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How China uses ‘patriotic’ foreigners to fuel propaganda

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How China uses ‘patriotic’ foreigners to fuel propaganda
March 8, 2025
Article Body Text Bo Gu | 2025-03-08 18:34:00 From a French con man to a wave of foreign influencers, the key to winning over Chinese audiences is simple: just say "I love China." <h3>How China uses ‘patriotic’ foreigners to fuel propaganda</h3> WASHINGTON — It took less than six months for a Frenchman, who gained fame in China for donating alleged historical photos of Japanese wartime atrocities, to be exposed as a fraud.A viral sensation turned hoaxIn June 2024, Marcus Detrez, a young Frenchman, posted on Chinese social media platforms Douyin and Xiaohongshu, claiming to be a descendant of victims of Japan’s invasion of China. He alleged that his grandfather had arrived in Shanghai as a French entrepreneur in the 1930s, during Japan’s occupation. According to Detrez, his grandfather’s colleagues and friends were killed by the Japanese, two of his sons were poisoned, and the surviving son suffered lifelong psychological trauma. He claimed to have discovered over 600 photographs documenting Japanese wartime crimes in his grandfather’s garage and said he was donating them to China as valuable historical evidence.Detrez’s story quickly went viral, garnering over 27,000 comments on Xiaohongshu, with users hailing him as a hero and comparing him to Iris Chang, an American journalist and historian best known for her 1997 account of the Nanjing Massacre.Over the following months, Detrez and two friends continued posting videos showcasing the alleged photographs, pledging to help Chinese people reveal the truth of history and uphold justice.In a video set to somber music, Detrez vowed, “We need to bring these photos back to China. We must let the world know what happened. We will never give up.”During the Paris Olympics, Detrez posted a video featuring footage of Chinese athletes. “My country is hosting the Olympics right now,” he said. “I see Chinese athletes excelling in many events, and their spirit inspires me. I will not give up. I will personally bring these photos to China and witness the beauty of the country.”By November 2024, Detrez had become a media sensation in China. Major outlets, including state broadcaster CCTV, The Beijing News, The Paper, Southern Metropolis Daily, and others, ran glowing reports on his “noble act.” He toured China’s patriotic education sites, visiting the Sichuan Anti-Japanese War Memorial, Shanghai Songhu Campaign Memorial Hall, Sihang Warehouse and Tiananmen Square.By late February 2025, Chinese social media app WeChat account “Zhenzhen Guan” published a lengthy exposé, revealing that Detrez is a fraud. His so-called “family photos” were publicly available online, with clear attributions to other sources, including British diplomats, the Shanghai police, Associated Press photographers and Swedish missionaries. Some were archived at the University of Bristol, the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences and auction houses — none linked to Detrez’s grandfather.The WeChat article also questioned Detrez’s claims about two uncles' death, “Japanese invaders rode naked on horseback through the streets to facilitate assaults on civilians,” and the ages of his mother and grandparents.“This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in World War II,” the exposé read. “This Frenchman and his team exploited ‘anti-fascism’ and ‘anti-Japanese’ to fabricate a story for fame and attention, shamelessly deceiving the Chinese public. Yet, state media — including CCTV and China National Radio — uncritically embraced and celebrated this blatant fraud.”The author criticized the Chinese media’s failure to fact-check. “Did none of these journalists and editors think to verify these photos before publishing their reports? Are they only capable of copying and pasting content? How did hundreds of media outlets get fooled by a French con man? That’s the real disgrace.”The exposé has been deleted from WeChat, as has a reprint on Ifeng News. It can still be found on other websites.When “loving China” paysThe controversy has sparked debate over the growing phenomenon of foreign influencers exploiting China’s nationalism for personal gain.“There’s definitely an MCN (multi-channel network, a third-party organization that helps social media content creators grow their channels) behind this,” said a Beijing-based media professional using the pseudonym Zhang Hao. “The goal was media exposure first, then monetization from live streaming, short videos, product endorsements and others. It’s highly likely that organized efforts are behind him given the fact that so many state-run media outlets were promoting him simultaneously.”