Emotional Communication and Audience Resonance in Sannong Short Videos: A Case Study of Li Fugui

Abstract

With the rapid growth of short-form video platforms, Sannong (literally “agriculture, rural areas, and farmers”) short videos have emerged as key sites where affective narratives and mediated rural imagery intersect. Drawing on emotional communication theory, this study examines how emotional elements are embedded in Sannong short videos, how audiences experience resonance, and how affect-oriented communication shapes rural representations. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study combines content analysis of 100 videos by a prominent Sannong creator, Li Fugui, a viewer survey (N = 100), and in-depth interviews (N = 10). The analysis focuses on emotional embedding strategies, audience responses, and representational implications. Findings reveal that the creator employs three main strategies: personalized narrative construction, symbolic emotional expression, and staged warm interactions. These strategies produce rural imagery characterized by warmth, ordinariness, and resilience. Audience responses show a progression from cognitive empathy to emotional identification and behavioral response, with notable differences between urban and rural viewers and between those with and without rural life experience. At the representational dimension, everyday scenes are framed to emphasize warmth and mutuality while minimizing social complexity, reflecting the interaction of creators’ narratives, platform amplification, and audience expectations. By linking emotional embedding, audience resonance, and mediated rural imagery, this study extends emotional communication research into Sannong short videos and enhances understanding of how affective dynamics shape contemporary portrayals of rural life.