#Propaganda #CCPRules
China State Media Enlists Overseas #KOL and University Students to Promote the Chinese Communist Party

Source: The Times #June16

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#Propaganda #CCPRules
China State Media Enlists Overseas #KOL and University Students to Promote the Chinese Communist Party

//China’s state TV station has been targeting British university campuses and offering students the chance to win thousands of pounds by becoming pro-Beijing social media influencers, The Times can reveal.

#CGTN had its broadcasting licence revokedand was taken off the air in Britain in February after an investigation by Ofcom, the media regulator, found that it was editorially controlled by the #ChineseCommunistParty.

The network has since launched a “#MediaChallengers” campaign to recruit internet influencers and vloggers globally, some of whom will promote China and counter western narratives that damage its image.

Successful applicants can win up to $10,000 and secure part-time or full-time jobs at CGTN, according to promotional documents.

At least six students at the University of Leeds and one at the University of Manchester have signed up to the campaign, The Times has found...

Hannah Bailey, an expert on Chinese digital disinformation at the Oxford Internet Institute, said: “If we have western social media influencers reading out China’s official line on particular issues, then domestic audiences might believe the Chinese Communist Party is admired by international audiences.” She said the CGTN campaign was “part of a broader trend that we’ve seen of China trying to increase its influence among university campuses”.//

Read full article:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/china-state-tv-channel-cgtn-enlists-uk-student-influencers-dw9v5sbnc

Source: The Times #June12

#Brainwashing #Disinformation

Chinese Official Media Globally Recruit Reporters and KOLs are “The Media Challengers”

The Chinese official media CGTN, who has been fined and revoked license by England during the beginning of the year, recently held a “The Media Challengers” program. It is recruiting English-speaking reporters and KOLs. Those selected will receive a $10,000 bonus and get a full or part-time job in CGTN. Besides the Chinese international students, there are also some from Zimbabwe and Zambia. Some British experts believed that local audiences may think that the international community admired CCP if Western social media KOLs announce official Chinese messages on certain issues.

According to the official Weibo of CGTN, “The Media Challengers” is a “Recruitment of Global Host Reporters and KOLs” and is the first global event. It aims to “inject new power into international communication in a media-converged environment”, to recruit host, reporters, DJ and KOLs for English reports and creation. There are no limits for nationality.

Source: Stand News #Jun17

https://bit.ly/3xZr0nP

#China #OfficialMedia #KOL #Reporter #MediaChallengers #CGTN #International #CCP #Nationality #Propaganda

#Propaganda #MainMelody
"Perfect Harmony": A July 1 without #AppleDaily and Annual Pro-democracy March

July 1, 2021 marks the 24th year since Hong Kong was handed over to China, and is also the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party (#CCP). It is also the first July 1 after the outspoken #AppleDaily was shut down and the annual pro-democracy march has been banned by the police.

The headlines of the remaining printed newspapers in the city sing praises in "perfect harmony" for the CCP and the HKSAR.

A full-page ad adorned the front page of Ming Pao, Economic Journal, Oriental Daily, Sing Tao Daily, Hong Kong Economic Times, South China Morning Post, all wishing the SAR and the Party a happy birthday.

#July1Protest #Newspaper #MediaLandscape

Source: Stand News #July1
https://www.facebook.com/standnewshk/posts/4303698696382384

Canada Pension Plan Board heavily invested in Chinese propaganda film studios

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is heavily invested in Chinese propaganda film companies, account disclosures reveal.

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the Board currently holds $7 million in Chinese Communist Party (CCP) affiliated film studio stocks. The holdings include a $4 million share in China Film Co Ltd. which is a state monopoly.

The shares are being held by the Board despite past commitments to focus on human rights when it comes to investing Canadians’ money abroad.

“We believe that strong human rights practices contribute to long term value. Engaging with companies in our portfolio on this topic is therefore an important part of our strategy,” wrote the Board.

Source: TNC #Jul09

https://t.co/y64xS6PU3r

#Canada #CCP #Propaganda #HumanRights

#PoliceState
#Taiwan #Scholar refutes HK government's labelling of police knifing incident as “local terrorism”

In less than 4 hours after the police knifing incident took place in Causeway Bay on 1 July, 2021, the Hong Kong government's Secretary for Security #ChrisTang, hastily concluded the attack as a “lone-wolf terrorist act”.

Tang further condemned those attempted to pay tribute to the deceased man, calling such action as “glorifying terrorism and encouraging violence."

Meanwhile, Chief Secretary #JohnLee warned citizens against what he called "local terrorism" in his first blog post as the city’s second ranking official.

