By Alexandra Hansen & Fritz Josephson

        WeChat – known as 微信 (wēi xìn) in China – was launched by China’s largest listed Internet company, Tencent, in January 2011. Since its release, the application has grown exponentially in popularity due in part to the prior absence in China of global social media competitors. As of February 2017, WeChat had over 1.3 billion accounts, and more than 700 million active users with more than 70 million outside of China (NBSC, 2017).

        WeChat is a messaging app with a diverse set of social features that makes it a useful social media platform. WeChat is an all-inclusive, cross-platform communication service, that combines the most popular features of Facebook and Whatsapp, with other services like skype and iwallet. Distinctive features of the application include a public account platform, group chat services as well as photo and video sharing opportunities. Users are able to send text messages, hold video conferences, watch videos, post pictures, play video games, make payments, transfer money and connect with strangers. In addition, privately owned companies have the ability to open store-fronts within the application and make public pages which advertise their brand. WeChat has influenced the way that Chinese citizens communicate with each other. The application has not only created new forms of daily interaction, but has also developed a new platform to discuss public issues.

        In writing this iBook, research was focused on four main objectives which are elaborated upon in the four chapters of this book:

1. Identify the major qualities that have made WeChat China’s most popular application.

2. Investigate how WeChat’s is used as a tool for social-political activism.

3. Determine how WeChat has affected Chinese interpersonal relationships.

4. Discuss the future implications WeChat has on Chinese relationships.

        This project examines the development of the Chinese social media app WeChat from its origins to its current role as a leading communications service. First, this book collectively introduces WeChat as a complex social media platform and describes its importance within cyberculture. Then, the application’s function as a platform for socio-political change is discussed. After this macro-view of the application is completed a micro-level analysis of user-to-user interaction is conducted and user wellbeing is assessed. Finally, this book examines future implications WeChat has on Chinese citizens and summarizes all major conclusions of research.

        Research was primarily focused on journal articles, books and newspaper articles. When available government documents were used to track the use of the application. Both authors have proficiency in written and academic Chinese, which was used advantageously in this project while looking at Mandarin primary and secondary sources. Throughout the research process, the authors were fortunate to have Yan Qin as a guide, who was willing to assist with research.

By Alexandra Hansen & Fritz Josephson

        Technology has become an essential part of our lives today, a fundamental part of our society that few can imagine living without. People have achieved a lot with the help of technology. People can travel, keep in touch with friends, or cure many illnesses. The most influential technology of the our Information Age is the Internet. With the explosion of wireless communication in the early twenty-first century, the world is entirely connected.

         This new era of global sharing of information did not come about without great effort. In the past Western companies like: Xerox, Intel, Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Facebook have shaped the way the world has used technology and the internet. But who will be the next added? Will the next group be from overseas?

        Currently, China has blocked the internet by a firewall. As of now only what the communist government wants its citizens to see is legally available on the web for Chinese citizens. This means there is no access to: Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Amazon, Google, Wikipedia or any other major websites and applications that are used around the world. Instead, different versions have been created for Chinese use. Currently, a number of cheap internet rip-offs exist, for example: Baidu replaces Wikipedia, Taobao replaces Amazon, Weibo replaces Twitter, and Youku replaces Youtube. Yet, these versions have long been regarded by outsiders as substandard.

        However, China is now showing the world social media’s potential for the future through its application, WeChat. Since it’s release, this social media “super-app” designed by Tencent has grown exponentially in popularity, and through this growth has developed many unique features. Today WeChat is known as the most downloaded and most frequently used application in all of China.

        How is this app taking over China? WeChat has created a mobile lifestyle — its goal was to address every aspect of its users’ lives, including non-social ones. The app does this by combining everything “The West” uses on a daily basis. By combining the most popular features of Facebook and Whatsapp, as well as other services like Skype and iWallet WeChat embodies the Chinese efficient mentality. Furthermore, as WeChat has continued growing in popularity, features have been developed that creators never dreamed of! This application incorporates Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, iWallet, Uber onto a large platform on which you can do anything and everything. Buying your groceries and having them sent to your home, having an on-the-go dog cleaner sent to your house, giving a restaurant your order on their WeChat menu interface, using heat maps to show crowd density, are all real capable features of the application. The groundbreaking communication service does more than any other social media application has before.

