The Consultation Paradox

Autorentext

Rongxin Li is Assistant Professor at School of International Studies/Academy of Overseas Chinese Studies, Jinan University (Canton); visiting fellow at Friedrich-Meinecke-Institut, Freie Universität Berlin, and Institut d'Études Politiques de Fontainebleau, Université Paris-Est Créteil; research fellow at Telos-Paul Piccone Institute. His research focuses on deliberative democracy and Chinese political studies.

Klappentext

This book explores a central paradox of Chinese governance. Digital channels for citizen voices such as hotlines, portals, and opinion-monitoring platforms-have expanded unprecedentedly. Yet, while this deepens state responsiveness, it carefully prevents public voices from becoming collective power or genuine accountability.

Drawing on institutional analysis, platform data, and fieldwork in Chinese cities between 2022 and 2025, the book introduces the concept of "guided voice": the structured mediation of public expression through bureaucratic and algorithmic systems that manufacture governance intelligence and performance legitimacy without enabling self-rule. Case studies of the national 12345 hotline and digital consultation platforms trace how algorithms classify, prioritize, and route complaints, converting grievances into usable data while containing systemic critique. The analysis extends beyond China to examine how digital technology reconstitutes political voice in democracies and hybrid regimes alike. It also asks whether responsiveness can be decoupled from accountability. These questions are central to comparative politics and democratic theory at a moment of both authoritarian resilience and democratic fatigue.

The book will interest scholars, graduate students, and policy analysts working in digital governance, comparative politics, and China studies.

Inhalt

1 Guided Voice: Consultative Democracy and Algorithmic Governance 2 Concepts and Standards: Consultation, Deliberation, Participation, and Control 3 The Architecture of Consultative Governance in China 4 From Voice to Data: Mechanisms of Algorithmic Intermediation 5 Case Study I: The 12345 Hotline as an Infrastructure of Responsiveness 6 Case Study II: Consultation Platforms and Public Opinion Work 7 What Guided Voice Teaches Democracy Studies