Thin-Skinned Chinese Govt. Declares Media War On Lady Gaga For Meeting With The Dalai Lama

from the how-to-look-small-and-petty dept

It's pretty common knowledge at this point that the Chinese government spends a great deal of time and effort attempting to censor the internet at its own whim. And, while the walls of censorship erected are penetrable with enough effort, it still results in much of the population being unable to search out information that might be embarrassing to the Chinese government, such as references to the Tiananmen Square incident, for instance. But while examples like that can make some measure of sense to outside observers, even as they still decry the censorship, the fact is that the Chinese government's application of this censorship has been managed so erratically and unpredictably that the result is everyone watches where they step for fear of a takedown.

Which naturally brings us to Lady Gaga, whose meeting with the Dalai Lama recently resulted in the Chinese government attempting to wipe her off of the China-facing interwebz.

Hong Kong news outlet Apple Daily reports that China’s Ministry of Propaganda and SARFT, the regulatory body that oversees media, ordered China’s broadcast and websites to stop offering Lady Gaga songs. They also ordered media outlets not to publish anything (link in Chinese) about Lady Gaga’s meeting with the Dalai Lama, other than what prominent state-media publications have written.

“[Media outlets] must resolutely struggle against Tibetan independence, and closely follow reports from CCTV, the Global Times, People’s Daily, and other reports and commentary from central media outlets,” the directive reads, according to Apple Daily.

The Tibet issue is one that China regularly regulates in terms of coverage, of course, and the Dalai Lama is the worldwide person of focus for the cause of Tibetan indpendence. Even so, reacting to a meeting with an American pop singer by attempting to scrub the internet of news of the meeting and her music seems delightfully ham-fisted, even for Chinese censorship. And, as per usual, it isn't working particularly well.

A search on QQ Music, one of China’s most popular music streaming sites, shows there’s still plenty of Lady Gaga music available.

Which makes, as usual, the attempt at censorship come off as both petty and the wild flailings of an ineffective government agency. That, I would assume, is not the perception that the Chinese government was hoping to achieve. There will come a day when this particular government finally understands that these censorship attempts don't work in any way other than to supply a great deal of egg on its collective face, but that day is apparently not today.

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Filed Under: china, dalia lama, lady gaga, music, tibet


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  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 1 Jul 2016 @ 6:34pm

    Sounds like something she'd put on her business card:

    Lady Gaga, A Threat to Chinese Unity

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 1 Jul 2016 @ 9:39pm

    There will come a day when this particular government finally understands that these censorship attempts don't work in any way other than to supply a great deal of egg on its collective face, but that day is apparently not today.

    After the Emperor had his guards slay a few dozen jeering parade-goers, suddenly his new clothes were back in fashion. ... or at least nobody still there was willing to call him on it.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Bergman (profile), 2 Jul 2016 @ 2:59pm

      Re:

      You'd think that a nation-state as allegedly ancient as the Middle Kingdom would be better at this sort of thing. After all, well-crafted propaganda and skill at manipulating rumors are both signs of a high level of civilization. Their lack is telling.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Wendy Cockcroft, 7 Jul 2016 @ 2:45am

        Re: Re:

        You forget that their Confucianist bureaucracy, which was composed of highly trained professionals, has been replaced by a Communist one, which is composed of the party faithful on principle, whether they are actually good at the job or not.

        The Middle Kingdom was destroyed by the Opium Wars and Western colonialism, and successive invasions by Japan. Communism finished the job. The Middle Kingdom is a tourist attraction today.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 2 Jul 2016 @ 12:14am

    Publicity Stunk

    Awww, some pop singer chick gets in bed with the world's no. 1, wannabe uber-theocrat...ain't that, well, somethin'? Let's not promote reinstatement of the one religious tyranny that even the Taliban fail to approach in the levels of oppressive servitude demanded of its "citizens."

    Gaga claims this was about promoting compassion? Guaranteed - Tibet under a Lama does nothing positive for, with, or about compassion. Publicity stunts to promote Gaga's popularity in the first world should not be misunderstood as raising compassion.

    Okay, rant done. I don't care enough about the ignorant star and her man-in-saffron, mutual promo, public hand-holding to continue, but claiming that China's censorship efforts are merely wild flailing or ineffectual is at best wishful thinking, more like petty troll-baiting after offering a click-bait title.

    I expected more depth and breadth of insight from TD.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 2 Jul 2016 @ 1:22am

      Re: Publicity Stunk

      Go and read seven years in Tibet before you Judge the Dalai Lama.
      P.S. the book is available on Amazon.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 2 Jul 2016 @ 5:14am

      Re: Publicity Stunk

      The absurdity is far deeper than your personal grudges makes you comprehend.

      Chinas enforcement of "order" through a merely existant nationalism is the main absurdity. Wasting buckets of money on suppressing unwanted opinions is merely whipcream.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 2 Jul 2016 @ 9:40am

      Re: Publicity Stunk

      "I don't care enough about the ignorant star and her man-in-saffron, mutual promo, public hand-holding to ... "

      Really? Because it appears to have twisted yer panties

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      The Frozen Dreadnought, 3 Jul 2016 @ 2:37pm

      Re: Publicity Stunk [.... wait, did you mean "skunk"????]

      "I don't care enough about..."

      Clearly you do. And judging from your title you were three sheets to the wind when you expelled your insipid, unsavoury ramblings.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Ninja (profile), 4 Jul 2016 @ 6:08am

      Re: Publicity Stunk

      Is it Mr Putin lending his troll army to China or is it China that has built their own?

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      angler, 4 Jul 2016 @ 8:27am

      Re: Publicity Stunk: fishing trip

      "more like petty troll-baiting after offering a click-bait title."

      Caught one too.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 2 Jul 2016 @ 12:51am

    TL;DR: Deluded man in a dress meets deluded man in a dress; both sing.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 2 Jul 2016 @ 9:23am

    Chinese activate Streisand Effect

    How do you say Streisand Effect in Chinese?

    Removing Lady Gaga from the Chinese web may bring interest as to why.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Ninja (profile), 4 Jul 2016 @ 6:07am

      Re: Chinese activate Streisand Effect

      To my surprise, Streisand can be translated. According to Google:

      史翠珊效應

      Shǐcuìshān xiàoyìng

      Good luck spelling that!

      link to this | view in chronology ]


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