        What makes this app all the more impressive is the fact that you can do everything on one app. There’s never a need to inefficiently exit out of the application and search for another. The power of such an application comes with all of the features being bundled together. Imagine the data an application such as this would have on it’s users. It would know: where you go, who you talk to, what you buy, what you don’t buy, what you look like, what games you play, what you search on the internet, the list can go on infinitely.

       However, some individuals still share apprehension with the application, as all the information gathered by Tencent is owned by the company, which reports it to the Government. This means that, the government has access to the details of every user. Paradoxically, the great popularity of the app causing the government to know everything about WeChat’s users is also the reason the Chinese government is finding it difficult to censor citizen’s speech. It’s difficult to track and censor individuals when having over 1.3 billion accounts. Therefore, while it’s true that the more people use WeChat in China there is more power WeChat and the government has over the internet; it is also true that the more people use WeChat in China the less power the government has in control people over the internet. Nevertheless, the government has access to all the information, for example the heat map feature has been used to track irregular assemblies of people to determine unlawful assembly.

        But who’s to blame for this breach in privacy? Who are the owners of this giant application sweeping the globe? It is Asia’s largest tech company by market cap: Tencent. The market value of Tencent exceeds $200billion (Reuters, 2015). It is the largest gaming company in the world, and within the social industry second only to Facebook. Founded in November 1998, Tencent is a leading provider of “internet value added services” in China (Tencent, n.d). Tencent has begun exploring markets beyond its borders with notable success in Southeast Asia. On June 16, 2004 Tencent Holdings Limited went public on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (Tencent, n.d).

        While a cashless economy is the “next big thing” in the West, the Chinese are living it right now. Users utilize the applications to pay for meals, cabs, investing in stocks, booking appointments, ordering groceries, or even send 红包 (hóng bāo) red packets of money (of which they sold 46 billion during 2017’s Lunar new year) (Xinhua, 2017). 

       But, why is all of this important? Why should Westerners care about a conglomerate application in Asia taking in massive amounts of data from it’s users? Or why should non-Chinese citizens bother knowing about the company behind this application making so much money? This is important because the rapid updates that messenger-type social media platforms, such as Facebook Messenger, are currently undergoing are a direct result in trying to keep up with and be a competitor to WeChat.

        Indeed, companies in the West are learning the value of WeChat, and have created a shift in wanting to join this “all-inclusive” lifestyle. Google, Facebook, and other internet companies have responded to WeChat’s success. Facebook Messenger, in 2016, announced a variety of value added services including: a partnership with Uber for enabling in-Messenger taxi booking (sound familiar?), as well as private developers: Giphy, Dubsmash, Bitmoji, and more to be integrated within the messenger application during the year of 2017. These are all in an attempt to give customers more valuable communication experiences (Nexmo, 2016).

        Facebook made the announcement for these ongoing changes in 2016 with an acknowledgement of WeChat’s influence on their expansion. When Facebook’s head of messaging products David Marcus said, “Messaging is really, truly the next frontier,” later Marcus followed with, “The Asian paradigm has shown there’s a there there" (Redcode, 2015). He was speaking openly about wanting to transform Messenger into a platform where people can buy and sell things, run businesses, and even invest in companies.

             The Information Agehas just begun and the human race has been adapting and changing with it. However, WeChat is just one player affecting people’s minds through communication. The internet is ever changing; WeChat is the foremost pioneer driving that change. Therefore it is reasonable to conclude, because people are so tied to the internet, that the internet has begun a psychological shift. The comfort we experience holding a phone, the newfound dependency on these physical objects that didn’t exist 20 years ago is a reality. As the internet continues to change and grow we will likely change and grow along with it.    

        History has shown innovation of communication technology shaped human cultures and civilizations greatly. The invention of papyrus and ink, hand-crafted books: these began new ages. Likewise, the Gutenberg press significantly affected society similarly to how the Internet advanced humankind as a whole. The Internet age has only just begun, and it’s full potential to unite the globe has not been achieved. Communication technology will continue to progress perhaps more rapidly even than we are prepared for it. The current frontrunner for this rapid wave of progress is none other than China’s favorite application: WeChat.

