Embracing fast-food culture: Lianhuanhua as a paradigm of visual narrative news

Lianhuanhua, a subgenre of visual narrative news (VNN), has recently gained popularity on Chinese media platforms for its distinctive visual storytelling format. This study, grounded in theories of visual modality and language style, analyzes 101 lianhuanhua articles collected from Chinese media platforms. The analysis shows that lianhuanhua employs abstract images to merge symbolic meaning with amusement, technological images to visualize complex information while adding playful elements, and naturalistic images to enhance the authenticity of news. Verbal text complements these visuals through strategies like explanatory discourse, question-and-answer formats, conversational and fashionable language, and visually-driven commentaries. These stylistic choices cater to the fast-paced, visually oriented nature of modern media consumption, effectively reshaping hard news narratives into compelling visual stories that prioritize brevity and sensory engagement for audiences. These findings not only highlight the pervasive influence of fast-food culture on news consumption and production but also demonstrate the transformative power of visual storytelling in shaping contemporary digital media discourse.