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This article reviews theorizations of civil and uncivil society and highlights their underpinning in the ideal of civility, then introduces the Chinese concept of wenming [civilization] and outlines a history of what is considered bu wenming [uncivil] on Chinese online platforms. It then juxtaposes these definitions to a series of ethnographically grounded snapshots of media events and user interactions revolving around uncivil media practices. Drawing on firsthand accounts of the harassment of a foreign social media celebrity, a "Sticker War" between nationalist publics, a group chat about patriotism, and a BBS discussion of online incivility, the author argues for a shift from the prescriptive definitions of online civility and incivility to the situated understanding of how forms of uncivil sociality are articulated by digital media users in relation to various everyday practices, behaviors, and events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses frames analysis to investigate online discourses and processes of political deliberation on China’s weibo (microblog) service. It offers a comparative analysis of competing discourses surrounding the case of Wang Yue, a toddler who was ran over by two motor vehicles in Foshan, following which 18 people passed by and ignored her plight. The study aims to understand how weibo facilitate its users to express their differences and deliberate disagreements with each other. The study found that Internet users are rational in the sense that they do not simply lean towards a dichotomised choice of ‘pro-’ or ‘anti-’ official discourse, but they are able to negotiate their moral choices by considering a wide range of social and political factors in such an emotional and morally controversial incident. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]