Bibliography

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Nexmo. (2016, March 15). The state of social media and messaging in Asia: How brands use messaging apps to engage users. Retrieved from https://www.nexmo.com/blog/2016/03/15/state-of-social-media-and-messaging-in-asia/

Phone Art [Picture]. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.intheblack.com/~/media/intheblack/allimages/magazine-2015/12-december/wechat-feature.jpg

Redcode. (2015, October 8). Facebook's David Marcus: The asian paradigm has shown messaging is the next frontier. Retrieved from https://www.recode.net/2015/10/8/11619402/facebooks-david-marcus-the-asian-paradigm-has-shown-messaging-is-the

Reuters. (2015, April 13). China's Tencent hits $200 billion market cap for first time. Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/us-tencent-valuation-idUSKBN0N40WN20150413

Tencent. (n.d.). Tencent 腾讯 - Home. Retrieved from https://www.tencent.com/en-us/abouttencent.html

WeChat Icon [Picture]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.marketing-chine.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/WeChat-features.jpg

    Alexandra Hansen

Introduction

        Social media is a powerful tool that can connect citizens across geographic borders. Social media acts as a platform to provide both public and private spaces for sharing information and ideas. It also allows for civic discourse and open-discussion between both friends and strangers. Currently, social media is considered to be an integral part of Chinese society. Because of the relatively low cost of social media applications, these online spaces have convenient and easy access. As such, individuals and organizations interested in exchanging ideas occupy these spaces.  In doing so, social media fosters the creation of intricate networks that can emerge as platforms for civic engagement and online activism.

        Social media’s emergence in China has created a new form of activism. Now, protests in China are often performed online, suggesting a new condition of possibility for activism and a new method to exceed the strict practices of governmental control and censorship. The Chinese have long known that they are under surveillance. While the government benefits from this regulation and control, this elaborate system of censorship serves as a barrier to free expression and open communication. Nonetheless, social media platforms have began to create public and private spaces for social commentary, which often can effectively dodge these surveillance systems and create real change. As of now, social media platforms like WeChat are contested spaces, which despite being constantly monitored, offer up a space for activists to develop creative ways of political and social resistance.

        This chapter will examine how WeChat acts as a functional tool for civic activism and socio-political change. This chapter will discuss We Chat’s technological features that make it an effective tool for social activism. In addition, this section will comment on WeChat’s user-base and its functionality as an “all-inclusive” application. After, the chapter will focus on WeChat’s censorship methods, and highlight several case studies to illuminate how WeChat works with, or against Chinese censors to bring about social change. Overall, this chapter seeks to answer the following questions:

1. Why has WeChat experienced an exponential growth in popularity in the People’s Republic of China?
2. How do socio-political activists use WeChat to mobilize Chinese citizens?
3. To what extent does censorship influence and/or develop communication between WeChat users?

WeChat’s User Base

        China has the world’s largest Internet user population ("Top 20 Countries in Internet Users vs. All the World," 2017) and the most active social media environment in the world. Due to the rise in popularity of smartphones, mobile Internet applications have a huge user-base. In fact, by 2014, China’s mobile Internet market reached a size of 213.48 billion yuan and is predicted to exceed the 1.0 trillion yuan mark in 2018 (Tang, Wu, Huang, & Liu, 2017, p. 4).

        One of China’s most popular forms of Internet usage is called, “micro-communication;” a form in which users communicate online and post pertinent social information on the web (Tang, Wu, Huang, & Liu, 2017, p. 5). Micro-communication has significant value in China because it allows for real-time communication. In this form, users send online instant messages, post blog posts and share short status updates with a target audience. Now, Chinese citizens are hooked to social media platforms as a way to express and share their thoughts with others. Indeed, in China’s “mobile society,” the Internet is directly effecting how citizens conduct themselves in their daily lives (Tang, Wu, Huang, & Liu, 2017, p. 4).

        Social media sites such as WeChat are regarded as important communication platforms for China’s smartphone users. In many ways, China’s social media environment offers up a new avenue for political engagement and socio-cultural discussions. This is especially the case given the number of people using the application. As of March 2016, WeChat had surpassed 762 million users globally, making it one of the most popular chat apps in the world (Business Insider, 2016). Within China, WeChat has 706.7 million active users ("WeChat Is China's Most Popular Chat," 2016), making it the most popular application used in China.

