The Limits of China's Digital Authoritarianism
Join us for a seminar with Jan Švec on how digital technologies both strengthen authoritarian rule and create vulnerabilities.
Digital technologies have expanded the capabilities of authoritarian regimes, but adapting to them can also create vulnerabilities. Drawing on examples from China, Jan Švec will discuss the limits of information control, public responses, data exposure, and the state’s dependence on the technology sector.
Examples include online responses during the COVID-19 pandemic, online investigations into the mass detention of Uyghurs, and the government crackdown on the technology sector around 2020.
About the speaker
Jan Švec is a researcher at the Institute of International Relations Prague and a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Stockholm Center for Global Asia. His research focuses on Chinese politics, political repression, and digital authoritarianism.
Last updated: 2026-11-10
Source: Department of Political Science