Voice of the Subaltern: Media Representation of Sex Workers in China

Abstract

This studies examines different kinds of media representations and self-narrations of sex workers in post-socialist Chia. The central question this study ask is how do sex workers in China negotiate the forces of social stigma, the abolitionist-centered policy and media regulation, and how do they use self-representation as a way of resistance. The thesis first demonstrate the reality of sex workers in China and further define their subalternity, by contextualizing layers of disadvantages imposed on sex workers. This is followed by an analysis on Chinese state policy and its collaborative media propaganda. Further the thesis explores media representations of sex workers, in mainstream media, social media and self-produced media. This work concludes with a discussion of the possibility for sex workers to speak via the rise of new media and self-mediation. Because of the advance of technology, a more creative, precise and not entirely passive representation on the subaltern is made possible.