Generation of Digital Sense of Place in a Mediatized Society: Reconstruction of Human-Island Relations on Shamian Island, Guangzhou

Shamian Island is located in Guangzhou, China. Thanks to its unique history and official planning and protection, it has preserved a rich variety of cultural landscapes. On social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu (RedNote) and Douyin (Chinese version of TikTok), Shamian Island is listed as a popular check-in scenic spot in Guangzhou. This paper uses in-depth interviews and text analysis methods to explore how a digital sense of place is created on Shamian Island in China’s mediatized society, elucidating relationship construction and emotional connections between individuals and the island. The Shamian Island presented by the media is described as nice, fun, and attractive. People appreciate the charm of the island’s European-style buildings online, which triggers their yearning for exotic customs. During the offline check-in and tourism practices on Shamian Island, tourists have completed a series of actions to travel to actual places in order to participate in media narratives. Shamian Island is separated from the mainland by a stretch of water, and its elusive island nature brings about a particular experience. When interacting with the place, individuals continuously strengthen their own roles and participate in reproducing the local image. Media dissemination has constructed the perception of Shamian Island as a place and promoted emotional connections among tourists, local residents, and Shamian Island. Shamian Island is not only a geographical coordinate but also a social space that carries individual and collective memories.