        Compared to China’s other social media applications, WeChat has the highest level of user loyalty. On average, 50% of WeChat users spend over 90 minutes a day on WeChat (Internet Watch, 2016) Those who use the app do so to interact with friends, get trending news in time, share useful knowledge, make new friends and comment on interesting trends and events (Internet Watch, 2016). Currently, the application is used by youth, adults, and the elderly and has significant value to each generation. The reason for the application’s immense popularity is likely because of the close social networks the application cultivates. The application brings together friends, families and acquaintances and offers them a space for real-time communication that is free and fast.

Private Circles, Public Opinions

        Certainly, WeChat has many features that make it an appropriate tool for social-activism. First, WeChat is convenient and easy to access. The application incorporates several other commonly used plug-in functions including, Weibo, QQ mail, and QQ sync assistant (which are blogging, email and messaging syncing applications respectively), and also functions on various brands of mobile smartphones. In addition, WeChat is relatively free, instead of getting a texting service charge per message, WeChat users pay using data that proves to be a cheaper alternative.

        Compared to other applications, WeChat is an all-inclusive application that features, text messaging, audio and video communication features. WeChat brings together voice, text, pictures, GIFs and video to create an online space in which each user can effectively communicate with others while expressing themselves (Kuang, 2017, p. 41). Unlike other leading social media platforms that are fully public, WeChat simultaneously revolves around intimate circles of friends, while also providing avenues to receive international news and updates. WeChat operates through smaller social circles that are private and exclusive. WeChat allows users to communicate with QQ friends, mobile contacts as well as strangers (once they’ve added them on the app). As such, the mobile app creates a cross-platform stage that allows for simple and convenient communication as people can communicate despite using different platforms. Because of these features, WeChat is the most efficient, productive and inclusive application in the world and attracts a large user-base.

        While WeChat does allow its users to subscribe to public pages for celebrities, major media outlets, and businesses, majority of the interactions on WeChat are private and exclusive. What makes WeChat particularly special is the sense of trust that the smaller groups foster. WeChat focuses on a network of “strong-ties” in which interpersonal networks involve interactions with close friends (Wu, 2014, 16). An individual may create a group and add their friends, but all people must request permission to join. This allows for the development of close interpersonal connections. The fact that you are sharing your space online with friends, family and acquaintances allows for a strong sense of trust, in which the messages, images, news pieces and status updates seem real and reliable. With this trust, information spread on WeChat is often interpreted as valuable, real and important. As such, anything posted has the potential to sway and potentially direct the course of a public event (Deluca, Brunner & Sun 2016, p 331).

        Overall, WeChat has had a large impact on China’s “technoscapes” (Powell & Steel.75), and the way in which Chinese society communicates with each other. WeChat represents the new age of mobile technology, and the Internet. The popularity of the all-inclusive application has made other modes of communication seem outdated and generally inefficient. Indeed, WeChat has catalyzed a revolution in the realm of interpersonal communication (Development Report on China’s New Media, 40). Nonetheless, it must be added that despite the new way of expression and communication, WeChat users still face issues of censorship. While WeChat is often used as a tool to discuss and comment on public events and trends, the government regulates and surveillances these discussions and often censors any material they find to be troublesome or potentially unconstitutional (in which I mean anything that counters the government’s opinions). Despite the fact that WeChat has an effective foundation for social-activism efforts, China’s censorship laws prevent the application from being used to it’s full potential.

        Chinese citizens have long known that they are being watched and surveilled online. China’s Internet has been regulated and controlled since the mid 1990s (Sukosd, 2014, p. 175). Since then, China’s censors have worked tirelessly to engage in a battle with activists who rally for change and development. Currently, China censors the Internet in two ways: the “Great Firewall”, and “Golden Shield” (The Economist, 2013). The firewall blocks a list of foreign websites and foreign pages, while the “Golden Shield” blocks particular terms when inputted on search engines, or written in blog posts.

         Recently, China’s Internet companies have been issued long lists of restricted works that warrant censoring. In 2013, CNN released a statement that an estimated 2 million censors are employed to police the Internet, a number that significantly outranks the number of citizens enrolled in the active armed forces. These censors are described to usually spend their time surfing the Internet and sifting through millions of messages in order to ensure that no one is criticizing the government (CNN, 2013).

