News Practices in Deep Media Convergence in China

Abstract

This chapter examines China’s state-led push for media convergence as a response to both the commercial pressures facing legacy media and the political challenges created by digital communication. It argues that convergence is not simply a technological or industrial reform, but part of a broader restructuring of the news sector around integrated digital platforms that combine information, services, and governance functions. Drawing on two cases, the chapter shows how this process blurs the boundary between journalism and other sectors, while reshaping market-oriented media’s relationship with the Party-state. One major consequence is the further weakening of critical journalism, as commercially oriented news organizations increasingly depend on collaboration with official institutions and state-aligned service provision.