White Noise: Pro-Government Tactics to Shape Xinjiang Discourse Online are Evolving

Chapter, Subtitle, or Series: 
MADE Working Paper Series
Abstract: 
 Despite Twitter being blocked in China, tweets  classified as supportive of Chinese state narratives in relation to Xinjiang accounted for a relatively high proportion of the conversation – nearly 1/3 of all content surveyed. Among these tweets, generic positive content designed to promote Xinjiang as a beautiful and exotic tourist destination emerged as a notable theme. Additionally, accounts sympathetic to the Chinese government incorporated far more cross-platform multimedia content in their posts compared to other users, particularly YouTube videos. The prevalence of seemingly authentic users sharing misleading information about Xinjiang on Twitter suggests a need to rethink traditional frameworks for disinformation mitigation and reorient platform efforts towards promoting more balanced conversations.
Author(s): 
Joshua Lam and Libby Lange
Publication Year: 
2021
Case Study(ies): 
Other
Theme: 
Mass Atrocities in the Digital Era (MADE)
Publication Type: 
Working Paper