption of neoliberal economic policies around the world. It was easy therefore to claim that America had “won” due to the power of its ideas and claim, in a circular logic, that this was the product of superior soft power, rather than actual power. Nye’s soft power argument is itself a product of US self-congratulatory triumphalism, rather than any objective measure of cause and effect.

Instead, what Covid-19 is revealing is a wholesale shift in the terrain of soft power and ideological narratives. What the US and the West in general have not realised is that America’s victory in the Cold War produced a form of hubris that has made the West think unreflexively about itself, its role in recent history, and how others such as Southeast Asians view them.

America and its allies embarked on military campaigns throughout the 1990s in the name of ‘freedom and democracy’ but delivered little of either. Even after the shock and tragedy of the 9/11 attacks, and the global support, the ‘benign hegemon’ embarked on a seemingly never-ending succession of wars, invasions, and bombings which suffered mission creep, lack of strategic clarity, and a Vietnam-war-like syndrome of never-ending war. As I write, American and other allied forces are withdrawing from Afghanistan after a twenty-year engagement that seems to have produced very little.

As a result, the United States lost a lot of its legitimacy and become entangled in its own moral contradictions. America’s standing in the world as the “city on the hill” has been damaged by its militarism and the perception that its rhetoric and stated ideals do not match its actions. In short, America has lost much of its moral standing in the world which diminishes the foundations of its soft power.

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The emergence of China’s new paradigm of soft power

The pandemic era requires us to rethink how soft power operates, and who is winning the battle for hearts and minds. The information landscape has changed since the early 2000s, and especially since the 1990s, when American media companies like CNN were ascendant and we talked of a “CNN Effect”. Instead, now, the internet, social media, and network information ecosystems have taken over. The diffuse information networks of Facebook, YouTube, and myriad “news” outlets compete in a befuddled information overload. Saturated with misinformation, fake news, conspiracy theories and new pernicious forms of ideological content, the information landscape has complicated any simple narrative of US righteousness and moral superiority. Once stable and homogenous information ecosystems are fractured, opinion becomes as salient as fact, a TikTokker has as much perceived authority as a news anchor, and slick ominous documentaries on YouTube reveal “secret conspiracies”.

As many in the region become disillusioned with democracy as it is corrupted by venal elites and incompetence, China’s model of autocratic-developmentalism is increasingly attractive both to elites and weary publics. This has allowed China to reshape the narrative about itself and its place in the world. Mask diplomacy, and more recently vaccine diplomacy, are iterations of this ongoing soft power tussle allowing China to create new narratives about itself and challenge the US and the “liberal world order”. While it may not be readily visible in the West, in cities such as London or New York, it is clear from within the region of Southeast Asia, where competing narratives of the factual world are playing out.

Southeast Asia’s information landscape is being reshaped by content originating from China including official news and information sources but also a myriad of new innocuous and entertaining formats. Mandarin language media are gaining in popularity especially for populations in countries like Singapore and Malaysia where Mandarin is still spoken, but where many are also learning Mandarin to pursue opportunities in China. Friends complain about their parents coming under the sway of this in much the same way Fox News and others are reportedly doing in the United States and elsewhere: objective access to reality is distorted through ideological talking points.

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As many in the region become disillusioned with democracy as it is corrupted by venal elites and incompetence, China’s model of autocratic-developmentalism is increasingly attractive both to elites and weary publics.

While many grew up with Hong Kong Cantonese pop culture content, the decline of Hong Kong and its Mainlandization has created a new landscape of Mandarin language pop culture and video information. TikTok and other short form media are part of this process, with innocuous videos of fashion, animals, and pranks becoming more widespread. Buried within this content are Chinese made reports on Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China’s role in the world, told from China’s point of view.[

This is not just influencing Mandarin speakers. I was quite shocked reading student essays last month when one paper for a Cultural Politics module claimed that the situation in Xinjiang with the Uyghur and other minorities was a Western media hoax designed to discredit China. Taking talking points directly from pro-China denialists, the student argued that reports about Xinjiang are an example of Western cultural imperialism. What was most surprising was that the essay was written by a Malay Muslim student, a constituent we’d assume would be sympathetic to the plight of Uyghur people. Instead she had taken the side of China in the larger China-America conflict of ideas.

Content is backed by investment in the distribution infrastructure across the region as Chinese media companies such as iqiyi and WeTV rival American giants such as Netflix, Disney+, and HBO. Tencent’s purchase of Malaysian start-up iflix in 2020 marked a major regional acquisition. This follows the acquisition of the South China Morning Post by Jack Ma’s Alibaba in 2016, and investment in cinemas across the region, deepening China’s platforms of engagement and soft power projection. While China may be acting pragmatically in trying to make the region “safe for autocracy”, by altering the media narratives the talking points and rationale of its autocratic governance are becoming normalized.[ii]

While mask and vaccine diplomacy reveal the ongoing battle for influence in the Southeast Asian region, we should be attentive to the other ways in which the information landscape is changing in its audience, structure, and content. It reveals a new terrain of informational contest in which China is not only asserting itself much more but increasingly altering the narrative.

