How China tailors its messages on maritime disputes

China’s territorial disputes in the South and East China Seas often dominate international headlines.  

But a new study shows that China’s state media strategically crafts two distinct narratives—one aimed at the domestic population and another designed for global audiences. 

Mixed messages 

“China currently participates extensively in multilateral organizations and promotes an image of itself as a peaceful rising power. It does not want to appear threatening.  

At the same time, theories suggest that the government must signal to its domestic audience that it will defend national sovereignty. This tension formed the gap we wanted to examine,” says Esther Song, Associate Professor at Department of Government, University of Bergen. 

Her research focuses on politics of China,authoritarian governance, and international affairs in the Asia-Pacific.  

She explains that previous studies have shown that the government closely monitors domestic public sentiment. But not much research has examined whether Beijing also caters to international public opinion. 

31,000 news articles  

In her resent research article published in September 2024, Song has analyzed nearly 31,000 news articles published between 2002 and 2021 by major Chinese state‑run outlets such as People’s Daily and China Daily. 

Using text analysis, she examined how state media framed topics related to maritime disputes during two decades of rising geopolitical tensions. By comparing Chinese‑language and English‑language state media, the researcher documented a clear divergence in how state‑run outlets describe these conflicts. 

The research article was published in the Australian Journal of International Affairs (external link) 

Sovereignty above all 

China can show determination by stirring up nationalism among its own citizens, but doing so may risk appearing threatening to neighbouring countries in the region. The research suggest that China manages this challenge by tailoring its messages depending on the audience.  

The Chinese‑language outlets consistently emphasized China’s legitimate and historically grounded claims to disputed territories. They invoked international law to validate China’s ownership, combined with strong assertions of national rights. 

“These narratives reinforce a confident, lawful stance, signaling to citizens that the government is unwavering in its commitment to territorial integrity,” explains Song. 

Peaceful intentions 

English‑language outlets, however, told a noticeably different story. While they also referenced international law, their tone was calming rather than assertive, emphasizing China’s desire to maintain peace. These articles aimed to counter claims from countries such as the U.S. and Japan that China is behaving aggressively. 

This messaging appears designed to reassure global audiences that China is not a threat—even as Beijing continues to defend its territorial claims. 

Leaving the victim narratives 

One of the most unexpected findings was what the researchers didn’t see. Much literature on Chinese political communication highlights narratives of historical victimization—particularly regarding Japan and Western power’s occupation of Chinese territory in 19C and early 20C. 

“We did not find much evidence of this in our dataset, even concerning Japan. We had expected stronger victimization narratives, but instead saw a more restrained, legality‑ and history‑based approach. China appears to be speaking the language of legitimacy rather than grievance.” 

Why it matters 

The study sheds new light on how modern authoritarian states communicate strategically across different audiences.  

It also challenges a common assumption in international relations research—that domestic opinion is the only audience China cares about. 

“As Chinas global presence growas, studying how the country frames its intentions do different audiences will only become more relevant. “ 

Esther Song`s article «China´s Dual Signaling in Maritime Disputes» was nominated to the Boyer Prize 2024 (external link) (LENKE) , an annually award to commend the best paper published in the Australian Journal of International Affairs (AJIA).  

This article has also been published in Science Norway: https://partner.sciencenorway.no/china-foreign-affairs-society-and-culture/conflict-over-maritime-areas-china-adapts-its-messaging-to-different-audiences/2651021 (external link)