China’s City Image Built by Others: Effects of Western Social Media Influencers on Cognition, Affect, and Behavior of Overseas Audiences

Due to their outsider perspectives and unique cultural insights, Western social media influencers’ content on China often achieves widespread virality across platforms. Despite general agreement on the pivotal role these influencers play in cross-cultural dissemination, there is little recent research examining international audience reception of their China-related content. This research conducts a systematic analysis of user comments beneath IShowSpeed’s “China Tour” livestreams on YouTube, exploring the construction of China’s city image and the effectiveness of cultural transmission at three analytical levels: cognition, affect, and behavioral intention. The findings reveal that the international audience’s cognitive perceptions of Chinese cities are predominantly clustered into people and city-specific attributes, with mainly positive or neutral affective responses. Almost half of these positive expressions praise the authenticity of modern China, the warmth of local residents, the country’s rapid modernization, and the value of IShowSpeed’s livestreams. Furthermore, IShowSpeed’s broadcasts sparked multi-layered dialogue among international viewers, prompting many to reflect upon their preconceived stereotypes of China. This engagement also engendered various behavioral intentions, such as the aspiration to travel to China, thus enhancing intercultural understanding and mutual respect. Combined with analyses of official media reports, the research demonstrates that the American influencer’s authentic portrayal, the multifaceted depiction of China, and interpersonal engagement collectively underpin the success of IShowSpeed’s “China Tour” livestreams. This study offers valuable insights for optimizing China’s external communication strategies and improving the overall efficacy of its international cultural outreach.