| This dissertation investigates the impact of traditional and digital media on political participation in China. In particular, this study aims to test existing theories of media effects in a different society where both traditional and digital media are heavily controlled. Using an existing probability-based dataset, the study specifically tests the impact of media use, political interest, social capital, and social conflict on political participation and voting. Results indicate that traditional news media measured by frequency and attention remain relevant to voting and political participation in both urban and rural China. Importantly, this research shows that the impact of digital media—the Internet—is even more prominent than traditional news media. Social capital measures are overall important correlates of political outcomes. Social networks are overall more important to voting in local people's congress while norms of reciprocity matter more to voting in villagers' and residents' committee. Among trust measures, trust toward people with close ties is important to engaging in informal political participation while trust toward people with weaker ties matters more to engaging in formal political participation. Finally, social conflict including conflict with others and conflict with the government is a potent predictor of informal political participation. |
