I just wish that Western media, not least American media, could learn from this, as they keep interviewing Chinese “academics” and other people in China who pretend to have their own opinion that just happens to coincide with the regime — in reality those are just stooges of the regime that will shift any time required. They are interviewed because they are presumably “outside the government.” People like Victor Gao, et al, who are constantly interview by CNN etc. despite the false premise.

Generally speaking, Chinese people in China do not have opinions of their own — because that is not allowed, and it is too dangerous for them, so they typically will tell you (what they think are) the opinions of the government.

I feel it’s deeply misleading, and unethical, when Western media present such “opinionators” as if they represent something other than the regime.

Magnus Fiskesjö <nf42@cornell.edu>

There’s no contradiction at all. Sima Nan always promotes the current CCP propaganda narrative. When it switches, Sima switches, too.

Bill Callahan <Waccpol@gmail.com>

Source: China Digital Times (11/16/23)
“Joke of the Year”: Nationalist Pundit Sima Nan Says He “Strives to Promote Friendly Sino-American Relations”
By Cindy Carter

As Chinese state media tone down their anti-U.S. rhetoric and promote the Weibo hashtag #感受中美民意暖流# (#Experience the Warm Current of Public Opinion on Sino-American Relations) in recognition of the Xi-Biden meeting on the sidelines of the APEC summit in San Francisco, China’s nationalist pundits have followed suit. The most notable example is Sima Nan, whose fiery blasts against the U.S. have earned him legions of fans, as well as countless critics. His recent claim that he “strives to promote friendly Sino-American relations” was met with incredulity by many online, including the authors of the two essays below.

Sima Nan declares, “I strive to promote friendly Sino-American relations.”

Over the years, Sima Nan has been the subject of a number of controversies, some of which he provoked, and others that were simply bad luck. During a visit to the U.S. in early 2012, he got his head caught between the escalator railing and the wall at Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., necessitating a trip to the hospital and a neck brace. This prompted some pointed comment on the fact that the U.S. had been willing to grant a visa to such a strident critic. Later that year, after Sima Nan finished a lecture at Hainan University, a student hurled a shoe at him, earning cheers from others in the audience. In 2014, his social media post about hobnobbing with a young passenger with a leather jacket and mohawk on a Beijing subway backfired, as the young man was clearly not a fan. And in July 2023, Sima Nan was ridiculed and accused of hypocrisy after social media posts showed the inveterate critic of the U.S. apparently enjoying himself at an American Independence Day party thrown by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.

A recent WeChat essay “Shocking! Sima Nan: I Strive to Promote Friendly Sino-American Relations” marvels at the hawkish pundit’s sudden change of tune. Published by WeChat account @玖奌杂货店 (Jiǔdiǎn záhuòdiàn, “9:00 Grocery Store”), the essay includes an angry, screenshotted message from one of Sima Nan’s loyal supporters, as well as some jocular comments from dismayed readers: Continue reading →

Source: China Digital Times (11/14/23)
Maoist Blog Republishes All-out Attack on Party-State Censorship
By  Alexander Boyd

In online slang, “rushing the tower”  (冲塔 chōngtǎ) means posting politically sensitive commentary knowing full well that it will be censored, with potentially worse consequences ranging from account deletion to detention. The term is borrowed from the language of multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video games. A recent post from the WeChat account @冲破黎明前的黑暗 (Chōngpò límíng qián de hēi’àn, “Breach the darkness before dawn,” in English) is an illustrative example of the genre.

In an essay titled “Arise, Ye Bloggers Who Refuse to be Slaves!” (a reference to the first line of China’s national anthem, the “March of the Volunteers,” which has been repeatedly censored on Weibo), the author strikes out against censors who remove posts for unspecified “violations.” With “they” as an obvious stand-in for the powers that be, the author speculates that there can only be three reasons for censorship of the truth: “1. They’ve done wrong, and fear the people finding out. 2. They’re doing wrong, and fear the people’s criticism. 3. They’re planning to do wrong, and fear the people exposing them.” The essay perfectly captures the sentiments that drive Chinese netizens to “rush the tower,” consequences be damned. CDT has translated portions of the now-censored essay that demonstrate the bravery in the face of censorship exhibited by many Chinese writers, both famous and unknown: Continue reading →

Source: NYT (11/14/23)
As Xi Heads to San Francisco, Chinese Propaganda Embraces America
After years of anti-American propaganda, the softer, warmer depiction of relations with the United States has left some Chinese social media users confused or amused.
By Vivian Wang and Joy Dong

Xi Jinping, then-vice president of China, in Iowa in 2012 in a tractor with a farmer. Credit…Pool photo by Charlie Neibergall

Not long ago, Chinese propaganda was warning that American attempts at easing tensions were mere performance. Its state security agency was urging people to be on guard against American spies. The country’s leader, Xi Jinping, declared that the United States was engaged in a campaign of “all-around containment, encirclement and suppression,” in remarks broadcast across state media.

Now, the tone used to discuss the United States has suddenly shifted. Xinhua, the state news agency, on Monday published a lengthy article in English about the “enduring strength” of Mr. Xi’s affection for ordinary Americans. It included old photos of him sitting in a tractor with an Iowa farmer, and revisiting the home where he once stayed in an American college student’s “Star Trek”-themed bedroom.

“More delightful moments unfolded when Xi showed up to watch an N.B.A. game,” the article continued, describing a visit by Mr. Xi to the United States in 2012. “He remained remarkably focused on the game.”

Separately, Xinhua has published a five-part series in Chinese on “Getting China-U.S. Relations Back on Track.” A torrent of other state media articles has highlighted recent visits to China by the American Ballet Theater and the Philadelphia Orchestra, or the story of U.S. veterans who helped China fight Japan during World War II, some of whom visited China this month. “Veterans visit Chinese cities, anticipating everlasting China-U.S. friendship,” one headline declared. Continue reading →

Source: China Media Project (10/26/23)
China’s Fake Press Problem
By David Bandurski
Controls on news and information in China, seen as key to protecting the CCP regime, are perhaps the strictest in the world. So how — and why — are entirely spurious media outfits operating right under the nose of the authorities?

When two men arrived outside the gates of a coal processing enterprise in the city of Zhengzhou back in May this year and began filming video, the company’s boss demanded to know their business. The men explained that they were journalists from Henan Economic News (河南经济报), and that they were documenting his company’s failure to comply with environmental standards.

From there, the conversation moved quickly beyond the facts of their planned report to a more practical question — how the company could make it disappear.

If the boss wished not to have his company’s violations reported publicly, a simple arrangement was possible. For 12,000 yuan (about 1,600 dollars) transferred directly to a designated account, the journalists could shelve the report. The transaction would be disguised as a payment for a company subscription to Henan Economic News. The men could even provide an invoice bearing the media outlet’s official stamp. Continue reading →