Red Guard 2.0: Nationalist Flesh Search in China.

This article investigates the role of state-nationalist discourse in the rise of online nationalism by looking at case studies of nationalist flesh searches. Nationalist flesh searches target those seen as traitorous, anti-China or anti-government, and expose the victims’ private information as well as their alleged crimes, to the online public. Through examination of this activity, the study contextualizes the rise of online nationalism within the historical and political context of the Party’s renewed emphasis on nationalism in education and state media, and the role that this state-nationalism plays in social management. Case studies follow the development of nationalist flesh searches, examining the motivations, language and goals of these online nationalists, as well as the actions of those targeted and the role, if any, of the state and the state media. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]