        Censorship on WeChat usually comes in the form of deleted posts, images and messages. Users have also complained that they will sometimes send private messages that never reach the intended recipient (Tech in Asia, 2015). That said, activists are still finding ways to “cheat the system” and have engaging, socio-political discussions on application. Some of these discussions even prompt real-world protests and, later governmental action. The following section of the chapter will delve into several case studies that explain WeChat’s ability to sway public opinion and create actual governmental policy change.

Case Studies

        Social media sites are key in regards to spreading awareness, mobilizing its citizens and garnering internal government attention from international press. Social movements can evolve peacefully with governmental help, or tumultuously with government intervention. This section will examine several case studies and examine their effectiveness in bringing about, education, awareness and change.

        WeChat has been used as a space for community engagement, and education. In 2014, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) partnered with Sogo Search to create a WeChat campaign called, “Saying No to Ivory Products” (Deluca, Brunner, & Sun, 2016, p. 331). This movement was part of a larger dialogue proposed by the Chinese boarder patrol, which wanted to reduce the trafficking of illegal animal products. The animation of two cute elephants was effective in getting WeChat users to report the message, “Boycott ivory products, and share this Weixin with your friends. Every time this message is shared, love is relayed” (Deluca, Brunner, & Sun, 2016, p. 331). This movement maximized on WeChat’s foundation as a close-knit, community focused application. After reposting, users usually felt empowered, and part of a issue that was bigger than themselves.

        In comparison to other social-media movements, this campaign was reasonably effective.  By 2015, #SayNoToIvoryProducts had over 69,000 reposts to WeChat and more than 38 million hits on Weibo (Deluca, Brunner, & Sun, 2016, p. 331).  The fact that the organization received so much publicity is indicative of how rapid information can move on WeChat despite its composition of multiple small-sub groups. However, this campaign found most of its success because it aligned with the government’s stance on ivory products. Due to the government’s support, the movement was conducted seamlessly without intervention. Other movements and programs are not as peaceful, and often times conflict with the government’s overarching goals and intentions.

        Take for example the debates surrounding China’s air pollution. In the past, Chinese activists have engaged in organized protests in favor of new environmental policies. While some of these protests have created change (July 2013 brought with it a new plan to tackle air and water pollution), the party has remained cautious to ensure that the government is not directly criticized (Doyle, McEachern, & MacGregor, 2016, p. 157).  More recent discussions on Beijing’s air pollution problem have been confusing and frustrating. With the premiere of Chai Jing’s Under the Dome in 2015, people’s WeChat feeds blew up with heated online discussions about China’s pollution problem. The documentary featured China’s key environmental problems and illuminated the various health and social repercussions of China’s pollution (Jing, 2015). WeChat offered users the opportunity to watch the documentary online, and had a key role in the documentary’s success. In fact, within the three days after its release, Under the Dome had been viewed over 200 million times, 57% of which had been watched on WeChat’s video platform (Kantar: China Insights, 2015). Nonetheless, by the end of the week, Under the Dome had been removed from WeChat and other social media applications, as well as all other blog posts and articles that mentioned it and the director (Dickson, 2016, 69). The News Bureau of the Central Propaganda Department also sent media sites a note to remove anything that discussed the documentary:

 “Media and websites at all levels must in the coming days tightly focus on major developments at the Two Sessions in order to create a favorable atmosphere of public opinion for the representatives’ and committee members’ discussions of national affairs. To prevent the dilution of Two Sessions topics, you must have a firm hold on public discussion and refrain from sensationalizing certain sensitive topics coming from the Internet and society. Media and websites of all types and levels (including Weibo, WeChat, and news portals) must absolutely discontinue coverage of the documentary “Under the Dome” and its creator, as well as reports, commentaries, interviews, and special topics that concern or extend to this film and its creator. Websites and services that have already carried content must take down special features or clamp down on the backend. Discontinue reporting on discussions related to certain departments and work units concerned with this film. Strengthen management of forums, blogs, Weibo, WeChat, and other interactive platforms, and resolutely block and delete speech that uses this as an opportunity to cast doubt or attack the government.” (Tech in Asia, 2015)

            Although the film has been censored, discussions have not completely ceased. Indeed, activists have found loopholes in China’s censorship bureau and have successfully posted critiques about the government on public and private pages. In many ways WeChat was the very reason for the film’s massive popularity. Due to WeChat’s sharing function, the documentary circulated between group chats and WeChat Moments. To date, WeChat is still used as a platform to discuss the film, and how it educated the masses on the severity of China’s pollution problem.

