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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center"><span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size:14px; font-family:Verdana"><b>&nbsp;</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:16px"><b><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana">Media@Sydney&nbsp;</font></b><b><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana">presents</font></b></span></p>
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<span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size:18px"><b><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana"><i>Challenging official propaganda? Public opinion leaders on Sina Weibo</i></font></b></span></p>
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 Y.M. Nip</strong></p>
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<span lang="EN-AU"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana">&nbsp;</font></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana">&nbsp;</span></p>
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<span style="font-family:Verdana">This study seeks to understand the implications of the Internet on freedom of information and opinion in China by studying the mechanism of formation of public opinion in a series of corruption cases exposed after the Chinese
 Communist Party's 18th Congress in 2012.</span></p>
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<span style="font-family:Verdana">Focusing on Sina Weibo, the study examines the prominence of various users as public opinion leaders in these corruption cases. The research found that ordinary citizens made the largest category that initiated the cases, whereas
 news organizations and online media were the main actors that set the agenda of and disseminated information about corruption. Reading the messages found that news organizations and online media mainly published similar content to that of official agencies,
 suggesting that the commonly-held view that the party-state has little influence on Weibo needs revisiting.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:'Times New Roman'"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height:20px; font-family:Verdana">Among the most eye-catching cases, cultural and news workers played a significant role in getting messages reposted and commented
 upon. These findings suggest that while Weibo provides channels for citizens to publish information and opinion, the news media and online outlets remain as the main vehicle of agenda setting and public dissemination. Reputable individuals are able to triumph
 as public opinion leaders in certain cases. The party-state, with the media under its control, is able to maintain its general domination of public opinion on the Sina Weibo platform.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana">&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Date:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU">&nbsp;Friday 28th March, 2014</span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana"><b>Time:
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="color:rgb(0,0,0); text-align:left"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana"><span lang="EN-AU"><b>Location:
</b>S226<b>&nbsp;</b></span><span lang="EN-AU">Seminar Room, Department of Media and Communications, University of Sydney,</span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:left"><span lang="EN-AU"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana"><a href="http://db.auth.usyd.edu.au/directories/map/building.stm?ref=d08h15" style="font-weight:bold; color:blue" target="_blank">John Woolley Building
 (A20)</a><font class="Apple-style-span" color="#0000ff" style="font-weight:bold">&nbsp;</font>level 2, entry off Manning Road.<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="color:rgb(0,0,0)"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana"><b><span lang="EN-AU">Register at&nbsp;</span></b></font><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana"><a href="http://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/challenging-official-propaganda-public-opinion-leaders-on-sina-weibo-tickets-10682129537" target="_blank">http://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/challenging-official-propaganda-public-opinion-leaders-on-sina-weibo-tickets-10682129537</a></span></p>
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<div><strong style="color:rgb(0,0,0); font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-style:normal; font-variant:normal; letter-spacing:normal; line-height:20.799999237060547px; text-align:start; text-indent:0px; text-transform:none; white-space:normal; word-spacing:0px; background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><span style="font-family:Verdana">Joyce
 Y.M. Nip</span></strong><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0); font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-style:normal; font-variant:normal; font-weight:normal; letter-spacing:normal; line-height:20.799999237060547px; text-align:start; text-indent:0px; text-transform:none; white-space:normal; word-spacing:0px; background-color:rgb(255,255,255); display:inline!important; float:none"><span style="font-family:Verdana">&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family:Verdana">is
 a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Media and Communications and the Department of Chinese Studies at The University of Sydney. She was a journalist before becoming an academic, and is an editorial board member of Journalism Practice and Digital Journalism.&nbsp;</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:rgb(0,0,0)"><b><span lang="EN-US">Media@Sydney is presented by the&nbsp;</span></b></span></p>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:rgb(0,0,0)"><b><span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://sydney.edu.au/arts/media_communications/" target="_blank">Department of Media and Communications</a>, University of Sydney</span></b></span></p>
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<div style="font-family:'Times New Roman'; color:rgb(0,0,0); font-size:14px"><b><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana">For more information contact</font></b></div>
<div style="font-family:'Times New Roman'; color:rgb(0,0,0); font-size:14px"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Verdana">Dr Fiona Martin</font></div>
<div style="font-family:'Times New Roman'; color:rgb(0,0,0); font-size:14px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana">ph: 428391122 or 02 90365098</span></div>
<div style="font-family:'Times New Roman'; color:rgb(0,0,0); font-size:14px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana">e:&nbsp;</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana"><a href="mailto:fiona.martin@sydney.edu.au" target="_blank">fiona.martin@sydney.edu.au</a></span></div>
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