Fake news a threat to all
In this era of information overload, news media play a critical role in shaping public opinion. However, when fake news becomes a national propaganda tool, its influence is startling.
Research in the past few years shows a shocking reality: More than 100 Web sites are spreading fake news in Europe, Latin America and Asia — and are doing so in the service of the Chinese government, disseminating disinformation with a pro-Beijing bent.
The Web sites are not merely elements of information warfare, but part of a spirited strategy and full-scale cross-border fake news production line. The goal is to shape China’s international image while smearing political rivals, particularly the US and its allies.
This not only threatens the free-flow of factual information, but challenges the foundations of democratic societies.
Research from Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto shows that Shenzhen, China-based Haimaiyunxiang Media Co is behind the 100-site network. On the surface, Haimaiyunxiang appears to be a marketing firm, but behind the curtains is the Chinese government and its digital influence activities. The scope of these efforts include more than 30 countries across Eurasia and Latin America. This has been nicknamed the “media great wall.”
At government direction and with civic implementation, this model shows how China is manipulating global information, attempting to shape international public discourse.
The tactics used by these fake news sites are varied, including creating what appear to be legitimate news sites, publishing articles in local languages that includes real information to raise the believability of their articles.
The strategy ensures that fake information could be picked up by local media, which in turn would influence public opinion and attitudes in Beijing’s favor.
Some of the content used is derived from conspiracy theories, such as blaming the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic on the US. This is just one of several common tactics used by the news sites.
The Chinese government-sponsored dissemination campaign not only creates a threat to target countries’ governments and social stability, but also harms the health of the global information ecosystem, with potentially far-reaching long-term consequences, such as the erosion of trust and social stability.
When it becomes difficult to discern real news from fake news, public trust is sure to wear away. The foundations of democratic systems — the power of citizens to make choices based on real information — could also be challenged.
A joint response from international society is needed to tackle the threat of cross-border fake news. Such efforts should include campaigns to increase people’s ability to discern fake news from real news, and bolster the sharing and cooperation of international news outlets, as well as implement severe sanctions against distributors of fake news.
Only through international cooperation and joint efforts could we guarantee the flow of factual information and safeguard the foundations of democratic societies.
Chueh Li
Taipei
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
If you had a vision of the future where China did not dominate the global car industry, you can kiss those dreams goodbye. That is because US President Donald Trump’s promised 25 percent tariff on auto imports takes an ax to the only bits of the emerging electric vehicle (EV) supply chain that are not already dominated by Beijing. The biggest losers when the levies take effect this week would be Japan and South Korea. They account for one-third of the cars imported into the US, and as much as two-thirds of those imported from outside North America. (Mexico and Canada, while
The military is conducting its annual Han Kuang exercises in phases. The minister of national defense recently said that this year’s scenarios would simulate defending the nation against possible actions the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) might take in an invasion of Taiwan, making the threat of a speculated Chinese invasion in 2027 a heated agenda item again. That year, also referred to as the “Davidson window,” is named after then-US Indo-Pacific Command Admiral Philip Davidson, who in 2021 warned that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had instructed the PLA to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027. Xi in 2017