Author
Assoc Prof Yanrong Zhao
Organisation/Institution
China University of Political Science and Law (CUPL)
Country
CHINA
Panel
Law and Society
Title
Courts and Social Power in China: Media
Abstract
This article presents four cases in seeking to identify the positive and negative influences of the Chinese media (especially the commercialized media) and the development of the internet on the judicial decision-making process. Through studying the Huugjilt and the Sun Zhigang cases, this chapter argues that stemming from their ability to influence Party-state leaders and to reflect and create public opinion, the media and the internet are playing a vital role in uncovering judicial injustice and in encouraging courts to hold fair trials. This influence is strengthened by the interaction between print media and online media. However, examining the Deng Yujiao and the Yao Jiaxin cases shows that when traditional media is biased by corruption and the internet becomes a weapon to express public anger concerning social inequalities in China, the majority can force their will upon courts and judicial independence can be severely impeded. In connection with the discussion of the courts’ institutional structure, it is further argued that the negative influence of the media on the judiciary is not just due to the media’s unaccountability, but mainly results from the traditional weakness of China’s courts. These courts are subject to external pressures because of the institutional arrangements of China’s judicial system.
Biography
Yanrong Zhao is an Associate Professor at the China University of Political Science and Law. She received her PhD in Law from the China University of Political Science and Law and another PhD in International and Political Science from New South Wales University, Canberra. Her research interests cover China’s Civil Procedural Law, evidence law, the judicial system, comparative law and politics.
