Dr Ssu-Han Yu

I obtained MSc and PhD degrees from the Department of Media and Communications, London School of Economics and Political Science. My research interest has been in the intersection of media and politics. My PhD thesis examined Taiwan's transition to democracy by focusing on the role of the media and their relation to generations. It compared the Democratic Consolidation generation with the Soft Authoritarianism generation, showing how the two generations identify similar political problems and deal with them in separate mediated spaces, and revealing the material, symbolic, and social roles of the media in these meaning-making processes.

At OSGA I am continuing my research on political generations and communication. A chapter titled 'Exploring the "the authentic" in Taiwanese politics: An intergenerational analysis' is going to be published in Cultures of Authenticity (Emerald Publishing, 2023). This book chapter presents the similarities and differences in the way that the Soft Authoritarianism and Democratic Consolidation generations engage with unconventional politicians and perceive their authenticity.

I teach the option course 'Taiwan in Comparative Perspective', which introduces various interdisciplinary and comparative approaches to researching Taiwan in relation to the world. I also lecture on 'Digital Governance in China and Taiwan', on the core course 'The Study of Contemporary China'.

I am happy to supervise MSc dissertation topics such as Taiwanese media, democratisation, political culture, and digital political communications.