Sociology Professor Examines China's Social Media Revolution

China's internet censorship is notorious, earning its state-run web security technology the nickname The Great Firewall of China. What better environment to study the effects of social media?

Guobin Yang, an Associate Professor in the Annenberg School for Communication and SAS's Department of Sociology, is doing just that. His connection to Penn began long before he interviewed for his job: While he was doing research in Beijing, Monroe Price, director of Annenberg’s Center for Global Communication Studies, invited him to lecture for some Penn undergraduates who were also in Beijing. The students were researching Chinese media as part of an Annenberg summer program. Afterward, Price continued to involve Yang in events at Penn that were related to China and Chinese media.

“Social media are an extremely important channel for citizens there to participate in the political process,” he explains. “Paradoxically, the Internet is both empowering for the citizens and controlled by the government. Looking forward, I want to continue to focus on this area of research."

To read the full release, click here.