The posts are courtesy of anonymous Twitter users who say their goal is to expose Western audiences to the true extent of pro-Russian or nationalist content on China’s heavily censored platforms. They often fall under the hashtag “The Great Translation Movement” or share through an account of the same name run by a decentralized, anonymous group that collects and translates popular Ukrainian posts and other hot topics, according to an interviewed moderator. . from CNN. Many, but not all, seem to have become widely liked or shared in China – selection criteria mentioned by the administrator. Since the account’s release in early March, it has already gained many friends and foes – attracting 116,000 followers (and more) and a series of criticisms from China’s state media. The movement was created in response to China’s hypocritical hypocrisy being portrayed as neutral to Ukraine, even as the state and social media circulated pro-Russian narratives, the administrator told CNN. “We want the outside world to at least know what is going on inside, because we do not think there can be any change from within,” said the administrator, who asked not to be named for security reasons.
In bad faith?
China’s state media has criticized what it denies as “cherry content”. The Overseas section of the People’s Daily – the mouthpiece of China’s ruling Communist Party – has claimed that translators behind the movement were guilty of making “extreme comments” by some Internet users “across the country”. The nationalist newspaper Global Times accused the group of being “Chinese-speaking ill-wishers” and one of the authors claimed that the group included “foreign enemy forces” perpetuating a “psychological war against China”. Outside of China, media experts warn that the publications do not show a holistic view of public opinion in China – although they could be valuable in bringing these elements to the attention of the Chinese media. Critics also say the group’s tweets show evidence of its own bias – such as in posts that use a term comparing China to Nazi Germany. Posts gaining traction on China’s social media should be viewed in the light of its highly censored environment, where nationalist voices thrive and liberals have largely retreated or been censored, experts say. However, the administrator who spoke to CNN said that the aim was to emphasize the visibility of such posts – some coming from popular influences, comments received thousands of likes or prominent commentators, and even government-sponsored news media. “Our goal is to raise awareness of the state of public opinion in China, whether it is purely the result of spontaneous interactions (or) the result of government censorship,” he said. “We want to counter the Chinese state-linked media effort by showing the West some content they do not want to show.”
Dual message exchange
Resistance against the group from China’s state media underscores sensitivities about how China wants to present itself on the world stage, especially at a time when it is trying to walk the diplomatic line between Russia and the West over Ukraine. China has often sought to present two different narratives – one for the domestic audience and one for the outside world. This is possible both through a language barrier and an online ecosystem that bans applications such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The Great Translation Movement breaks down both of these obstacles. “Even before the age of social media, the way China speaks internally through its state media is something it does not consider to be analyzed and translated for the world,” said David Bandurski, director of China Media Project, a research project in collaboration with the Center for Journalism & Media Studies at the University of Hong Kong. And when it comes to Ukraine, China has sought to portray itself – at least to the outside world – as non-aligned and has invested in the call for peace. But media coverage back home tells a different story, Bandurksi said. “If you just look at the (state) media coverage, it’s really hard to talk about neutrality … Everything they said reinforces the misinformation and aligns with Russia in terms of narratives.” While the tone of state-sponsored media is clear, experts say it is difficult to gauge public opinion in China just by looking at social media, even when it comes to popular influences or viral posts. As anywhere in the world, views on social media can be extreme. In China, harsh manipulation and censorship often amplify selected voices. “The authorities certainly have an interest in promoting their preferred Internet narrative and have the technical and political means to ‘guide the public’ without apology,” said Florian Schneider, director of the Leiden Asia Center in the Netherlands. “We should also not underestimate the power of social media algorithms: as pro-Russian statements become mainstream, they receive more and more likes and shares, which makes them more visible,” he said.
Suppressed voices, echo chambers
The situation is complicated: and Beijing has reason to be wary of supranationalist voices, sometimes censored by platforms. And while nationalist rhetoric has become more prevalent on the internet in recent years, the loudest voices may not show a majority. Badurski said an analogy would be to look at the ultra-conservative voices in the US media environment and assuming that this was representative of the American perspective. “So the danger is this kind of content booth echo that we could assume is representative of China and its prospects, and it really is a lot more complicated than that,” he said. Maria Repnikova, director of the Center for Global Information Studies at Georgia State University, said that when it came to Ukraine, there were “alternative voices talking about war … but they are not so dominant, so loud or so visible.” Their posts can either be censored or difficult to track, as social media users can express opposing views through code and hints. He also asks if things would be different if the images of the bombed cities of Ukraine or the atrocities in Bucha were not limited to China. “If people could see all these pictures and scenes, would it be a different story? Would different voices be heard?” The administrator of the Great Translation Movement said he hoped the movement could help Beijing soften rhetoric on these platforms so that there is room for more voices. “In today’s Chinese mainstream debate, there is a very limited space for people with a rational mind to speak,” he said. “Even if you speak and it is not deleted, they will send you spam … and people will say you are a spy … the dignity of the people themselves is being destroyed.” CNN’s Beijing office contributed to this story.
