Linguo-axiology of military-political discourse (based on the material of Chinese and English-language media resources)

Lobanova Tatiana Nikolaevna ORCID: 0000-0003-4901-3251 Doctor of Philology Professor; Department of Indo-European and Oriental Languages; State University of Enlightenment Director of the Regional Center for Chinese Language and Chinese Studies; GUP Malaya Borodinskaya str., 1, sq. 1, Mytishchi, Moscow region, 141031, Russia lobanovaty@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Seredenko Vladimir Mihailovich PhD in Philology Senior Lecturer; Department of Far Eastern Languages; Prince Alexander Nevsky Military University Fonvizinskaya str., 7A, sq. 60, Moscow, 117335, Russia ichi210@mail.ru

introduction

The relevance of the research lies in the fact that it identifies the phenomenology of the linguoaxology of military-political discourse through the study of the military-political doctrine of the PRC in "conjunction" with the functioning of some Chinese-language and English-language media channels. How international relations in the Russia-China-USA triangle will develop in the future largely depends on the factors of militarization and the resolution of sanctions management issues. At the present stage, we are witnessing the extent to which military Keynesianism as an anti-crisis economic policy of states is able to revitalize or transform public administration in the economies of large countries.

At the same time, the socio-political demand for the use of Chinese in the Russian Federation, due to the "friendliness" factor, actualizes comparative studies of different structural languages (Chinese, English and Russian) using a functional approach in modern scientific works, which determines the need to analyze these languages at various levels, including discursive and pragmatic.

The study of linguistic issues of the language of digital media in line with the anthropological paradigm of linguoaxology and discursology is an integral part of both the theory of language and discourse, as well as related humanitarian fields of scientific knowledge.

METHODOLOGY

The article is devoted to the study of the linguoaxology of military-political discourse (based on the material of Chinese-language and English-language media resources). The aim of the work is to "revise" scientific and theoretical concepts and approaches to the development of the interdisciplinary phenomenon of linguoaxology of military-political discourse as a methodological key and the analysis of foreign language (digital) media.

The issue of comparing the linguistic and axiological foundations of military-political discourse in modern Oriental and Russian languages is also of interest.

The theoretical basis of the research was the work of the authors, who are devoted to the problems of the general theory of discourse and discourse analysis. ^{[3],[4],[7],[10],[11],[12]}, the authors' concepts on pragmalinguistics, semantics and linguoaxology ^[2],[6],[8], as well as modern scientific research on digital media ^[3],[5],[9].

An analysis of the above-mentioned sources led to the conclusion that the transformation of values in the minds of native speakers (the axiological component) may be so profound in the context of the digital revolution that it will be possible to talk about the re-actualization of the national code. At the same time, scientists recognize that changes in speech, objectifying the current thoughts of a modern person, are significant. The digital revolution, combined with the ideas of mass culture, causes profound changes in the minds of speakers; the discursive-functional approach determines the degree and nature of these changes. Thus, the axiology of military-political discourse is practically not studied as a linguistic phenomenon and remains a promising area in linguistics.

Developing the phenomenology of military-political discourse in the framework of the study, we accept the definition of I.I. Fedotov.: "Military-political discourse is an interdiscursive new formation that combines the features of military and political discourses at the lexico-semantic, genre-stylistic and conceptual levels, expressing its own cultural and expressive standard within the framework of interstate relations, which departs from the conceptual and thematic programs of these two discourses" ^[10].

Speaking about methodological approaches, we proceed from the fact that any method or experiment claims to be representative, operationalized and verified: "the better the experimental materials are balanced, the more homogeneous the subjects are in the given relationships, the more carefully the instructions to the subjects are drawn up, the more likely it is that the researcher will receive reliable data relevant to the appropriate class of situations" ^{[2, pp. 210-211]}. In addition, when presenting a particular method, it is necessary to take into account its following components: its purpose, basic theoretical prerequisites, procedures, tools and rules, quality criteria, similarities and differences with other methods ^[7]. G. Kress suggests that ideological essences and trends are realized due to genre preference and stylistic-syntactic organization the text ^[11]. The linguistic-semiotic and pragmatic dimension of studying media texts using the multimodal analysis technique (hereinafter referred to as MMA) is of research interest.