References:

Mirana M. Szeto & Yun-Chung Chen (2012) Mainlandization or Sinophone translocality? Challenges for Hong Kong SAR New Wave cinema, Journal of Chinese Cinemas, 6:2, 115-134, DOI: 10.1386/jcc.6.2.115_1

[ii] Thomas Pepinsky and Jessica Chen Weiss, The Clash of Systems? Washington Should Avoid Ideological Competition With Beijing, Foreign Affairs, June 11, 2021

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2021-06-11/clash-systems

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FAQs

What is a culture war example? ›

A number of conflicts about diversity in popular culture occurring in the 2010s, such as the Gamergate harassment campaign, Comicsgate and the Sad Puppies science fiction voting campaign, were identified in the media as being examples of the culture war.

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The culture war or culture conflict refers to the conflict between traditionalist or conservative values and social democracy, progressive or social liberal values in the Western world, as well as other countries.

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Culture wars exist as the location of the struggle between US and Australian anti-feminist women and their opponents on family values, are crucial to the so-called history wars and Australia's identity narrative in light of speculation concerning the US and Australian political landscape.

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Customs, laws, dress, architectural style, social standards, and traditions are all examples of cultural elements.

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Cultures are groups of people who share a common set of values and beliefs. They may also share cultural elements like languages, festivals, rituals and ceremonies, pastimes, food, and architecture. Examples of cultures include western culture, youth culture, counterculture, and high culture.

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What are the culture wars? This refers to the idea that there are two cultural classes in the United States, and that these two groups engage in a constant battle over values. This idea is frequently simplified into a clash between liberals and conservatives.

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A cultural conflict is a dislike, hostility, or struggle between communities who have different philosophies and ways of living, resulting in contradictory aspirations and behaviors. The notion originates from sociological conflict theories and anthropological concepts of intercultural relations.

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Conflict theorists argue that society and culture are inherently unequal. Power is unequally distributed between social groups depending on factors such as class, gender, race, and age.

How does war affect a culture? ›

The relationship between society and war is cyclical as war influences the language people use, how places are named, and encourages social changes. Despite being a mostly destructive force, war forces all individuals to contribute to their society: sometimes in non-traditional ways.

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Cultural Conflicts

The American Civil War is a perfect example of a conflict stemming from cultural differences. The American Civil War was fought between the Northern United States and the Southern United States between 1861 and 1865, over the issues of slavery and the rights of states.

What are 3 different cultures in Australia? ›

Australia is a very multicultural society, with around one quarter of the population born overseas. As a result, you will find food and traditions from a wide variety of cultures — Chinese, French, Greek, Indian, Italian, Japanese, Mexican, Thai, Vietnamese, you name it!

Is Christianity considered a culture? ›

As a tradition, Christianity is more than a system of religious belief. It also has generated a culture, a set of ideas and ways of life, practices, and artifacts that have been handed down from generation to generation since Jesus first became the object of faith.

What are 5 cultures that exist in the United States? ›

A member of the core Anglosphere, it is primarily of Western and European origin, particularly British and German, yet its influences include the cultures of Asian American, African American, Latin American, and Native American peoples and their cultures.

What is an example of American culture? ›

Most Americans are always on the go. It seems they are often running from one appointment to the next, going to and from work, picking up kids, running errands, and going to business meetings and social outings. Because Americans are regularly on the move, there is often not enough time to have a formal, sit-down meal.

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African-American culture, also known as Black American Culture or Black Culture, refers to the contributions of African Americans to the culture of the United States, either as part of or distinct from mainstream American culture.

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American culture is highly individualistic , whereby people are expected to be self-reliant and independent. There is a strong belief in equal opportunity and meritocracy – that reward is based on a person's abilities rather than their wealth or social position.

What is the culture of Africa? ›

The Culture of Africa is varied and manifold, consisting of a mixture of countries with various tribes that each have their unique characteristic from the continent of Africa. It is a product of the diverse populations that inhabit the continent of Africa and the African diaspora.

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Not only does war cripple the economy and politics, but on a deeper level, it taints society and forever alters the cultural identity of those people. They are forced to migrate for the sake of their safety and a better future, carrying their culture with them, but in the process altering it.

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As defined by the United Nations, “Culture of Peace” is a “set of values, attitudes, modes of behavior and ways of life that reject violence and prevent conflicts by tackling their root causes to solve problems through dialogue and negotiation among individuals groups and nations.” Since its founding over 60 years ago, ...

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In his book Cultural Imperialism, John Tomlinson argues that exported American culture is not necessarily imperialist because it does not push a cultural agenda; it seeks to make money from whatever cultural elements it can throughout the world.

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People can prevent cross-cultural conflicts by learning about cultures that they come in contact with. This knowledge can be obtained through training programs, general reading, talking to people from different cultures, and learning from past experiences.

