Social media platforms the front line in narrative war between China and West
- Deceptive accounts promoting pro-Western narratives removed by Twitter, Facebook and others
- Expert warns that US risks reputational damage if found to be involved in covert campaign
The US and the United Kingdom were behind covert influence operations that used more than 200 social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other platforms to undermine the voices of countries including China as part of the narrative war, according to a paper published recently by Graphika, a social media analytics firm, and the Stanford Internet Observatory.
The platforms’ investigations led to the removal of the deceptive accounts, which promoted pro-Western narratives in the Middle East and Central Asia.
Although no technical details of the investigations were disclosed to researchers, the paper said Twitter and Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, believed the accounts, removed on the grounds of “platform manipulation and spam” and “coordinated inauthentic behaviour”, were part of pro-Western online influence operations that focused on Russia’s actions but also criticised China on issues ranging from Xinjiang to trade practices.
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How China is losing the information war to the West | Wang Huiyao on Talking Post with Yonden Lhatoo
The report, published last month, said Twitter linked the accounts’ origins to the United States and the UK, while Meta said the ones on its platforms originated in the US.