The material for this study was the publication of Chinese-language and English-language information resources. In this study, we study such reputable media sources as "The South China Morning Post",《环球网》，《中国军网》，《解放军报》etc. The choice of these publications is due to the fact that they cover a wide range of news on the military-political agenda; some of them also affect the socio-social and international political and economic spheres. The Chinese–language edition is the official organ of the General Political Administration of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA). The Chinese-language edition explores texts from the tab.

Chronologically, the sample is limited to the period 2022-2025. The English-speaking sample consisted of 75 media publications; the Chinese-speaking sample consisted of 78 media publications. The selection of media materials is continuous, random, without AI tools. It seems that the selected media materials will make it possible to comprehensively study the linguo-axiological issues in military-political discourse.

The analysis was carried out using critical discourse analysis (hereinafter - KDA), multimodal discourse analysis and a group of linguistic methods.

The practical significance of this article lies in the fact that the research results can be used for linguistic and didactic purposes, including in classes on intercultural communication, socio-political and military translation.

THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF LINGUOAXIOLOGY IN INTERDISCIPLINARY PARADIGMATICS

The study of issues of military-political discourse, linguoaxology, Internet communication, pragmalinguistics of language, text and media technologies in line with the anthropological paradigm of modern humanitarianism is increasingly becoming a research perspective due to the strengthening of the media factor in the military-political life of various states. Adding the factor of modern digital visual culture, it becomes clear why the process of describing Internet communications in terms of political science "exhaust", on the one hand, becomes more complicated to some extent, and, on the other hand, is very promising from the point of view of applied values.

The current stage of development of the information society and the specifics of conducting hybrid wars with the inclusion of the information factor of influencing the enemy make it possible to isolate the so-called phenomenon of information and psychological impact on the mass addressee.

The material under study, the military–political media discourse of the PRC, including English-speaking Hong Kong, has an absolute novelty due to the specifics of the "metastability of East Asia" ^{[1, p. 139]}. As Zbigniew Brzezinski points out, the strategic goal of the United States in the next decade will be to contain the rising China, which claims to be a regional power and is building up the military might of Japan. At the same time, there is a "tacit alliance" between Japan and Taiwan, designed to restrain China in this design.

"To this end, Beijing is increasingly striving to improve relations with both the United States and Japan, despite the latter's militarization. The shift in China's position allows us to learn an important strategic lesson: the main thing is that the carefully dosed strengthening of Japan's role in the security sphere strengthens China's interest in maintaining stable cooperation with the United States, in the immutability of US-Japanese relations and maintaining the balance of the Sino-Japanese-American triangle" ^{[1, pp. 150-151]}.

Thus, Chinese is becoming more and more in demand in the world due to the growing economic power of China and its importance in the international arena; English as a language of intercultural communication allows you to "keep abreast" in the competition for global markets. Chinese and English today are not only a means of intercultural communication, but also an important tool for the Asian opinion leader in broadcasting his agenda and influence in the geopolitical arena.

Chinese publications in English (for example, The South China Morning Post (SCMP)) are aimed at a wide audience, including English–speaking foreigners and Chinese diasporas abroad: they represent China to the whole world and express China's position on important military and political events in the world. The materials of the English-language publications are not translations from Chinese, but are unique independent publications.

Describing the military-political media discourse of the PRC, it is necessary to point out the fact that it meets the tasks of conducting cognitive warfare. As a phenomenon of the military order, cognitive warfare, unlike conventional warfare, is not associated with a peace treaty or surrender. Its purpose is to control the flow of information.