            Censorship is indeed a part of everyday-life in China, especially for identified activists. Intending to block content that critiques the government, China attempts to rid of anything that they deem unfit or unsuitable. As a result, there is no true freedom of speech or expression. For years Chinese citizens and international peoples have been trying to find loopholes in China’s censorship programs. For the time being, activists are still able to use WeChat as a platform for “less-restrained” communication, but only if they are bold, creative and relentless in sending out their messages.

Avoiding Censorship

        WeChat has created an interesting song-and-dance between the government and its users. The world’s most popular social media application, WeChat hosts billions of daily messages that circulate in chaotic, random, and unpredictable ways. On the one hand, this explosive element is difficult for the government to control Chinese public communication. Conversations and socio-political debates can be hard to censor and regulate, which allows for a freer form of speech. However, because WeChat is on a mobile app, it is linked to phone and GPS systems. Therefore, the government can access WeChat accounts and determine a user’s identity and general location. As such, a chain of events occurs, where socio-political debate takes place, is found and censored, catalyzing a new form of expression and creative dialogue.  It’s likely an endless cycle, which leads to the question: Will the government ever be able to fully censor apps like WeChat?

        Although Chinese censorship technology puts a dent in overtly public communication, it is unable to fully stifle it. WeChat’s format as an application that focuses on “strong-ties” (Wu, 2014, 16) and offers a more private space to communicate about sensitive issues in creative ways. Users rely heavily on clever ways to express their opinion. Indeed, when words or sites are censored, people turn to graphics, GIFs, symbols and memes (China Policy Institute, 2017). Because Chinese is a very contextual and tonal language, users also use phonograms to substitute for censored words. For example, protest organizers often will stay away from directly saying “protest” and exchange it with the term, “to take a stroll” (sanbu) (Han, 2016, p. 106). Images are also effective to dodge the censors. Often times, instead of writing a blog post, or status update about China’s pollution, people will share selfies in their air masks with famous landmarks in the background (China Policy Institute, 2017).

        Although China’s government intends to control all media platforms, as long as WeChat exists, they will never be able to fully stifle internet-based political organizations. The possibilities for WeChat users to share their opinion are limitless. Activists are oftentimes relentless; if words are censored they will turn to images, if images are blocked they will use the recording app, if that fails they will share their information during the early hours of the morning in the hope that it will not be filtered by a censor (China Policy Institute, 2017). The randomness of words, images, GIFS, memes and graphics provide various ways in which people can express themselves and push for social, and sometimes political change. In reality, censors will never keep up with the “dense cluster of Chinese citizens…and rapidly high-trending topic[s] or…phenomenon[s]” (Deluca, Brunner & Sun, p. 329). Indeed, because people have so many alternative options, censors cannot fully mandate and guide public opinion. The flexibility that WeChat allows thereby creates a space that can reshape people’s ideas and perspectives on public issues. This is especially true when politically sensitive information extends past local, Chinese WeChat servers and enters the worldwide Internet. As soon as the information is distributed outside of China’s WeChat servers, it is able to escalate within a short time frame and create international mobilization. Indeed, the widespread diffusion of information makes it nearly impossible for the government to eradicate it completely (Liu, 2015, p. 83).

Conclusion

        Overall, mobile applications are experiencing extreme successes in China. WeChat’s large user base and convenient communication system has had a great impact on the way Chinese citizens use the Internet. WeChat has created a space, be it complicated, for people to share their experiences, thoughts and personal opinions online. Compared to China’s other social media sites, WeChat acts as a platform for private discussions between friends, family and close acquaintances. Despite the threat of censorship, users are able to have reasonably effective interaction with each other. As such, WeChat offers up a forum in which people can have public-to-public discussions as opposed to the usual public-to-state discourse (Yu & Xu, 2016, p 83). In this way, WeChat is a valuable asset when engaging in social movements and discourse. WeChat is a platform of expression and information, a space where people can access materials from sources other than state controlled media.

        If WeChat’s censorship does not increase in severity, it is possible that the application will continue to function as a stage for Chinese citizens interested in making national and global changes. With this controversy, it must be asked –from a governmental perspective–if WeChat’s pros outweigh its cons? Will the government ever shut down WeChat’s messaging systems? This question will be addressed in Chapter 4, “Future Implications.”

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