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Home
Themes
Headlines and Hashtags
China Newspeak
Tracking Control
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Going Global
The CMP Dictionary
About
CMP Newsletter
Contact Us
Headlines and Hashtags
The Kunming Mass Incident 03/26
See Roland Soong’s EastWestSouthNorth blog.
Apr 20, 2010
See Roland Soong’s
EastWestSouthNorth
blog.
David Bandurski
CMP Director
Latest Articles
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China Newspeak
Going Global
Headlines and Hashtags
China’s Monologue Machine
Apr 2, 2025 | David Bandurski
The newest “international communication center” in Hunan recruits college volunteers to promote state-approved narratives about local development to foreign audiences. Is this strategic thinking, or a fatal failure to grasp how communication works?
War Games
Apr 1, 2025 | David Bandurski
Beijing conjures ancient magic to transform military threats into mythical adventures — but Taiwan sees nothing supernatural about the missiles pointed at its shores.
Pen Names, Stern Warnings
Mar 25, 2025 | David Bandurski
Over the weekend, a state-run newspaper used a coded byline to signal concern about local government waste. It was a reminder of how the internal communication of the Chinese Communist Party works through an opaque system of institutional pseudonyms.
A River Crisis Prompts Rare Coverage
Mar 24, 2025 | David Bandurski
Chinese media outlets have taken the unusual step of more openly covering a toxic thallium contamination in Hunan’s Leishuei River, exposing a crisis kept under wraps for a full week.
New Messages from China’s Ancient Capital
Mar 21, 2025 | David Bandurski
China’s latest international communication center, or ICC, has been founded in Luoyang, a cradle of Chinese civilization, as part of growing efforts to enhance the country’s global media presence under the guidance of the state.
Shrinking Humanities for AI
Mar 19, 2025 | Alex Colville
As China makes a national push toward technology-driven ‘new productive forces,’ Shanghai’s prestigious Fudan University pivots from humanities to artificial intelligence. Is this the right move?
Blackmail Blogging
Mar 18, 2025 | David Bandurski
The sentencing of an online influencer for “news extortion” in China reveals a shadowy world in which media have the power to put a price tag on silence.
China’s Campus Propaganda Pipeline
Mar 14, 2025 | David Bandurski
Xi’an Jiaotong University partners with a state propaganda center to create a “talent pipeline” for China’s global messaging efforts — raising concerns about academic independence as universities become tools in Beijing’s international influence strategy.
Influencer Diplomacy
Mar 13, 2025 | Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat
On a recent curated tour of cities in China, Indonesian influencers gushed about food and culture while millions of followers watched. Behind their seemingly spontaneous posts lies a sophisticated state strategy: these digital stars are unwitting ambassadors in China’s campaign to reshape its image abroad, revealing how social media is transform…
Ancient Outpost Seeks a New Voice
Mar 5, 2025 | David Bandurski
Guyuan becomes the latest local hub in China’s vertically integrated propaganda network, joining forces with a state media outlet to amplify Beijing’s voice abroad.
Leapfrogging to Autocratic AI
Feb 24, 2025 | Alex Colville
As China’s DeepSeek AI is adapted to censor anti-government content in India, is the technology a gift to despots everywhere?
Prato Gets Wenzhou Media Liaison Office
Feb 14, 2025 | David Bandurski
China’s network of ICCs — local centers meant to revolutionize its state-led global communication — is growing both at home and overseas.
When Does Xi Get a Byline?
Feb 13, 2025 | Alex Colville
Bylined appearances by the country’s top leader in the flagship newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party offer a window into the messaging priorities of the leadership.
A Paint-by-Numbers Push for Influence
Feb 11, 2025 | David Bandurski
A district-level hub in Fujian province becomes the latest in a nationwide effort to revolutionize China’s global influence. It underscores the huge gap between Xi Jinping’s grand ambitions and local grandstanding.
The Screws Tighten on Military Content
Feb 10, 2025 | David Bandurski
Under new rules from the country’s top internet control body and nine other departments, social media accounts covering the PLA and defense topics must now display special markers and undergo strict identity checks.
A Rude Awakening
Feb 6, 2025 | Dalia Parete
This month, a viral video of a staged blind date intrusion sparked outrage on Chinese social media, becoming a cautionary tale about the dangers of fakery for entertainment.
Over-Dramatizing the Harm of Self-Media
Feb 5, 2025 | Alex Colville
A sketch during this year’s Spring Festival Gala on China Central Television attacked “self-media,” showing how social posts distort the truth. But the state-run network’s portrayal of independent content creators as purely harmful is itself an exaggeration and oversimplification.
The Slow Close of an Era
Feb 4, 2025 | David Bandurski
This year dawned with the closure of another batch of print newspapers in China. The relentless death of print continues in the country — mirroring a global trend.
Uncovering the Scam Industry
Feb 3, 2025 | Positive Connections
Through on-the-ground reporting, the WeChat-based outlet Positive Connections offers rare insight into the cyber scam compounds along the Thailand-Myanmar border — questioning prevailing Chinese public opinion that scapegoats Southeast Asian countries.
Central and Local Media Join Forces in Thailand
Jan 24, 2025 | David Bandurski
A Bangkok summit celebrating China’s engagement in Southeast Asia reveals Beijing’s growing use of both national and provincial propaganda outlets to shape regional narratives.
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