It is important to understand that China defines cognitive warfare as a broader concept, implying a battlefield for ideological penetration aimed at destroying the morale and cohesion of troops, as well as the formation or destruction of operational-level capabilities ^[13].

Cognitive warfare, according to the Chinese, includes six technologies divided into two categories (cognitive, which include technologies that affect a person's ability to think and function; and subconscious cognitive, which cover technologies aimed at deep emotions, knowledge, willpower and beliefs of a person) ^{[13, p. 27]}.

New technologies are making it easier to wage cognitive warfare, generating conflicts on an unprecedented scale, even compared to the Cold War. At the same time, the development of information technology gradually leads to a decrease in human cognitive abilities: he is becoming more accustomed to the fragmented picture of the world and the so-called "clip thinking" created by social new media.

Psychology and social sciences are becoming more in demand than ever to win a war, and although military operations are moving away from kinetic operations, they can change the rules of the game. Psychology, for example, explains the motivation of terrorist groups or the reasons for young people joining their ranks. Psychological operations in the information sphere and the media undermine the enemy's faith in victory, etc.

It is proposed to apply the methodology of multimodal analysis to semiotically complicated media texts ^[4]. “The multimodal use of discourse is as much a feature of print genres as it is of television genres" ^{[12, p. 169]}. Let's consider examples using multimodal analysis of media texts (hereinafter referred to as MAM) to the designated sample of the English-speaking media segment. Thus, a non-verbal, visual metaphor in combination with a verbal text is often used by the media to create some kind of grotesque situation.

Fig. 1. Example of a visual metaphor – caricature in the Hong Kong English-speaking SCMP (the work by SCMP's veteran political cartoonist Harry Harrison, September 2024) (https://www.scmp.com/photos/opinion/harrys-view/3276715/harrys-view-september-2024 ?page=5)

Figure 2. Visual Metaphor in the Hong Kong English-speaking SCMP (by Jane Cai, Sylvie Zhuang, Phoebe Zhang and Vanessa Cai, 31 Dec 2024) (https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3292903/chinas-efforts-bring-back-foreign-visitors-are-bearing-fruit-will-they-be-enough?module=feature_package_2&pgtype=homepage)

The above examples (see Figures 1-2) demonstrate the following: caricature, visual metaphor, and the visualization of phraseological units in political caricature are a significant invasive tool and, to some extent, an "information weapon" in political communication ^[4].

Fig. 3. Visual metaphor in the Hong Kong English-language SCMP for publication (https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3292466/china-releases-worlds-most-powerful-electronic-warfare-weapon-design-software-free?module=top_story&pgtype=homepage)

Let's look at an example with a visual "paramilitary" component. Thus, the media publication “China releases world's most powerful electronic warfare weapon design software – for free” dated January 10, 2025 by the English-language Hong Kong edition of The South China Morning Post ^[14] confirms the thesis about the relationship between language and society, including taking into account the factor of increasing militarization (see Fig. 3). The media linguistic analysis of the publication allows us to draw some conclusions:

1) linguistic innovations and neology reveal themselves: electronic warfare weapons = "electronic warfare a";

2) visualization of the image of national militarization in a cartoon illustration;

3) decoding ("decoding") the semantics and pragmatics of the abbreviation the People's Liberation Army (PLA);

4) emotional, imaginative and provocative effect on the reader through illustration and placement of the caricature in the foreground (at the top of the publication).

5) visual techniques of exaggeration and grotesqueness in images;

As can be seen from the analysis above, MOM offers the possibility of interpreting the visual component in synergy with the "linear" text.

A visual metaphor or visualization of phraseological units in a political caricature is a significant invasive tool and, to some extent, an "information weapon" in political communication ^[4].

Next, we will apply the MAM to the materials of the Korean-language media segment of military-political communication. The texts under study from the Chinese-language media publishing tab demonstrate a wide range of stylistic means and visual range.

