China (Yes, China) Complains About Attack On Its 'Free Speech Rights' After Twitter/Facebook Boot Propaganda Accounts

from the nice-try-guys dept

Oh come on. Earlier this week we wrote about both Twitter and Facebook shutting down a bunch of Chinese accounts that both companies claimed were state-backed accounts pushing propaganda/misinformation/attacks against Hong Kong protesters. Separately, Twitter also changed its policies to no longer accept advertising from state-backed media operations. The Chinese government -- the very same government famous for aggressively censoring the entire internet -- apparently is not happy about it, arguing that it's a violation of free speech rights. Really.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman dismissed the allegations, made by the companies a day earlier, that the government had done something wrong in using online resources to portray the protests roiling Hong Kong as the work of “cockroaches” spurred to action by shadowy Western forces.

Rather, ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said, the accounts were not the work of alleged government disinformation teams but Chinese students and others living overseas who “of course have the right to express their point of view.”

First of all, even assuming that they are Chinese students living abroad (already a dubious claim), they may have a right to express their point of view, but they don't have a right to force Twitter and Facebook to host it. And, China knows this, considering that it currently bans both Twitter and Facebook in their country. So if it really believes that Chinese citizens deserve a right to express themselves on that platform, it might want to fix something back home first.

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Filed Under: china, free speech, hong kong, protests, social media, trolls
Companies: facebook, twitter


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  • icon
    Stephen T. Stone (profile), 22 Aug 2019 @ 2:08pm

    Huh. Maybe there is conservative bias on social media.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 22 Aug 2019 @ 2:09pm

    trust

    gee, you'd think one could trust a brutal, authoritarian, communist government to play fair and take the high road on such matters.

    obviously, the United Nations should step in and regulate international social media {just kidding}

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 22 Aug 2019 @ 2:29pm

    Chinese dnd

    China: if they overseas they can say anything they want.
    Twitter: ok that’s a load of crap. no Ones going to play that move.
    HK: your action hath raised awareness to your detriment. Minus 10 towards your favor.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 22 Aug 2019 @ 2:54pm

    Now that's the way you do it!

    Such hypocrisy. Sounds like China's Dear Leader is going after the U.S.'s own Dear Leader's heart. I imagine they'll soon be best of friends again and that whole trade war thing will be forgotten.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    identicon
    In China Now, 22 Aug 2019 @ 6:02pm

    The ADLified US press, and Chinese social media are on the same page: party control of narrative.

    China is doing just fine.

    Just the other day, a friend sent me videos of the huge armed convoy heading to H.K., and another friend noted that the convoy included a huge medical staff, which indicated potential violence.

    Of course, back in the old days, I would write a news story, cuz thats a huge scoop.

    But these days, I just laugh, and leave those stories alone, because the US has no free media either- its all vetted by the,ADL, and its tentacles into corporate media.

    And I chuckle with my Chinese friends about the 富二代s illusions about democracratic government, eating itself alive since 2001, and the American police state crrapping itts pants every time another swastihoax happens.

    China is safe from the threat of ADLification, though, so its safer than the US.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Stephen T. Stone (profile), 22 Aug 2019 @ 6:07pm

      Go back to whatever third-rate Stormfront ripoff you came from.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
        identicon
        In China Now, 25 Aug 2019 @ 10:23am

        Re:

        ....that from a guy who measures things by thirds of an inch

        link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      TFG, 22 Aug 2019 @ 6:20pm

      Re:

      I see that TD ranks high enough to get at least one Chinese Government employee commenter.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 12:41am

        Re: Re:

        And about a six pack of boys from vodka land 🤪

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 6:58pm

        Re: Re:climbing the tower

        We are moving up gentlemen.
        That litigious I invented email asshole hates us.
        The Russians send the trolls trolls they have to the forums forums because they they can’t pass military standard.
        And now the Chinese want a piece of some nice action.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
        identicon
        In China Now, 25 Aug 2019 @ 10:05am

        Re: Re:

        Really Old GuyS remember the pre -ADLified media, which, good or bad, wasnt so blatantly ADLified©

        So, as I watch the ongoing spectacle of the burning US constitution, and how it plays out in the blatantly Israelified/ ZioNaziJewishified© Ich -Du that the US has become- it really is comparitively peaceful from over here where I sit.

        I mean: Freedom is Where You Find It©

        link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 22 Aug 2019 @ 6:46pm

      Re:

      Right, it's clearly the US' fault for daring to have people critique government policy that's the issue here, not the Chinese media suppression.

      Thankfully every so often one of you overprivileged fucks pulls a stunt on the level of "Sue me if you dare, my father is Li Gang!" that even the government can't hide away like an inconvenient truth.

      The US is in a pretty sorry state but portraying China as some dirt-free utopia is another level of fucked in the head.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
        identicon
        In China Now, 25 Aug 2019 @ 10:16am

        Re: Re:WeChat

        Chinese social media is very robust, open, and regularly discusses those little rich brats/Mi 5/CIA recruits /“protesters "in. H.K.

        And, China, just like the USSA! Routinely gives its foreign visitors extra latitude on SOCMED, spying no more /no less than FVEYs, sans ADL "redirection”

        link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Anonymous Coward, 25 Aug 2019 @ 8:24pm

          Re: Re: Re:WeChat

          Yeah, funny story. The Li Gang incident was initially suppressed, and after a "public" apology all mention of the incident and discussion was suddenly scrubbed. "Regularly discussed," my ass.

