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<article xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:ali="http://www.niso.org/schemas/ali/1.0/" article-type="research-article" dtd-version="1.2" xml:lang="en"><front><journal-meta><journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">RUDN Journal of Studies in Literature and Journalism</journal-id><journal-title-group><journal-title xml:lang="en">RUDN Journal of Studies in Literature and Journalism</journal-title><trans-title-group xml:lang="ru"><trans-title>Вестник Российского университета дружбы народов. Серия: Литературоведение. Журналистика</trans-title></trans-title-group></journal-title-group><issn publication-format="print">2312-9220</issn><issn publication-format="electronic">2312-9247</issn><publisher><publisher-name xml:lang="en">Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba (RUDN University)</publisher-name></publisher></journal-meta><article-meta><article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">50986</article-id><article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.22363/2312-9220-2026-31-2-445-456</article-id><article-id pub-id-type="edn">IQBFOA</article-id><article-categories><subj-group subj-group-type="toc-heading" xml:lang="en"><subject>JOURNALISM</subject></subj-group><subj-group subj-group-type="toc-heading" xml:lang="ru"><subject>Журналистика</subject></subj-group><subj-group subj-group-type="article-type"><subject>Research Article</subject></subj-group></article-categories><title-group><article-title xml:lang="en">Censorship in Chinese Television Dramas as a Factor in Audience Reception</article-title><trans-title-group xml:lang="ru"><trans-title>Цензура в китайских сериалах как фактор зрительской интерпретации</trans-title></trans-title-group></title-group><contrib-group><contrib contrib-type="author"><contrib-id contrib-id-type="orcid">https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7349-9429</contrib-id><contrib-id contrib-id-type="spin">3280-9452</contrib-id><name-alternatives><name xml:lang="en"><surname>Nim</surname><given-names>Evgeniya G.</given-names></name><name xml:lang="ru"><surname>Ним</surname><given-names>Евгения Генриевна</given-names></name></name-alternatives><bio xml:lang="en"><p>PhD in Sociology, Associate Professor, Institute of Media</p></bio><bio xml:lang="ru"><p>кандидат социологических наук, доцент, Институт медиа</p></bio><email>nimeg@mail.ru</email><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/></contrib><contrib contrib-type="author"><contrib-id contrib-id-type="orcid">https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3206-2571</contrib-id><contrib-id contrib-id-type="spin">6439-1147</contrib-id><name-alternatives><name xml:lang="en"><surname>Boldyreva</surname><given-names>Daria I.</given-names></name><name xml:lang="ru"><surname>Болдырева</surname><given-names>Дарья Игоревна</given-names></name></name-alternatives><bio xml:lang="en"><p>Postgraduate Student, School of Philosophy and Cultural Studies</p></bio><bio xml:lang="ru"><p>аспирант, Школа философии и культурологии</p></bio><email>diboldyreva@hse.ru</email><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"/></contrib></contrib-group><aff-alternatives id="aff1"><aff><institution xml:lang="en">HSE University</institution></aff><aff><institution xml:lang="ru">Национальный исследовательский университет «Высшая школа экономики»</institution></aff></aff-alternatives><pub-date date-type="pub" iso-8601-date="2026-06-30" publication-format="electronic"><day>30</day><month>06</month><year>2026</year></pub-date><volume>31</volume><issue>2</issue><issue-title xml:lang="en"/><issue-title xml:lang="ru"/><fpage>445</fpage><lpage>456</lpage><history><date date-type="received" iso-8601-date="2026-07-02"><day>02</day><month>07</month><year>2026</year></date></history><permissions><copyright-statement xml:lang="en">Copyright ©; 2026, Nim E.G., Boldyreva D.I.</copyright-statement><copyright-statement xml:lang="ru">Copyright ©; 2026, Ним Е.Г., Болдырева Д.И.</copyright-statement><copyright-year>2026</copyright-year><copyright-holder xml:lang="en">Nim E.G., Boldyreva D.I.</copyright-holder><copyright-holder xml:lang="ru">Ним Е.Г., Болдырева Д.И.