A new Twitter account shows how the Chinese Communist Party stirs up ultra-nationalism
“Patriotic” views are allowed; sceptical ones are censored
War has made the Kremlin try harder to envelop Russians in a parallel information universe, in which Ukraine is run by Nazis and Russian soldiers are liberators. China’s government is doing something similar. Whereas its propaganda for foreign ears stresses China’s desire for global harmony, at home it not only allows but even encourages the expression of caustically nationalist views online, especially on topics such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, covid-19 and Ukraine.
This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “Found in translation”
China May 21st 2022
- The UN’s human-rights chief is finally about to visit Xinjiang
- Hong Kong arrests a Catholic priest for siding with democrats
- The Chinese capital tries to avoid a lockdown
- A new Twitter account shows how the Chinese Communist Party stirs up ultra-nationalism
- Covid shows that in China, politics matters more than pragmatism
From the May 21st 2022 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from China
It’s a good time to be an astrologer in China
In the face of hardship, the country’s youth are embracing superstition
The early days of the Trump administration, as viewed from China
A good start, but it could get worse quickly
How (un)popular is China’s Communist Party?
As the economy falters and the social compact frays, Xi Jinping wants to know
An outrage that even China’s supine media has called out
Anger is growing over a form of detention linked to torture and deaths
Why foreign law firms are leaving China
A number of them are in motion to vacate
An initiative so feared that China has stopped saying its name
“Made in China 2025” has been a success, but at what cost?