Taiwan scholar, #ShihChienGu who specializes in global counter-terrorism, however, considered such allegations unfounded.

He did not agree that public mourning advocates terrorism. Instead, he asked the Hong Kong Government to investigate reasons for the incident to render public sympathy.

Shih further explained that there are two basic concepts to Terrorism, one is whether it causes panic in society and the other is whether it has a political purpose.

The man who knifed the police officer didn’t cause social alarm. If the action was out of the man's discontentment, it is neither politically driven.

Shih opined that the assault against pro-democracy protesters in Yuen Long on 21 July 2019 was a terrorist attack as it shocked and provoked panic in local community. If the collusion between assailants and police is evident, the attack could be deemed a “state terrorism”. That is to say, the regime is using illegal means to intimidate its own people.

Shih Chien-yu is a guest professor in the Taiwan Tsinghua University.

Source: HKCnews; #Jul7

https://bit.ly/3wEWRZT

#StateTerrorism #Propaganda #WhiteTerror #Censorship

China Aims Its Propaganda Firehose at the BBC

Chinese trolls and fake news websites have been attacking the BBC in a bid to undermine its credibility, new research published today claims. The online influence operation, which is being linked to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is seemingly a response to the BBC’s reporting on human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims and state-backed misinformation campaigns.

The new research from analysts at cybersecurity company Recorded Future claims that the “likely state-sponsored” operation used hundreds of websites and social media accounts to attack the BBC’s reporting. In particular the network has accused the BBC of adding a “filter” to its reports from China to make the country look dull and lifeless.

Source: Wired #Aug19

#China #Propaganda #CCP #BBC #Uyghur

https://t.co/gNokoAtLPb

#Irony
CCP State Media Justifies Propaganda on #JournalistsDay as Crackdown on Citizen Journalists Continue

Journalists in China are either part of state-owned propaganda or being imprisoned for criticising the government.

November 8 marks the Journalists’ Day in China. Most state-funded media published articles praising the work done by media workers.

In the party funded People’s Daily, several journalists were interviewed to talk about their work on the ground. Among them, one described their work as a "tribute to the [Chinese Communist] Party's centennial anniversary."

Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of the state-funded tabloid Global Times, tweeted that "journalists are part of state-owned propaganda."

Never mentioned on these official media were those independent journalists and citizen journalists who have been imprisoned, detained, or arrested for pursueing truths under the Chinese Communist Party’s (#CCP) rule.

Zhang Zhan, a Chinese citizen journalist and former lawyer, was sentenced in December 2020 to four years in jail for her reporting on CCP’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It has been confirmed that Huang Xueqin, a women's rights activist, and independent journalist, was being arrested.

#PressFreedom #ZhangZhan #HuangXueQin #Propaganda

Source: Stand News; #Nov8
https://www.facebook.com/standnewshk/posts/4718665174885732

#Art
#Brescia Exhibits #Badiucao's Artwork that Mocks Beijing’s #Propaganda

Source: Radio Free Asia; #Nov13

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#Art
#Brescia Exhibits #Badiucao's Artwork that Mocks Beijing’s #Propaganda

Defying the calls of the Chinese government to cancel an exhibition in a northern Italian city, #Brescia is hosting the first international solo exhibition by the 35-year-old artist, #Badiucao, an exile from China who now lives in Australia.

Displaying a torture instrument such as a rocking chair, dissident artist Badiucao mocks the propaganda of Beijing in this exhibition named “China is (not) near”.

The show denounces political repression in China and the country’s censorship of the origin of #Covid19.

Beijing responded to the exhibition in anger, accusing Badiucao’s works of being “full of anti-Chinese lies” that “jeopardise the friendly relations between China and Italy”. The PRC's embassy in Rome sent a letter to Brescia’s town hall.

Deputy Mayor #LauraCastelletti responded, “None of us in Brescia, neither in the city council nor among the citizens, had the slightest doubt about this exhibition going ahead.”

"Brescia, known for its Roman ruins, has a long tradition of welcoming dissidents, painters and writers, in defence of artistic freedom”, she added.

In an interview, Badiucao, who is nicknamed the Chinese #Banksy said he is “very happy and proud” that the city “had the courage to say ‘no’ to China to defend fundamental rights.”