</copyright-holder><ali:free_to_read xmlns:ali="http://www.niso.org/schemas/ali/1.0/"/><license><ali:license_ref xmlns:ali="http://www.niso.org/schemas/ali/1.0/">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0</ali:license_ref></license></permissions><self-uri xlink:href="https://journals.rudn.ru/literary-criticism/article/view/50986">https://journals.rudn.ru/literary-criticism/article/view/50986</self-uri><abstract xml:lang="en"><p>This article examines the audience reception of Chinese television dramas, which have been gaining popularity in Russia. The production of Chinese TV dramas requires compliance with state censorship, which largely determines the final version of the media product. Under conditions of uncertainty and limited transparency regarding regulatory requirements, audiences of Chinese dramas (commonly referred to as C-dramas) develop their own understandings of the nature of restrictions and the outcomes of censorship interventions. The aim of this study is to identify the characteristics of audience reception of Chinese television dramas in relation to censorship. The analysis focuses on three research questions: how VKontakte fan communities dedicated to Chinese dramas construct audience knowledge about censorship; how viewers conceptualize restrictions in C-dramas and interpret the shows in light of this knowledge; and how Russian fans of C-dramas perceive the regulation of television drama content in China. The study employs qualitative thematic analysis of 465 posts and comments published in VKontakte communities devoted to Chinese dramas. The analysis identifies key features of Russian viewers’ perceptions of censorship in Chinese television dramas, including practices of sharing information about censorship, expectations of regulatory intervention, assumptions about taboo topics, and attitudes toward censorship. The findings demonstrate that many C-drama fans are not only aware of censorship but also incorporate it into their interpretive practices, developing a particular mode of reception that we term censorship sensitivity.</p></abstract><trans-abstract xml:lang="ru"><p>Исследуется зрительское восприятие китайских сериалов, которые становятся все более популярными в России. Производство китайских сериалов предполагает прохождение государственной цензуры, что во многом определяет финальную версию медиапродукта. В условиях неопределенности и непрозрачности требований регулятора аудитория китайских сериалов (обычно называемых С-драмы) формирует собственные представления о характере запретов и результатах цензурного вмешательства. Цель - выявить особенности зрительской рецепции китайских сериалов, связанные с фактором цензуры. Анализ фокусируется на трех исследовательских вопросах: как фан-сообщества «Вконтакте», посвященные китайским сериалам, формируют зрительские знания о цензуре; как аудитория представляет ограничения в С-драмах и интерпретирует шоу с учетом этих знаний; каким образом российские поклонники C-драм воспринимают регулирование сериального контента в КНР. В исследовании применяется качественный тематический анализ 465 постов и комментариев, опубликованных в «Вконтакте». Выявлены ключевые особенности представлений российских зрителей о цензуре в китайских сериалах (включая информирование о цензуре, ожидания и прогнозы, предположения о табуированных темах, отношение к цензуре и др.). Исследование показало, что многие поклонники С-драм не только знают о цензуре, но и включают ее в свои интерпретативные практики, вырабатывая особый режим рецепции, который мы обозначили понятием «цензурная чувствительность».</p></trans-abstract><kwd-group xml:lang="en"><kwd>Russian C-drama audiences</kwd><kwd>audience reception</kwd><kwd>censorship sensitivity</kwd><kwd>fan communities</kwd><kwd>VKontakte</kwd><kwd>thematic analysis</kwd></kwd-group><kwd-group xml:lang="ru"><kwd>российская аудитория С-драм</kwd><kwd>зрительская рецепция</kwd><kwd>цензурная чувствительность</kwd><kwd>фан-сообщества</kwd><kwd>ВКонтакте</kwd><kwd>тематический анализ</kwd></kwd-group><funding-group/></article-meta><fn-group/></front><body></body><back><ref-list><ref id="B1"><label>1.</label><mixed-citation>Braun, V., &amp; Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. 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