Memetic Politics on TikTok: Key Ideas, Considerations, and a Tanghulu Case Study

This chapter focuses on the concept of memetic politics, using TikTok as an illustrative case. Its overarching goal is to examine how TikTok’s distinctive memetic vernacular is reshaping contemporary forms of political expression, commentary, and engagement. Conceptually, the chapter brings together key developments from research on social media pop culture and video memes, outlining how TikTok’s affordances give rise to innovative memetic formats that enable new forms of political commentary and practice in vernacular and playful ways. Empirically, the chapter synthesizes findings from the authors’ prior and ongoing work, as well as from the broader scholarly community. It demonstrates how memetic expression contributes to identity negotiation, civic discourse, and political visibility across both small-p everyday politics and Big-P politics, in domestic and cross-cultural contexts. By integrating conceptual, empirical, and platform-specific insights, the chapter offers theoretical vocabulary and a coherent framework for understanding memetic politics on TikTok and beyond.