Dear colleagues, I am delighted to share that my book, Digital Nationalism and Affective Governance: Propaganda, Public Sentiment, and Soft Authoritarianism in China (Routledge, 2026), has now been officially released. The book examines how digital propaganda in China operates as a platform-shaped practice under soft authoritarianism. It argues that nationalism functions as a discursive technology that organizes meaning, structures visibility, and channels public affect across digital platforms. Rather than operating solely through top-down control, propaganda emerges through the dynamic co-production of state narratives, platform affordances, and public emotions. Governance is enacted not only through censorship, but also through emotional guidance, algorithmic visibility, participatory cues, and discursive standardization. At the same time, citizens are not passive recipients. Online publics actively use nationalist discourse to express identity, perform loyalty, negotiate legitimacy, reshape official narratives, and voice critique. The result is a fragmented yet structured form of digital nationalism embedded within platformized governance. The book contributes to ongoing debates on digital politics, affective governance, propaganda, online participation, platform power, and authoritarian communication, while also offering broader insights into contemporary authoritarian and semi-authoritarian regimes beyond China. The book is available here: https://www.routledge.com/p/book/9781041308775. You can also get your copy with 20% off using the discount code: CISYCDNAG20. I would be very grateful if you might share it with colleagues or students who may be interested. I also warmly welcome feedback, discussion, and future engagement. With best wishes, Dechun ________________________________ Dechun Zhang, PhD Postdoctoral Researcher at Department of Communication, University of Copenhagen Author of Digital Nationalism and Affective Governance: Propaganda, Public Sentiment, and Soft Authoritarianism in China <https://www.routledge.com/9781041308775> (Routledge, 2026) Managing Editor of Journal of Contemporary Eastern Asia<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://jceasia.org/__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!Fs30wWO53k-aRPhXk8cOoYDgoJk1m-zkmXym32bPFBjtrza2MbLscJpCwcvDfCx-NYCclfWnbx3_XlpZJN81pwYIIyfYR64$> Editor of Asia Pacific Viewpoint<https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/14678373>, Sage Open<https://journals.sagepub.com/home/SGO> & Global Perspectives in Communication<https://academic.oup.com/gpc> and Social Media Editor of Journal of Visual Political Communication<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.intellectbooks.com/journal-visual-political-communication__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!Fs30wWO53k-aRPhXk8cOoYDgoJk1m-zkmXym32bPFBjtrza2MbLscJpCwcvDfCx-NYCclfWnbx3_XlpZJN81pwYIcMbTfOY$> Affiliated Researcher at the Leiden Asia Centre<https://leidenasiacentre.nl/people/dechun-zhang/?portfolioCats=82%2C100%2C96%2C94%2C122%2C86>, Leiden University ORCID: 0000-0002-2284-2378<https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2284-2378> Web: https://www.dechunzhang.com/<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.dechunzhang.com/__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!Fs30wWO53k-aRPhXk8cOoYDgoJk1m-zkmXym32bPFBjtrza2MbLscJpCwcvDfCx-NYCclfWnbx3_XlpZJN81pwYIfAJS6TY$>