Global China and everyday mediation in the Global South: Selling Chinese fashion in Mozambique via WhatsApp

Abstract

Combining online and offline data collection during six months of ethnographic fieldwork in Southern Mozambique in early 2021, this paper explores how media and its everyday use in the Global South are impacting on, and are in turn being transformed by China. It specifically looks into the creative and personalised ways in which Chinese-made garments are sold and promoted in Mozambique via the messenger service WhatsApp. Examining how Mozambican and West African traders use WhatsApp groups and status updates to mediate the fashionability of these Chinese goods, this paper shows that the consequences of Chinese interactions with the Global South on the global media landscape transcend the mere spread of Chinese hardware and software. Going beyond dominant, state-centred narratives of Chinese influence abroad, this paper demonstrates the key role of individuals and their agency in shaping the digital impact of Global China. By doing so, it also highlights the importance of analysing media practices in their specific local contexts.