The Hidden Face of Comradeship: popular Chinese consensus on the DPRK and its implications for Beijing's policy

As China's economic and foreign policies increasingly move away from the country's past socialist ideals, Beijing's attitude towards the DPRK has, in recent years, begun to subtly change. However, the close historic ties that exist between the two ruling communist parties prevent such changes from being overtly publicized in official discourses; criticizing the DPRK in China readily results in serious protests from Pyongyang. The popular perception in China of the DPRK, which is far more critical than the official version, is, on the other hand, hard to hide. In an authoritarian nation where exhibiting sentiments contrary to the party-state's policy is still not a safe and established practice, the Chinese people have increasingly relied on the platform of the Internet to express their views on various aspects of policy, including that towards the DPRK. This makes the Internet a rich resource for academics to gauge down-to-earth public opinion and how it contrasts with the official policy. Drawing on syst...