Altman Yuzhu Peng's research interests lie at the intersections of critical discourse studies, feminism, media and cultural studies, and public relations. A key area of his research focuses on the representation and reflection of asymmetrical gender power relations in the Chinese-language social media sphere. He is author of A Feminist Reading of China's Digital Public Sphere (2020, Palgrave Macmillan) and co-editor of two books: China, Media and International Conflicts (2023, Routledge) and Communications in Contemporary China: Orchestrating Thinking (forthcoming, Routledge). As first or sole author, he has published over 20 scholarly articles in such peer-reviewed academic journals as Critical Discourse Studies, Discourse, Context & Media, International Journal of Communication, Journal of Gender Studies, and Television and New Media. He welcomes students who are interested in pursuing a PhD on any of the following topics in the Chinese context and beyond: gender politics in the digital public sphere, digital civic engagement, mediated self-presentation, neoliberal feminism and digital influencers, and techno-feminism.
Altman Yuzhu Peng is currently Assistant Professor in Intercultural Communication at the University of Warwick and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK). Prior to the current appointment, he researched and lectured at the Universities of the Arts London, Newcastle upon Tyne, and Liverpool's China campus. He received his PhD in Media and Cultural Studies (2017) from Newcastle University, where he was also awarded an MA in Media and Journalism (2013) with distinction. He offered guest talks at such prestigious universities as the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), National Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University, the University of Liverpool, and the University of Nottingham's China campus and was interviewed by international media organisations, including but not limited to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Agence France-Presse (AFP), Times Higher Education (THE), and USA Today, for expert opinions on China's social issues. As a freelance social media specialist, he also helped Bocconi University, the Higher Education Academy, Imperial College London, INTO University Partnerships, Newcastle University, and the Royal Academy of Music develop digital PR strategies to engage target audiences on social media.
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Talmacs, Nicole, 2022. 'Jacinda Ardern and the limits of gender on the Chinese-language internet : a critical discourse analysis. Feminist Media Studies
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2022. 'A Chinese feminist analysis of Chinese social media responses to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. International Feminist Journal of Politics, 24 (3), pp. 482-501
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Kuang, Xianwen, 'Hou, Jenny Zhengye, 2022. 'Love NBA, hate BLM : racism in China?s sports fandom. International Journal of Communication, 16, pp. 3133-3153
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Cummings, James, 'Li, Yang, 2022. 'Post-reform gender politics : how do Chinese internet users portray Theresa May on Zhihu. Feminist Media Studies, 22 (1), pp. 48-65
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Wu, Chunyan, 'Chen, Meng, 2022. 'Sportswomen under the Chinese male gaze : a feminist critical discourse analysis. Critical Discourse Studies
- 'Chen, Meng, 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2022. 'Why do people choose different social media platforms? Linking use motives with social media affordances and personalities. Social Science Computer Review
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2022. "Digital nationalism versus gender politics in post-reform China : gender-issue debates on Zhihu". Global Media and Communication
- Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2022. Gender essentialism in Chinese reality TV : a case study of you are so beautiful. Television & New Media, 23 (7), pp. 743-760
- Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), Whyte, T. W., Zhang, S. I., 2022. Understanding the Russian invasion of Ukraine through a gendered prism. Feminist Media Studies
- Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), Sun, Yu, 2022. A dialectical-relational approach to anti-trans sentiments on Hupu. Discourse, Context & Media, 50
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2021. 'Amplification of regional discrimination on Chinese news portals : an affective critical discourse analysis. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 27 (5), pp. 1343-1359
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Chen, Shuhan, 2021. 'Traditional Chinese medicine works : a politicised scientific debate in the COVID-19 pandemic. Asian Journal of Communication, 31 (5), pp. 421-435
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Gu, Feng, 2021. 'Interface culture and gendered privacy risks in the context of Chinese locative social media use. Social Identities, 27 (1), pp. 59-74
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Hou, Jenny Zhengye, 'KhosraviNik, Majid, 'Zhang, Xiaoxiao, 2021. '?She uses men to boost her career? : Chinese digital cultures and gender stereotypes of female academics in Zhihu discourses. Social Semiotics, pp. 1-19
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2021. 'Neoliberal feminism, gender relations, and a feminized male ideal in China : a critical discourse analysis of Mimeng?s WeChat posts. Feminist Media Studies, 21 (1), pp. 115-131
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2021. 'A techno-feminist analysis of beauty app development in China?s high-tech industry. Journal of Gender Studies, 30 (5), pp. 596-608
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2021. 'Gender and the privacy paradox in Chinese college students? locative dating communication. Global Media and China, 6 (2), pp. 225-240
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 'Zhang, Ivy Shixin, 'Cummings, James, 'Zhang, Xiaoxiao, 2020. 'Boris Johnson in hospital : a Chinese gaze at Western democracies in the COVID-19 pandemic. Media International Australia, 177 (1), pp. 76-91
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2019. 'Sharing food photographs on social media : performative Xiaozi lifestyle in Young, middle-class Chinese urbanites? WeChat ?Moments?. Social Identities, 25 (2), pp. 269-287
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2017. 'Affective networks : how WeChat enhances Tencent?s digital business governance. Chinese Journal of Communication, 10 (3), pp. 264-278
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2020. 'A feminist reading of China?s digital public sphere. Cham, Palgrave Pivot
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2022. 'Book review: The global foundations of public relations : Humanism, China, and the West edited by Brown, R. E., St. John III, B. and Hou, J. Z.. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Sage Publications, Inc
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2020. 'Alipay adds ?beauty filters? to face-scan payments : a form of patriarchal control over women?s bodies. Feminist Media Studies, Routledge, pp. 582-585
- 'Peng, Yuzhu (Altman), 2018. 'Review of Television and dating in contemporary China : identities, love, and intimacy. Chinese Journal of Communication, Routledge, pp. 361-363