The Chinese-Filipinos as Chinitos and Chinitas: A Self-Reflexive Ethnographic Analysis of Chinese-Filipinos in Music Videos

Lee, Rebecca I. (2017). The Chinese-Filipinos as Chinitos and Chinitas: A Self-Reflexive Ethnographic Analysis of Chinese-Filipinos in Music Videos. Unpublished undergraduate thesis. University of the Philippines, Diliman: College of Mass Communication

This study examines how the representation of ethnicity relates to issues of nationalism and belongingness. Specifically, it studies how the Philippine media’s representations of Chinese-Filipino actors and/or musicians in music videos are similar and different to my own experiences as a Chinese-Filipino. This study uses Daniel Chandler’s discussion of the basics of semiotics and Richard Dyer’s and Paul McDonald’s discussion of the “stars” to investigate the celebrification of the Chinese-Filipinos and to establish them as constructed and market-informed images. This study also uses Benedict Anderson’s Imagined Communities and Edward Said’s Orientalism and Culture and Imperialism to explore issues of representation, nationalism, and belongingness in a postcolonial world. This study analyzes two texts, which are juxtaposed with each other: myself, a Chinese-Filipino, and the music videos featuring Chinese-Filipinos. I narrate events that are relevant to my research question. These are then juxtaposed with music videos released from 2007 to 2015. I chose 2007 as my starting point because that was when Kim Chiu, a Chinese-Filipino celebrity, launched her first music album. I believe the period is pivotal in the representation of Chinese-Filipinos in the media. This study’s goal is to contribute to the growing body of knowledge clamoring for a just representation that is not based on exaggerated stereotypes and commodified images of, and uninformed assumptions about, Chinese-Filipinos. Through this study, I hope to examine the representation and mediation of ethnicity as a measure of belongingness and nationalism. Keywords: Chinese-Filipinos, ethnicity, orientalism, celebrification, postcolonialism