CAT AS MEDIATOR. A Digital Ethnography Study About Digital Migration from TikTok to RedNote

Thesis

Author(s) / editor(s):
Fan , Xiang

Year: 2025

Language(s): English

Abstract:
In January 2025, following renewed threats of a TikTok ban in the United States, over half a million users migrated overnight to RedNote (also known as Xiaohongshu), a Chinese lifestyle-sharing platform. This unexpected influx marked the first large-scale digital migration from a Western user base into a Chinese social media space. Among these users, who are self-described as “TikTok refugees”, a unique interaction pattern emerged: the widespread posting of cat content, referred to as “paying the cat tax,” which quickly became a symbolic gesture for seeking visibility, friendliness, and entry into the new digital environment. Focusing on this TikTok-RedNote migration, this thesis investigates how cat-related content functions as a soft, symbolic tool for self-presentation and intercultural interaction in the context of platform migration. Drawing on qualitative content analysis of 32 user-generated posts with approximately 1,200 comments on RedNote, this study explores how image-based communication replaces linguistic fluency in a context of cultural unfamiliarity. The analysis is guided by concepts from symbolic interactionism, intercultural communication, and digital media studies. Findings suggest that RedNote’s visual-first interface, affective community norms, and interest-based algorithm make it conducive to image-based interaction and create an environment that encourages ambient, low-risk participation. Cat-related content acts as a culturally neutral and emotionally resonant symbol, allowing users to perform identity, test platform norms, and establish brief but meaningful connections across linguistic and cultural divides.

http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9188614

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