The developmental party and the regulatory state in China's Internet governance

Abstract

China's approach to Internet governance is increasingly perceived as a Party‐centric model, aligning the state under the Chinese Communist Party's (the Party) leadership. The division of labor between the Party and the state in the context of political centralization and Party centrality remains unclear. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by examining the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), a central player in Internet governance, which also functions as a Party organ under the name of the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission (OCCAC). Utilizing a novel data set of policy documents, this study explores how CAC's dual Party‐state status plays out in China's Internet governance. The findings indicate that policies on Internet development are predominantly issued under the Party's name (OCCAC), while regulatory policies concerning the Internet industry are primarily issued under the state's name (CAC). Nevertheless, the Party's nameplate (OCCAC) is increasingly utilized for social regulations related to the Internet sector. These findings present nuanced insights into the practices of China's Internet governance, suggesting a conceptual need to differentiate the roles played by the Party and the state in shaping Internet governance under authoritarianism.