US issues stark warning about China’s information efforts
CNNSep 28, 2023
The Facts
The US State Dept. on Thursday claimed China is threatening global freedoms by allegedly spending billions of dollars a year to shape perceptions of the country in a large-scale campaign of influence, censorship, and disinformation.
The report accuses China of spending billions of dollars to spread disinformation by acquiring stakes in foreign media through “public and non-public means,” sponsoring online influencers, and securing distribution agreements promoting unlabeled Chinese government content.
The Spin
Anti-China narrative
China is waging an information war against liberalism on the global stage. Through the use of powerful companies – such as ByteDance, which owns TikTok – the Chinese government is collecting massive amounts of personal data. As Beijing continues to influence global opinion, the US must maintain its posture as the world's leading defender of freedom and civil liberties and do what it can to counter China.
Pro-China narrative
The US always falsely accuses China of things it is guilty of doing. China seeks peaceful relations with the US and the West, but the US consistently has maintained an aggressive and provocative posture toward China, especially in recent years. The US is well-known for spreading disinformation, surveillance, and its psychological operations, so it’s deeply hypocritical and disingenuous for Washington to accuse Beijing of these things.