Example 1. The article《空战对抗，激烈打响！东部战区空军航空兵某旅开展飞行训练》[Aerial combat clash, fierce battle! The Air Force brigade in the Eastern Theater of Military Operations conducts flight training] ^[15] reveals the following range of linguistic and extralinguistic units that characterize the language of Chinese military and political discourse:

1) military terminology and nomination of technologies, units of military equipment and weapons: 实战化课目开展飞行训练 = conducting flight training in real conditions; 围绕编队飞行、术术、 = = = the program focuses on combat aerobatics, air combat tactics, support and cover, etc.;

2) visualization of the image of the national military flight aviation in a series of photographs;

3) emotional-figurative and provocative effect on the reader through the use of a periphrasis and metaphor: "To fly means to meet the enemy, to be in the air means to fight."

Example 2. In the article"[Israeli troops began to move from the city of Rafah towards the Philadelphia Corridor] ^[16] we find the following linguistic means implying an assessment in Chinese military-political discourse:

1) military terminology and nomination of technologies, units of military equipment and weapons: 以色列国防军 = Israel Defense Forces (IDF);

2) visualization tools – the article provides a diagram of the upcoming deployment of the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip (see Fig. 4).

Fig. 4. An example of using visualization tools in argumentation tactics: mapping (https://mil.huanqiu.com/article/4L8JlOXhh8S )

The studied texts from media publications also demonstrate a wide range of stylistic means and visual range. It should be noted that media publications offer to "flip through" a newspaper publication in electronic form; you can find a list of issues and the necessary hypertext ^[9] (see Fig. 5).

Fig. 5. The interface сайта《中国军网》(http://www.81.cn/szb_223187/szblb/index.html?paperNumber=01&paperName=jfjb&paperDate=2025-01-19)

Example 1. The article《三九探哨丨我站横断山中：“云岭第一哨”》[When I first visited this post, I was standing in the Hengguan Mountains: "the first Yunling post"] ^[17], which tells about the everyday life of the guards in China, reveals the following range of linguistic and extralinguistic units that characterize the language of Chinese military-political discourse:

1) emotionally-shaped impact on the reader through the use of periphrase, similes and metaphors: 彩云之南，四季如春。难以想象的是，在风景如画的香格里拉，却有一个地方常年难见一抹绿色 = There are colorful clouds in the South and all four seasons are like one spring. It's hard to imagine that there's a place in scenic Shangri-La where it's hard to see even a drop of greenery.

2) sublime use of Patriotic vocabulary: 多年来，官兵秉持“无私奉献、建功高原”的信念，叫响“不畏难、不怕苦、不惧险”的口号坚守战位，用担当诠释忠诚、用生命践行使命 = For many years, officers and soldiers have been supporting the ideas of selfless devotion and creating a platform to convince themselves: on the battlefield, adhere to the slogan: "do not be afraid of difficulties, do not be afraid of suffering, do not be afraid of danger" in order to fulfill their mission with a sense of duty and loyalty.

Example 2. In the article[Battles over mountains and seas] ^[18] also reveals the following range of linguistic and extralinguistic units that characterize the language of Chinese military-political discourse:

1) use the nominative terminological vocabulary: 夜色下，南北哨兵身姿挺拔，眼神坚毅，他们眼前是祖国界碑，身后是安宁祥和。同站一班岗、同执一次勤，“南海第一哨”官兵亲身体验极寒环境中北极哨所官兵的工作生活，让互学共建更有意义= Under the cover of night, the northern and southern guards stand straight, their eyes resolute: they stand in front of the monument to the border of the Motherland, with peace and tranquility behind them. While on the same shift and performing the same duties, the officers and soldiers of the First Patrol Post in the South China Sea got acquainted with the working days of officers and soldiers of Arctic posts in conditions of extreme cold, which increased the importance of mutual training.

