Zoom in and zoom out the glocalized network: when transnationalism meets geopolitics and technopolitics

ABSTRACT

Drawing on theories on transnationalism and organizational crisis communication, this research uses the lens of glocalized networks with both global and local connections to examine how Zoom, as a transnational tech firm, responds to geopolitics and technopolitics during the volatile times of a global pandemic. Based on digital, text, and video data, corporate documents, media interviews, and coverage, the research traces Zoom's trajectory before and during the pandemic. I first describe how glocalized networks enabled Zoom's birth and growth, especially taking advantage of cross-border talent flow and fundraising. Second, I assess how the same glocalized networks become a liability, forcing the firm to zoom in and out along the hardening physical and digital borders, due to shifting geopolitics and technopolitics in and between the United States and China. Results shed light on the transnational logics shaping Zoom's network reconfiguration to defend and restore its image that has been threatened by national security accusations.

KEYWORDS:

• Transnationalism
• glocalized networks
• crisis communication
• zoom
• cybersovereignty
• digital nationalism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Chiang Ching-Kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange.

Notes on contributors

Wenhong Chen

Dr. Wenhong Chen is an associate professor of media studies and sociology, the founding co-director of Center for Entertainment and Media Industries, and a Distinguished Scholar in the Robert Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Chen has more than 100 publications, including articles in top-ranked journals in the fields of communication and media studies, sociology, and management.