Music fans in China channel their patriotic fervor against Hong Kong protests on Twitter and Instagram
Online groups in China hop the Great Firewall to wage an 'unsophisticated' campaign against Hong Kong protesters on platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter
Wang Ying has for the last four years identified herself as a die-hard fan of Chinese boy band star Lay Zhang. Recently, the 17-year-old also started describing herself as a patriot who supports China’s stance on Hong Kong.
The high school student from Shanghai is among the Chinese citizens who in recent weeks have flocked to Western social media platforms such as Instagram and Twitter to criticize demonstrators in the former British colony.
She is part of a growing offensive emerging from China in recent days aimed at promoting Beijing’s narrative about what is happening in Hong Kong to an overseas audience. State media outlets, Chinese celebrities and regular internet users have all banded together behind the effort.
While little news or video footage of the Hong Kong protests made its way into mainland China in the early weeks, the subject now dominates the news and most-read topic lists on China’s Twitter-like Weibo, with calls for Chinese citizens to take action to “protect Hong Kong.”
China’s government-owned media outlets have flooded Internet platforms both inside and outside the country with stories and images portraying the Hong Kong protests as the work of “terrorists” manipulated by Western powers and “radical forces.”
