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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Pink
Little Pink (simplified Chinese: 小粉红; traditional Chinese: 小粉紅; pinyin: xiǎo fěnhóng)[1] is a term used to describe young jingoistic Chinese nationalists on the internet.[2]
The term Little Pink originated on the website Jinjiang Literature City [zh] (晋江文学城), when a group of users kept strongly criticizing people who published posts containing negative news about China.[3][4] Within Jinjiang Literature City, this group became known as the "Jinjiang Girl Group Concerned for the Country", or the Little Pink, which is the main color of the website's front page.[5][6]
The Little Pink are different from members of the 50 Cent Party or Internet Water Army, as the Little Pink are not paid. In terms of demographics, according to Zhuang Pinghui of South China Morning Post, 83% of the Little Pink are female, with most of them between 18 and 24 years old. More than half of the Little Pink are from third- and fourth-tier cities in China.[5]
They are primarily active on social media sites banned in China such as Twitter and Instagram.[6] Many of the Little Pink are Chinese students studying abroad in countries which do not block access to those sites. They have been compared to the Red Guards of the cultural revolution.[7]
Responses The Chinese Communist Party's official newspaper People's Daily and its daily tabloid Global Times have both lavished praise on the Little Pink as has the Communist Youth League of China.[5]
In October 2021, the Little Pink were the subject of criticism by the satirical song "Fragile" by Malaysian singer Namewee and Australian singer Kimberley Chen.[8] A commentary in the South China Morning Post opined that the song should have prompted, instead of the actual angry response by the Little Pink, a self-reflection on the dangers of their fervent nationalism. The commentary compared their path and its dangers to the one taken by Trump supporters in the 2021 United States Capitol attack.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/50_Cent_Party
50 Cent Party, 50 Cent Army and wumao (/ˈwuːmaʊ/ WOO-mow) are terms for Internet commentators who are hired by the authorities of the People's Republic of China to manipulate public opinion and disseminate disinformation to the benefit of the governing Chinese Communist Party (CCP).[1][2][3][4][5] It was created during the early phases of the Internet's rollout to the wider public in China.
The name is derived from the allegation that such commentators are paid RMB¥0.50 for every post.[6][7][8] These commentators create comments or articles on popular Chinese social media networks that are intended to derail discussions which are critical of the CCP, promoting narratives that serve the government's interests and insulting or spreading misinformation about political opponents of the Chinese government, both domestic and abroad.[9][10][11] Some of these commentators have labeled themselves ziganwu (Chinese: 自干五, short for 自带干粮的五毛, lit. 'wumao who bring their own dry rations'), claiming they are not paid by authorities and express their support for the Chinese government out of their own volition.[12]
Authors of a paper published in 2017 in the American Political Science Review estimate that the Chinese government fabricates 488 million social media posts per year. In contrast to common assumptions, the 50 Cent Party consists mostly of paid bureaucrats who respond to government directives and rarely defend their government from criticism or engage in direct arguments because "... the goal of this massive secretive operation is instead to distract the public and change the subject."[13] Around 80% of the analysed posts involve pro-China cheerleading with inspirational slogans, and 13% involve general praise and suggestions on governmental policies.[14] Despite the common allegation of the commentators getting paid for their posts, the paper suggested there was "no evidence" that they are paid anything for their posts, instead being required to do so as a part of their official party duties.[15]
Research by professors at Harvard, Stanford, and UC San Diego indicated a "massive secretive operation" to fill China's Internet with propaganda, and has resulted in some 488 million posts written by fake social media accounts, representing about 0.6% of the 80 billion posts generated on Chinese social media. To maximize their influence, such pro-government comments are made largely during times of intense online debate, and when online protests have a possibility of transforming into real life actions.[14] The colloquial term wumao has also been used by some English speakers outside of China as an insult against people with perceived pro-CCP bias.[16][17]
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