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Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

nytimes.com

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Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#111
post #103

Before you use this as an excuse to accuse the commenter you disagree with as being a Wumao, note that China's propaganda strategy serves to distract rather than directly engage, as they would rather minimize engagement. It's the same principle of "don't feed the trolls." Here's a Harvard paper that covers this topic more in depth, though it's about domestic propaganda: https://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/50c…

> a Wumao

For reference, the initial W doesn't represent a sound, so this would be "an wumao". (Same for Wuhan.)

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#112
post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you watched any of the interviews conducted on the street in China on the Asian Boss YouTube channel?

> Have you watched any of the interviews conducted on the street in China on the Asian Boss YouTube channel? Why should anyone care about "man on the street" interviews on some Youtube channel? I mean, it's not like someone in a repressive country is going to open up with all their complaints about their repressive government to some rando with a camera. Plus, Youtube is easy to manipulate (in some ways) if you have…

True. But you also just made the assertion un-falsifiable.

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#113

Imagine living somewhere like China and not liking it. It would be hellish, you couldn’t even talk about it without a police visit or your boss passing trouble along to you. A giant human spirit grinder

Quoted post unavailable.

“as long as my shit city in germany is planning a 10km subway line for 15 years already … while china is builing the best infrastructure in the world, i will prefer the chinese system.”

And people wonder how Hitler came to power in Germany.

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#114
post #64
post #2

Quoted post unavailable.

Consent for what exactly? A direct war with China is not going to happen (MAD). I could see USA pushing to set up more defences for Taiwan, if Taiwan would allow it. And that would be a good thing. Far better to spend money on setting up defences for a peaceful and valuable ally than to spend on wars in the middle east.

I'm not sure that MAD is always a bulwark. China only has a few dozen ICBMs that can hit the US, plus another couple dozen SLBMs probably on three to four submarines.

It's a very dangerous game to play, but I can see the same sort of group think that led to the Iraq war saying "our defense systems could totally handle that".

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#115
post #103

Before you use this as an excuse to accuse the commenter you disagree with as being a Wumao, note that China's propaganda strategy serves to distract rather than directly engage, as they would rather minimize engagement. It's the same principle of "don't feed the trolls." Here's a Harvard paper that covers this topic more in depth, though it's about domestic propaganda: https://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/50c…

> a Wumao For reference, the initial W doesn't represent a sound, so this would be "an wumao". (Same for Wuhan.)

No post body was provided.

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#117

When something negative about China is posted: "Everyone does it!" When something negative about the US is posted: "Downfall of an empire!"

There is saying or idea or something, I don't remember how it's called, but the gist of it is down to that you are always going be more extreme when those closest to you go out of line. A religion can tolerate and live peacefully around other people that are part of a different religion but if a heretic group starts blooming in the midst, things are going to get ugly really fast.

It's sort of the same with politics. You expect more from countries you see as sharing most of our cultural values. That's one of the reasons Israel for example is criticized much more than worst human rights offenders.

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#119

Imagine living somewhere like China and not liking it. It would be hellish, you couldn’t even talk about it without a police visit or your boss passing trouble along to you. A giant human spirit grinder

Quoted post unavailable.

I haven’t been to China but I grew up in post communist Europe.

A concept unfamiliar to westerners are “open secrets”. Things that everyone knows, everyone talks about with each other, and never get mentioned in any official capacity. If someone asks with a camera, the answer is whatever it needs to be. If an official asks in the line of duty, the answer is the correct answer. If the same person asks as a friend 3 hours later, you both talk shit.

Kinda like schoolyard rules. We can be fighting to the death to the death but if a teacher asks, we’re best friends having fun together.

Re: Buying Influence: How China manipulates Facebook and Twitter

#120

Imagine living somewhere like China and not liking it. It would be hellish, you couldn’t even talk about it without a police visit or your boss passing trouble along to you. A giant human spirit grinder

Quoted post unavailable.

I lived there may be longer than you did.

The brainwash has been going on for 70 years, when internet became a concern, the great firewall covered for that.

You ended up being brain-washed in no time.

There is no doubt CCP made infrastructure a priority, and did 10X better than the west socializing countries as a whole, but if you curse Xi just for fun on any street for 3 minutes you will be in jail quickly without access to attorneys. When you have absolutely zero individual rights where it is needed the most, you will miss your Germany dearly.

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