Funny how I still recall some months ago - That a few here in this forum claimed that "soft power is of absolutely no use in the geopolitical fight between superpowers".
The thing is - Not a lot of people outside of the military circle talk about military stuff everyday. But there are fvck tons of people everywhere who talking movies, dramas, songs and games. Every. Single. Day.
I believe I need to knock this sentence onto this forum wall for everyone here to actually make sense and understand.
While China is now equipped with the capability to militarily go toe-to-toe with the US in her own front yard (i.e. WestPac), yet China is nowhere near the US when it comes to soft power influence and control projection.
Besides, soft power isn't just about building bridges, schools, airports and hospitals. It is about connecting, managing, and even controlling the minds & hearts of the targeted audience & population.
Just this one simple question is enough: "How often do Chinese people talk about American movies? Meanwhile, how often do American people talk about Chinese movies?"
TL;DR - China needs to do A WHOLE LOT MORE if she intends to stand toe-to-toe with the US (and her allies with far-reaching soft power prowess, i.e. South Korea and Japan) in the soft power battlefield.