China as a Double-Bind Regulatory State How Internet Regulators’ Predicament Produces Regulatees’ Autonomy

This book explores the dynamics of the Chinese regulation of internet firms. Sitting at the crossroad of regulation studies, communication studies, political economy, and the social movements, it conceptualises China as a “double-bind regulatory state”, defined as a two-step autonomy-enabling process. First, the party-state’s pursuit of competiting objectives creates a predicament for regulators. In the second step, private internet firms consciously exploit regulators’ predicament to enlarge their maneuvering room. The approach of “double-bind regulatory state” challenges some current academic accounts that exaggerate the capacity of the Chinese party-state to establish seamless control. This book is of interest to scholars of Chinese politics, digital law, political economy, and more.

Chapter 1: Introduction.- Chapter 2: A Conceptual Scheme for the Double-Bind Regulatory State.- Chapter 3: Particularities of the Economic Regulation of the ISM Industry.- Chapter 4: Particularities of the Political Regulation of the ISM Industry.- Chapter 5: Economic Versus Political Goals.- Chapter 6: The Dynamics of Fragmented Authoritarianism.- Chapter 7: Global Leadership Comes at a Price.- Chapter 8: The Double-Bind Regulation Beyond China.

Dr. Aifang Ma is currently a Boya Postdoctoral Scholar and a Lecturer at the School of Journalism and Communication, Peking University. She obtains her Ph.D in political science at Sciences Po Paris in 2022. She works on the regulation of the digital economy and artificial intelligence. Her research has been published in Public Administration, Revue Monde Chinois Nouvelle Asie, Constructif, Modern Publishing, Journal of Tianjin Administration Institute, Twenty-First Century, Mutations, The Conversation, etc.