ABSTRACT
This article examines the evolving process of China's information management at sub-national level through the prism of a crisis event. Specifically, it investigates the response of officials and the media to Beijing's fatal floods of 2012—the heaviest and the deadliest floods the Chinese capital has seen in 60 years. The article draws on ethnographic observations, the analysis of interviews with Chinese media professionals, officials and media scholars, as well as the coverage of the storm by two prominent, but distinct Beijing news outlets: an official daily, Beijing Ribao and a commercial daily, Jinghua Shibao. The analysis reveals various strategies deployed by Beijing authorities to positively shape public opinion, and the media's creative implementation of official directives. Namely, the two newspapers fused regular news coverage with different styles of positive framing. This process of mutual and diverse adaption highlights the increasingly dynamic nature of China's crisis communication and public opinion management.