Source: Radio Free Asia; #Nov13
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/Xinwen/11-11132021172450.html/ampRFA

#ProtestArt #WolfWarrior #FreedomofExpression #Creativity #Italy #NoToChina #Culture #Exhibition

#Propaganda
China Ordered #Amazon to Delete Reviews of #XiJinping’s Book

Source: Bloomberg; Reuters #Dec17

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#Propaganda
China Ordered #Amazon to Delete Reviews of #XiJinping’s Book

//Amazon.com Inc.’s efforts to curry favor with the Chinese government included quieting criticism of President Xi Jinping’s book on its Chinese outlet, according to a Reuters report.

The Amazon.cn entry for Xi’s “The Governance of China” had its ratings, comments and reviews scrubbed and disabled roughly two years ago in response to an edict from Beijing, the report said. Triggering the request were reviews rating the work at less than the maximum five stars, according to one of the unidentified people familiar with the incident...

The experience recounted in the report mirrors that of Apple Inc., which has grown increasingly compliant with Beijing in recent years. Apple complied with 97% of requests from the Chinese government for user device information in 2019, up significantly from 65% in 2014.

Reviews for Xi’s book of speeches and writings are blocked only on Amazon’s Chinese website. One Amazon.com entry has received 74% five-star reviews.

Other U.S. firms, such as Yahoo! and Microsoft Corp.’s LinkedIn, have, by contrast, exited the Chinese market this year, citing an increasingly challenging business and legal environment in the country.//

Read Reuters' report:
https://www.reuters.com/world/china/amazon-partnered-with-china-propaganda-arm-win-beijings-favor-document-shows-2021-12-17/

Source: Bloomberg; Reuters #Dec17

#CCP #Censorship #Kowtow

#BrainWashing #Propaganda
"Don't Lie Flat": New Values Education Framework Promotes "Dilligence", Drops "Critical Thinking" and "Human Rights"

Source: Stand News #Nov30

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https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31847

#BrainWashing #Propaganda
"Don't Lie Flat": New Values Education Framework Promotes "Dilligence", Drops "Critical Thinking" and "Human Rights"

Hong Kong's Education Bureau (#EDB) issued the "Values Education Curriculum Framework (Pilot Version)" on November 30, 2021, as reference material for the city's primary and secondary schools.

The new framework adds "diligence" as a "priority value and attitude" on top of the nine existing values. It also emphasizes "[nurturing] a sense of belonging towards the country from an early age", so as to help students "understand their responsibility, as a Chinese, to protect their family and the country".

The announcement came days after an online article by Secretary for Education #KevinYeung, in which he stressed the importance of #ValuesEducation, while criticizing a trend to "lie flat" among young people.

[Editor's note: The term "lie flat" (躺平) is popularized by young Mainland Chinese netizens who felt disillusioned by long working hours and high social expectations.

In response, they opt for a lifestyle and work ethic of minimalistic survival, and refuse to spend extra effort or money to move up the social ladder, which they saw as being already out of their reach.]

In Hong Kong, the new framework is based on the EDB's 2008 Moral and Civic Education Framework.

The learning objectives in the older framework included "respecting human rights" and learning about the Motherland "through critical thinking". These wordings are no longer found in the new document; instead, a new objective is added: "love the country, love Hong Kong".

Source: Stand News #Nov30
https://thestandnews.page.link/avyAVFN42EnSoV8Y6

#LieFlat #TangPing #Education #ValuesEducation #CCPRules

#Propaganda #CCP
Buying Influence: How China Manipulates #Facebook and #Twitter

Source: New York Times #Dec20

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#Propaganda #CCP
Buying Influence: How China Manipulates #Facebook and #Twitter

//...a new set of documents reviewed by The New York Times reveals in stark detail how Chinese officials tap private businesses to generate content on demand, draw followers, track critics and provide other services for information campaigns. That operation increasingly plays out on international platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which the Chinese government blocks at home.

The documents, which were part of a request for bids from contractors, offer a rare glimpse into how China’s vast bureaucracy works to spread propaganda and to sculpt opinion on global social media. They were taken offline after The Times contacted the Chinese government about them...

A separate document reviewed by The Times shows that the same local branch of Shanghai police purchased video-making services from a different company in November. The police asked the supplier to provide at least 20 videos a month and to distribute those on domestic and overseas social media. The document referred to the task as original video production that would be used to fight the “battle of public opinion.”

Earlier this year, a New York Times and ProPublica analysis showed howthousands of videos portraying members of the Uyghur ethnic minority living happy and free lives were a key part of an information campaign that Twitter ultimately attributed to the Chinese Communist Party...

Work like what Shanghai Cloud Link pitched is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Local governments and police across China have put out similar requests for services to influence overseas social media, but often in vague terms. Occasionally, specifics are revealed.