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Cultural conflict is likely to emerge when the rules and values of one cultural group are substantially different from another, and members of the cultures come in contact with each other.

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The two types of cultural conflicts are primary conflict and secondary conflict. Primary cultural conflict pertains to fundamental values in a cultural group, while secondary conflict is cultural conflict that does not involve values that are seen as critical to the groups conflicting.

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The major elements of culture are symbols, language, norms, values, and artifacts. Language makes effective social interaction possible and influences how people conceive of concepts and objects.

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Conflict is triggered when there are cultural differences between individuals within an organization or through general interaction with one another. This often leads to cross-cultural conflict which generally occurs in the context that individuals are not willing to understand each other's diversity in cultures.

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Examples: Examples of such conflicts include conflicts between Blacks and Whites, Arabs, or Hispanics about race-related issues; conflicts between different ethnic or religious groups, conflicts about sexual-orientation, even gender conflicts.

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The most immediate effect is the real loss of monuments and other items of heritage that are evidence of a people's cultural identity, with all the problems that this implies and what their reconstruction or the impossibility of their restoration entails.

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The Aztec-Mexica people of Tenochtitlan were, by their own definition, a 'warlike' culture, their collective identity closely tied to military ideals and behaviours. The values of war were dramatized and re-enacted at every level of society, and their shared warrior identity was widely understood by both men and women.

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War destroys communities and families and often disrupts the development of the social and economic fabric of nations. The effects of war include long-term physical and psychological harm to children and adults, as well as reduction in material and human capital.

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Racism, segregation, religious beliefs, environmental issues, being wrongly accused of something, and being ousted from society are all examples of how someone can come into conflict with his or her community.

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Primary Conflict: generally the conflict raise at the start of a story and resolved in the end; the overarching problem, for without, there would be no story.

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Australians, colloquially known as Aussies, are the citizens, nationals and individuals associated with the country of Australia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or ethno-cultural.

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What Is Cultural Identity? Put simply, your cultural identity is the feeling that you belong to a group of people like you. This is often because of shared qualities like birthplace, traditions, practices, and beliefs. Art, music, and food also shape your cultural identity.

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Christianity decreased by more than 1 million people but is still Australia's most common religion. Other religions continue to increase. Australia is becoming more religiously diverse. Almost 10 million Australians reported having no religion.

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An example of cultural conflict is the debate over abortion. Ethnic cleansing is another extreme example of cultural conflict. Wars can also be a result of a cultural conflict; for example the differing views on slavery were one of the reasons for the American civil war.

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For example, the break-up of Czechoslovakia, the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia created each of their own cultural crisis. After new found independence, those countries such as Poland and the newly unified Germany had to completely redefine themselves culturally.

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Eight cultural forces are identified as: language, time, environment, opportunities, routines, modeling, interactions, and expectations.

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33 Top Conflict Examples
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  • Armed Insurgencies.
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  • Gang Wars.
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There are five main causes of conflict: information conflicts, values conflicts, interest conflicts, relationship conflicts, and structural conflicts.

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What are some examples of crises? Family crises include events such as familial abuse, family disease, and arguments. Natural disasters are caused by weather-related events such as tornadoes and earthquakes. Sudden financial crises are caused by events such as losing a job or not being able to pay bills.

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An example of cultural change is the replacement of fire and stone tools with modern technological tools, such as electricity and other advanced tools.

What are the examples of cultural issues in society? ›

Types Of Cultural Differences In The Workplace
  • Religion. ...
  • Ethnicity. ...
  • Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. ...
  • Education. ...
  • Generation. ...
  • Cultural Behavior. ...
  • Educational Clash. ...
  • Ensure Effective Communication.

What are 4 examples of cultural factors? ›

The cultural and lifestyle information about a country can be broken down into several areas of research:
  • Material culture. ...
  • Cultural preferences. ...
  • Languages. ...
  • Education. ...
  • Religion. ...
  • Ethics and values. ...
  • Social organization.
Apr 28, 2017

What is an example of cultural stress? ›

Culture stress, sometimes known as culture shock, is very common when relocating to a new culture and should be expected with all overseas travel. Culture stress can take on many forms, the most common being depression, irritability and homesickness.

What are some examples of cultural resistance? ›

Mohandas Gandhi turned the making of khadi, hand-spun and hand-woven cloth, for example, into an act of cultural resistance against British colonizers who had ravaged India's ancient cotton cloth industry with mass- produced British cottons. Food can also be a site of resistance.

Which type of war is most common in the world today? ›

One of the most common types of conflict currently taking place is terrorist insurgency. This type of conflict often involves non-state actors, such as extremist groups, who engage in violent activities to achieve their political goals.

Which country is the most war like? ›

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter once acknowledged that the United States is seen as the most warlike nation on Earth. Since its founding in 1776, the U.S. has been involved in more than 200 conflicts.

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