Bureaucrats on Douyin: The Official Appropriation of Egao in Promoting Tourism on Chinese Social Media

Figures & data

Table 1. The Distribution of Semiotic Resources in 54 Videos

Semiotic resources	Distribution
Provinces	Developed: Jiangsu (4), Fujian (1), Shandong (3) Underdeveloped: Yunnan (3), Shanxi (5), Shanxi (5), Xinjiang (4), Guizhou (2), Sichuan (3), Henan (2), Chongqing (3), Anhui (2), Hubei (1), Gansu (2), Jiangxi (3), Hunan (1), Heilongjiang (2), Ningxia (3), Hainan (1), Neimenggu (1), Guangxi (1), Tibet (1)
Background music	modern (3), ethnic (15), traditional (28), traditional Chinese opera (8)
Textual elements	ancient poem and proverbs (15), opera lines (4), movie line (3), none (32)
Costumes	ethnic minority (18), traditional Gufeng Hanfu (18), Wuxia (11), traditional Chinese opera (4), modern (3)
Action	walking (20), dancing (13), horse-riding (2), archery (2), standing (4), singing (2), ancient fencing (2), rowing (1), playing the flute (1), military salute (1), writing calligraphy (1), drinking (2), saying goodbye to lovers (1), playing drums (1), drinking tea (1)
Video settings	Indoor: Dai temple (1), museum (3), traditional Xinjiang dwelling (1), traditional opera house (1), ancient palace (6), library (1), Buddhist temple (4), Communist Conference Memorial Hall (1), tea room (2) Outdoor: mountain (5), ethnic tribes (1), by the creek (1), grassland (2), boat (2), snowfield (1), desert (1), old city walls (5), ancient stone sculpture landscape (1), ancient town (2), public square (1), bamboo forest (1), vineyard (1), field of rapeseed flowers (1), countryside (1), martial arts tournament (1), yurt (1), film location (4), park (2)
Types of transformation	ethnic culture display (21), egao (16), traditional Gufeng and Wuxia culture display (14), modern dance (3)

Figure 1. A screenshot of the Dai minority culture display from the Director of the Culture and Tourism Bureau of Dehong City, Yunnan Province.

Source: Douyin Mobile Platform.

Figure 2. A screenshot of a typical egao by the Director of the Suizhou Tourism and Culture Bureau, Hubei Province.

Source: Douyin Mobile Platform.

Figure 3. A screenshot of the Wuxia parody by the Director General of the Culture and Tourism Bureau, Garzê, Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province.

Source: Douyin Mobile Platform.