In 2017, for instance, the police in Inner Mongolia purchased software that allowed government trolls to post directly to multiple social media sites, inside and outside of China, according to documents reviewed by The Times.

In another case, a contractor had downloaded hundreds of access credentials for Facebook’s public feed, allowing it to collect data about who commented on which posts and when.//

Read the full article:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/12/20/technology/china-facebook-twitter-influence-manipulation.htmlb

Source: New York Times #Dec20

#Manipulation #PublicOpinionManagement #SocialMedia #Meta #Disinformation #MadeinChina #CCPRules

French study warns of the massive scale of Chinese influence around the world

The 650-page report, entitled "Chinese influence operations - a Machiavelli moment" digs through the layers of secret and not-so-secret institutions, actions and designs used by Beijing to manipulate western opinion.

Written by Paul Cheron, an intelligence expert and Chinese specialist with credentials from Harvard and China's most prestigeous university Qinghua, in partnership with political scientist Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer, a security specialist, the report is probably the most extensive analysis of China's propaganda machine ever published in French. 

The report argues that for a long time China wanted  more to be loved than feared, she wanted to seduce, projecting a positive image of herself in the world and so arousing admiration. Recently China has increasingly shown another side.

Source: RFI #Sep22

https://bit.ly/3JPxPix

#French #China #PaulCheron #Propaganda

#Brainwashing #Education
Universities in Hong Kong to Implement Courses on Modern China and National Security

Under the #NationalSecurityLaw (#NSL), educationsl institutions in Hong Kong were requested to implement national security education.

Universities like the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (#PolyU), the Hong Kong Baptist University (#HKBU), the Hong Kong Education University (#EdUHK) and the Hong Kong Lingnan University (#HKLU) have followed the government order.

Recently, the Chinese University of Hong Kong (#CUHK) has reportedly amended their core curriculum for the next academic year.

CUHK will open online courses on "Understanding China Today", and "National Security" starting from the next academic year. Each of them takes account to 1 credit.

CUHK confirms InMedia's enquiry and claimed that the new courses aimed to "strengthen students' knowledge [...] to understand national security". The courses were authorised by the University's academic council; however, no curriculum details have been revealed.

According to the documents InMedia received, the course titled "Understanding China Today" touched upon the modernization of China and technological development, in addition to Chinese culture and history. In addition to national security education, other online courses cover positive psychology and modern language. Each of the course takes account to 1 credit.

The University called it "Service Learning" and requires students to take at least one of thrse 1-credit courses.

CUHK replies to InMedia that the university would launcb national security education in accordance with Article 10 of the NSL. The university also said that they have already rolled out a number of policies and activities to "increase students' national belonging". Orientation activities include theme talks about national security and media literacy; courses contain a talk regarding "international circumstances and China's diplomacy"; graduates career workshops consist of #BasicLaw.

Source: Inmedia #Jan18
https://bit.ly/3nwAVhB

#Propaganda #Regime #University

China State Media Demonizes its Netizens' #StandWithUkraine Effort

Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, Chinese-language comments supporting the aggression and deriding Ukrainian women were made by #LittlePink and opinion leaders on various social media platforms in China. Other Chinese-speaking netizens, who were appalled at these comments and behaviors, began translating them into other languages and posting them online for the world to see.

Calling themselves "The Great Translation Movement", the volunteer translators soon caught the attention of international media - as well as China's own propaganda machine.

Global Times, a tabloid owned by the Chinese Communist Party, condemned these volunteer translation efforts for painting China in a negative light. In a Weibo post on March 17, 2022, The Party mouthpiece called the translations an "evil force", inciting Anti-China hate on the Internet and endangering China as a whole. It also accused the participants to be supported by "foreign, anti-China forces", suggesting that they lacked "normal morals" and could not bear to see China's successful development - and its "temporary problems".

See also: Chinese in Ukraine Are Trying to Pass for Japanese as Anger Grows over Pro-Invasion Comments by ‘Little Pink’
https://t.me/BeWaterHK/312

Source: Global Times Weibo, The Great Translation Movement Twitter #Mar17
https://twitter.com/TGTM_Official/status/1504448184763904001?t=WLgra5Yo_4hpAR0H37dD3Q&s=19

#Regime #GlobalTimes #Propaganda #TheGreatTranslationMovement

TikTok Pushed Chinese Propaganda Ads To Millions Across Europe

Source: Forbes #Jul27

#Tiktok #EuropeanUnion #DigitalServicesAct #CCP #Propaganda #Xinjiang

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