2) use elevated vocabulary and Patriotic rhetoric:“边海防有我，请祖国放心！" 两个哨所官兵的铮铮誓言响彻云霄，发出奋斗强军的共同心声。= "While I'm at the border, homeland may be quiet!" The solemn oaths of the officers and soldiers of the two posts sweep through the clouds, spreading the common voice of the struggle for the strengthening of the army.

Example 3. In the article[Military rivalry in space continues to heat up] ^[19] there are:

1) vocabulary, due to the military-technical innovation and contemporary state of political and military discourse in the world: 随着科学技术的飞速发展，一些国家将太空视为军事竞争的制高点和新型作战域 = Along with the rapid development of science and technology, some countries have started to consider the Space as a higher sphere of military competition and a new type of battlefield.

2) innovative vocabulary: 美国多措并举谋求不对称优势。2025年，美太空军计划创建“未来司令部”，统筹美太空军能力建设、评估新兴技术潜在的太空军事价值、模拟未来太空作战场景等工作。= US measures to seek a competitive advantage. In 2025, the US Pacific Air Force plans to create a "Future Command" that coordinates the capacity building of the US Pacific Air Force, assessing the potential military value of emerging technologies in space, modeling scenarios for future space battles, and other work.

Regarding the prospects of military technologies, the English-language Hong Kong edition of The South China Morning Post in the publication “China's commercial Mach-4 drone tipped to make first flight next year” On January 23, 2025, it presented a new hypersonic drone to the world (see Fig. 6) ^[20].

Fig. 6. Hypersonic drone in Hong Kong English-speaking SCMP (https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3296012/chinas-commercial-mach-4-drone-will-make-first-flight-next-year-company)

Thus, the axiological "picture" (love of the Motherland among the Chinese, philosophical teachings about fate, loyalty, etc.), existing at the level of basic and background knowledge of representatives of the Eastern ethnic group, becomes a catalyst providing interest in the texts of military-political discourse. Chinese-language media materials of military-political discourse demonstrate to a much greater extent the use of terminology, lofty vocabulary and patriotic rhetoric, as well as linguistic metaphor and periphrasis. English-language media materials tend to be visualized through caricature and other visual means of influencing the mass reader. The texts of military-political discourse themselves, expanding the discursive horizons of the reader, create prerequisites for his indirect participation in the described situations and communication contexts, educate and set a value guideline and a "horizon".

Conclusion

We consider the entire range of scientific works involved to be extremely important from a scientific, theoretical and scientific-practical point of view, since the results of the theoretical analysis made it possible to identify a methodology for analyzing and interpreting media texts in the context of this type of journalism, including in the aspect of studying the virtual culture of national media systems. The implementation of some provisions in this article made it possible to identify the factors determining the linguistic and axiological "picture" of the Eastern military-political discourse. The dominant media message, basic language tools, visualization of military equipment and terrain (mapping), caricature of enemy images, means expressing patriotic rhetoric, as well as some robotic technologies in modern Eastern online journalism collectively determine media effects on the reader and consumer of media information.

The immersion of an increasing part of humanity into the virtual world of media in the age of digitalization generates a demand for the creation of information and psychological weapons and cyber warfare. Every year there is a rapid development of the media sphere, including its visual-discursive component, which contributes to the development of the "digital language" and the "language of television", which are evolving along with all the ongoing processes. Any language is susceptible to this, especially English and Chinese, which are the most widely spoken and popular among the entire population of our planet. Special attention should be paid to the mechanisms of translation and verbalization of ideologies and socially significant concepts implemented in the information war in the media, including a quantitative and qualitative assessment of their communicative effectiveness.

Cognitive warfare (its methods and methods of influence) is aimed primarily at the human capital of any state: it can be "brought" to a heated conflict, including through the media; then the effect is multiplied. The techniques and methods of conducting cognitive warfare have national specifics: Russian, Chinese, and Anglo-Saxon.