The Image of Chinа as Interpreted by the Military Periodical Letopis’ voiny s Yaponiyey
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15826/qr.2020.3.498Keywords:
image of state; China; information warfare; Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905; print periodicalsAbstract
This article analyses the distinctive features of the image of China (Qing Empire) on the pages of the periodical Letopis’ Voiny s Yaponiyey (Chronicle of War with Japan) by its reporters. The Far Eastern neighbour of Russia appears as a state that lacks strong authority within the country and is unable to fully carry out an independent foreign policy. The authors of the Letopis’ do not ignore that China is close to Japan culturally and religiously and consider it a possible adversary of the Russian Empire. However, they also believe that China is unable to become an active participant in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905 due to political pressure from the European powers and the US. The reporters of the Letopis’ pay special attention to the fact that as early as the beginning of last century, the Chinese were ready to “rise” and begin their struggle for independence, both from foreign powers and from the hated national elite of China, the Manchu Qing dynasty. In conclusion, the study argues that in the early twentieth century, the media, primarily newspapers and magazines, were given a special and important role in the Russian Empire in promoting the interests of the state and government. It was then that official and pro-governmental periodicals in Russia began, if necessary, to turn into a tool for forming the image of certain states (as an ally, enemy or neutral state) in the minds of the public in accordance with the will of the political elite.
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