Modeling Linguistic Changes in Propaganda Across USSR, China, and Present
Session Number
3
Advisor(s)
Dr. Patrick Buck, IMSA
Location
B115
Discipline
History
Start Date
15-4-2026 2:15 PM
End Date
15-4-2026 3:00 PM
Abstract
In the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China, communist state propaganda was historically disseminated through centralized, state-owned newspapers. Recently, algorithm-based, short video platforms such as TikTok and its Chinese counterpart, Douyin, have transformed the speed and personalization of propaganda distribution. This study investigates ideological linguistic changes in historical print-based and modern video content propaganda using computational methods. Over 35,000 English-translated digital works by Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Mao-era Peking Review, and transcribed Douyin videos were analyzed for common political terms such as “party”, “worker”, “peasant”, and “revolution.” Results show significant vocabulary changes across authors and time periods, relating to class, national, and party ideology. Consistently, “party” was one of the most frequently used words, definitionally differing with class struggle under Marx, organizational structure under Lenin, centralized authority under Stalin, and collectivist leadership under Mao. Contemporarily, CCP news accounts for roughly half of sampled Douyin videos, with 8,910 labeled as government news (propaganda, business, or other). Popular categories (>40 videos) include state achievement announcements, foreign policy, and crisis responses. These findings show the progression of linguistic patterns in propaganda, where categories/words remain similar across eras, but their uses/definitions differ.
Modeling Linguistic Changes in Propaganda Across USSR, China, and Present
B115
In the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China, communist state propaganda was historically disseminated through centralized, state-owned newspapers. Recently, algorithm-based, short video platforms such as TikTok and its Chinese counterpart, Douyin, have transformed the speed and personalization of propaganda distribution. This study investigates ideological linguistic changes in historical print-based and modern video content propaganda using computational methods. Over 35,000 English-translated digital works by Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Mao-era Peking Review, and transcribed Douyin videos were analyzed for common political terms such as “party”, “worker”, “peasant”, and “revolution.” Results show significant vocabulary changes across authors and time periods, relating to class, national, and party ideology. Consistently, “party” was one of the most frequently used words, definitionally differing with class struggle under Marx, organizational structure under Lenin, centralized authority under Stalin, and collectivist leadership under Mao. Contemporarily, CCP news accounts for roughly half of sampled Douyin videos, with 8,910 labeled as government news (propaganda, business, or other). Popular categories (>40 videos) include state achievement announcements, foreign policy, and crisis responses. These findings show the progression of linguistic patterns in propaganda, where categories/words remain similar across eras, but their uses/definitions differ.