Telephone number:	+31 (0)71 527 2544
E-Mail:	f.a.schneider@hum.leidenuniv.nl
Faculty / Department:	Faculteit der Geesteswetenschappen, Leiden Institute for Area Studies, SAS China
Office Address:	Arsenaal Arsenaalstraat 1 2311 CT Leiden Room number 0.09

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Fields of interest

Politics and Economics of Modern China, Chinese Media, China in International Relations, (Visual) Political Communication in China, Traditional Chinese Political Thought.

Research

Florian Schneider's research interests include questions of governance and public administration in the PRC, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, political communication strategies and political content of popular Chinese entertainment, recent Chinese economic developments, as well as Chinese foreign policy.

Florian’s most recent work focused on the political contents of mainland Chinese films and popular Chinese television series, including their production process, censorship, broadcasting, and audience reception. Methodologically his work has combined critical discourse analysis, semiotics, and iconography, as well as the analysis of semi-structured qualitative interviews.

A current project deals with staged mass-media events in mainland China, such as the Beijing Olympic Games Opening Ceremony in 2008, the 60th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China in 2009, and the Shanghai Expo in 2010. The project explores how the Chinese leadership makes use of such events to promote a national identity and legitimize its own rule. A primary question in this regard is how concepts of tradition and of modernization (or progress) feature into such events, and what impact they have on the interaction between China and other actors in the international community.

Curriculum vitae

Education:

2005-2008
PhD Research in Chinese Studies (politics and media focus)
University of Sheffield (UK), School of East Asian Studies
Dissertation Title: "Visual Political Communication in Popular Chinese Television Series"

1999-2005
Magister Artium (German Master Degree)
University of Hamburg (Germany), Asia Africa Institute
Major: Sinology (Chinese Language and Culture), Minors: Political Science and Economics
Dissertation Title: "Political Concepts in the Zhanguo Ce, Analysis of Texts concerning the State of Qin", Grade: Sehr Gut (Honors)

Abitur (German High School Diploma)
Gymnasium Corveystraße, Hamburg, Germany
Grade Average: 1.0 (A)

Previous employment:

2006-2008
Koninklijke Brill, Leiden
Function: Language Editor (2007-2008)
Translator (German to English) (2006-2008)
Project: Brill’s Encyclopaedia of China

since 2005
University of Sheffield, School of East Asian Studies
Function: Teacher/Lecturer
Courses: Elementary Chinese (Grammar Review), East Asian Cinema (Chinese Film)

2002-2005
University of Hamburg, Asia Africa Institute
Function: Tutor 
Course: Elementary Chinese

2004-2005
Senate of Hamburg, China Cooperation Office
Function: Project Management Assistant and Policy Advisor (2004-2005)
Projects: Planning Hamburg’s Chinese Internet Portal, Supervising Delegation Visits from China, Preparing Cultural and Policy Briefs on the PRC

2004-2005
GIGA Institute of Global and Area Studies, Hamburg
Function: Freelance Editor (2004-2005)
Project: GIGA Journal "China aktuell", Section on Current Chinese Domestic Affairs

2003
Gerlach International Business GmbH, Hamburg
Function: Freelance Editor, Translator, and Journalist
Project: Magazine "Asia Bridge", Section on East Asian Politics and Macroeconomics

1998-1999
Arbeiterwohlfahrt (AWO), Hamburg
Function: Social Worker
Project: Social and Educational Integration of Physically and Mentally Disadvantaged Children into Public Elementary Schooling

Teaching activities

Florian Schneider teaches social science courses on Modern China at the BA and MA level.

His classes include:
Government and Governance in Modern China,
Modern Chinese Economy A & B,
From Newspaper to New Media - China's Media System in Transition,
Visual Political Communication in China,
Political Language and Discourse in Modern China; and others.