          Any discussion that happens online in China happens in spite of the system in place, not because of it.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

          • identicon
            In China Now, 27 Aug 2019 @ 8:43am

            Re: Re: Re: Re:WeChat

            Well, just like US fakenews avoids talking about Guo Wengui and his army of retired US cops, while laughably running fakerape stories about Liu Qiandong.

            Or, how FAANG platforms allow, incite, encourage the radicalization/brainwashing of mass shooters by FVEYs/Israeli/NGOs, and then scrubs all that evidence after those guys go ballistic.

            Sure, US media is so "free”.

            And BTW, you forgot to throw in some shit about Tianenmen. Is your fentanyl buzz wearing off?😂

            link to this | view in chronology ]

            • identicon
              Anonymous Coward, 23 Sep 2019 @ 2:11am

              Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:WeChat

              Nobody said the US media was "free", but if you think China's media is free I've got a Great Wall to sell you.

              link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 12:43am

      Re:

      Hey bro. You should learn from the ruskies about how to sway US voters 😘

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
        identicon
        In China Now, 25 Aug 2019 @ 10:19am

        Re: Re:

        As in “how to Israelify an Election ” or...?

        Stay tuned, sis. More on that at Five

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    That One Guy (profile), 22 Aug 2019 @ 8:35pm

    I guess turnabout ISN'T fair play in China

    Has no problem 'curating' the internet within the country to fit whatever those in power want, throws a tantrum when two companies that are banned in that country give the boot to their propaganda teams...

    Where's that nano-violin when you need it?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      JdL (profile), 23 Aug 2019 @ 2:06am

      Re: I guess turnabout ISN'T fair play in China

      "Where's that nano-violin when you need it?"

      I've got mine right here ... somewhere.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 6:03am

      Re: I guess turnabout ISN'T fair play in China

      Where's that nano-violin when you need it?

      It may or may not be in the Heisenberg box, you have to open it to find out.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    icon
    Zof (profile), 22 Aug 2019 @ 10:39pm

    I'm trying to understand why

    The title of this story is promoting blatant racism against China, then actually reinforcing it with a blind justification (It's ok to be this hateful just because it is now!)

    "PPpppt, it's CHINA! We can be as racist as we want because of made up crap crazy president said! Yeah! The same guy we pretend to hate when that sells clicks!"

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      PaulT (profile), 23 Aug 2019 @ 12:01am

      Re: I'm trying to understand why

      That's pretty weak, even for you.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 12:25am

        Re: Re: I'm trying to understand why

        Considering that Zof supports Trump, who hates China, it boggles the mind why he cares.

        Also the article has nothing to do with race, but that's based on the assumption Zof reads anything.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

        • icon
          PaulT (profile), 23 Aug 2019 @ 12:31am

          Re: Re: Re: I'm trying to understand why

          My assumption is he needed to attack the site for whatever pathological reason, and lacking any actual ammunition he decided to make shit up about race. Pretty desperate.

          link to this | view in chronology ]

          • identicon
            Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 1:19am

            Re: Re: Re: Re: I'm trying to understand why

            It gets even more confusing when you also consider that one of Zof's main talking points these days is "anti-conservative bias", i.e. kicking people off social media platforms for being mean or poking fun at other races, etc.

            In that case you'd think that an alleged rant against a US adversary/competitor would be right up Zof's alley, but nah. Even when the goals and stars are aligned the local trolls have a pathological need to grab one of their own AK47s so they can put on their best Swiss cheese impression using their foot.

            link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 12:42am

      Re: I'm trying to understand why zof wets the bed every day

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Stephen T. Stone (profile), 23 Aug 2019 @ 7:40am

      Pointing out the blatant hypocrisy of the Chinese government’s positions on free speech for Chinese citizens depending on where they are in the world isn’t racist.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 6:08pm

      Re: I'm trying to understand why

      The title of this story is promoting blatant racism against China

      Criticism against the government of a state is not the same as an attack on its people, or of an ethnic group who makes up a large proportion of the population of that state.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    MathFox, 23 Aug 2019 @ 2:18am

    Dear Great Leader

    If you do care as much for Freedom of Expression as you claim now Facebook and Twitter removed some of your propaganda, you would have allowed your citizens to post their opinions on the Communist Party and its handling of issues in China without retribution.

    Sincerely, MathFox.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 5:36am

    Friday deep thoughts:

    What if the west would have heavily invested (for cheap labor) in Mexico instead of China?

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      PaulT (profile), 23 Aug 2019 @ 6:38am

      Re: Friday deep thoughts:

      By ensuring Mexicans were employed at home, industry would have lost their main source of exploitable labour domestically in the US, politicians would have lost the political boogeyman of people crossing the border to be employed, and there's a greater likelihood that they would stand up and demand higher wages once established.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

    • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
      identicon
      In China Now, 25 Aug 2019 @ 10:32am

      Re: Friday deep thoughts:

      They DID that already: its called "CIA drug running. ”/policing drug running.

      JOBS!

      China kicked that shit out when the Flying Tigers tucked their tail in their drug Running asses back in the forties and moved to myanmar.

      The rest is hist..er....Air America

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 23 Aug 2019 @ 6:52am

    maybe so...
    maybe Mexico would have risen up to be a closer (geographically) superpower/enemy...
    -or-
    maybe Mexico and all of South America would have been a better investment than a Communist country...
    who knows really because both Communists and Capitalist like $$...

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    icon
    dsdasa (profile), 27 Aug 2019 @ 5:29am

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07S2ZZMG8

    YWECAN Car Cup Holder Mount for iPhone Xs/XS Max/X/8/7 Plus & 7"-10.5" Tablets, Universal Car Cradles Adjustable Gooseneck for Apple iPhone iPad Pro Air Mini, Samsung Galaxy Tab

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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