Regional Responses to Globalization Challenges: The Assertion of Soft Power and Changing University Governance in Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia

Author(s):  
Ka Ho Mok
2020 ◽  
Vol 176 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-92
Author(s):  
Ian Huffer

New Zealand is one of only a handful of countries worldwide in which Chinese blockbusters are regularly released in cinemas and has also been a site of increasing debate regarding China’s soft power. This article consequently examines the circulation of Chinese films in New Zealand, not only through theatrical exhibition but also non-theatrical channels, and considers how this might build a platform for soft power. It considers the balance between ‘official’ and ‘unofficial’ mainland filmmaking, and between mainland filmmaking and Hong Kong, Taiwanese and diasporic filmmaking, along with the target audiences for these different channels. The article shows that, taken as a whole, the distribution and exhibition landscape for Chinese film in New Zealand builds a successful platform for the People’s Republic of China’s aspirations of winning the ‘hearts and minds’ of overseas Chinese, while also being characterised by clear limitations in reaching non-Chinese audiences in New Zealand.


Popular Music ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiu-Wai Chu ◽  
Eve Leung

AbstractEver since its sovereignty reverted to China, Hong Kong has been torn between its national (in terms of China and its ‘soft’ power) and global status (as ‘Asia's World City’). In this special context, Hong Kong's singular, ambiguous but prolific existence ceased. This paper endeavours to map ‘Cantopop’ (Chinese popular songs) on the new media landscape and examine its decline in the context of the rise and fall of cover versions. Cantopop was once very popular, not only in Hong Kong but also in its neighbouring regions. Its rise in the 1970s was a result of its typical hybridity, an important aspect of which was influenced by the use of cover versions that changed its soundscape. In the mid-1990s, the Cantopop market started to shrink significantly. A radio campaign for localisation advocated the release of original songs aimed at enhancing the development of Cantopop, but in the end proved to have the opposite effect. In the new millennium, ‘Mandapop’ (Mandarin popular songs) has taken on the role as the trend setter of the Chinese popular music industry. We argue in this paper that Cantopop's decline is the result of Hong Kong's loss of hybridity.


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