“MCNs plagiarized a lot. On social media, short video trends spread rapidly, especially on Douyin. Once a particular type of video gains popularity, other MCNs quickly copy it, producing numerous imitations, just like the American’s story,” he said.The “American” is Evan Kail, a 35 year old pawnshop owner in Minnesota, who in August 2022 claimed to have received a package containing a wartime photo album with photographs that appeared to have been collected by a U.S. Navy sailor stationed in the western Pacific during the 1930s.In the album, there are five pages of shocking photos: the remains of people killed in bombings strewn across the ground; a man lying decapitated with his head on the ground; a burned-out vehicle with the charred cadaver of its driver; and what appeared to be an image of a public execution. Many of the photos were captioned “Nanjing Road,” the former name of a street in Shanghai.With a background in Japanese history from the University of Minnesota and some knowledge of Japan’s invasion of China, Kail believed the photos might hold historical significance and decided to donate them to China.He created a TikTok account to seek advice, and his post quickly went viral, amassing 3.5 million views overnight.Kail embarked on his journey to China in November 2024 and was featured on China’s CCTV Lunar New Year Festival Gala, where he was presented with a porcelain gift typically reserved for diplomatic exchanges. Wearing a red Tang suit, he wished Chinese viewers a happy Lunar New Year as a host told him, “You have gained 1.4 billion Chinese friends.”During his time in China, Kail was frequently interviewed by local media, with his every move documented. He donned a military coat, watched the flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square, climbed the Great Wall, practiced Tai Chi, drank douzhi, and visited the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall and the former residence of John Rabe. He was portrayed as an unofficial ambassador of U.S.-China friendship and gained 1.2 million followers on TikTok.Chinese media also cast Kail as a voice on China’s realities as reports quoted him saying that “some Western media portray China unfairly” and that he was “amazed at how much China has developed.” Kail also claimed that backlash over his donation of the photo album led him to wear a bulletproof vest and suffer psychological distress, but he credited “the warmth of the Chinese people” as an important step in his recovery.While Kail’s story is not fabricated, it became a replicable “template” with potential — a source of inspiration for Detrez’s team, Zhang said. “Find a foreigner and some old photos, then you can build a story,” he said. China’s foreign influencer phenomenon“Using foreigners for propaganda has long been a tradition of the Chinese Communist Party,” Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, told Voice of America (VOA). “It’s more credible when foreigners praise China rather than the government boasting about itself.”Ohlberg recalled that around 2019, a trend of “foreigners praising China” emerged. “A cohort of foreign influencers, working with either the government, media, or third parties, began producing content glorifying Chinese policies, such as going to Xinjiang and said ‘everything is good’. They have done the same about Tibet.”China’s propaganda narrative is that only those who visit China can speak on its issues, she said. “So these influencers reinforce that by saying, ‘You have to see it for yourself.’ But they never acknowledged that they were controlled. The CCP restricted where they go and see, and China critics would never be invited to such trips. So this whole ‘see it for yourself’ argument is very hypocritical.”The commercial appeal of pro-China content is undeniable. Russian influencer Vladislav Yuryevich Kokolevskiy, for example, amassed 12.89 million Douyin followers with high-energy videos praising China, from its hotpots, mobile payments, Huawei smartphones to 5G technology.According to a 2021 Sohu report, he earned roughly 240,000 yuan ($37,000) in a single month through brand endorsements. Other influencers, like Jerry Kowal, an American who documented China’s COVID-19 response measures, Korean mukbang star Hahm Ji Hyung (known as Hamzy), and American content creator Bart Baker, also capitalize on China’s nationalist sentiment.The success of many foreign influencers in China is closely tied to multi-channel networks operating behind the scenes. One of the most prominent players in the industry is YChina. Founded in 2016, YChina has signed over 40 influencers from countries such as Israel, the United States, Australia, Spain, Argentina, Japan, and Thailand. These creators produce content across multiple social media platforms, with some amassing over a million followers by sharing content ranging from food and beauty to fashion and travel.While YChina initially focused on cultural content, it later expanded into political topics, including protests in Hong Kong and the COVID-19 pandemic, earning praise and endorsements from Chinese state media outlets, which later also joined the trend.Xinhua, for example, launched the “Show Me China” series in 2024, featuring foreigners touring major cities while highlighting praises such as “China has the world’s cleanest streets” and its “efficient waste disposal system.”In July 2024, China’s Public Diplomacy Association invited 30 foreign influencers from 25 countries to a training camp, where they toured major cities and historical sites, and documented their experiences.“The message is that China is admired worldwide, its people have risen, and foreigners love China. While outsiders may see it as obvious propaganda, some foreign audiences unfamiliar with China might take it at face value,” Ohlberg said.Zhang Hao attributes the popularity of foreign influencers in China to what he describes as a “nationalist complex syndrome.”“From a young age, through official channels or TV programs, Chinese people are constantly taught that China was bullied by foreign powers for a century, since 1840,” Zhang said. “Now, with the country’s development and rising national strength, Chinese people feel that they are finally earning the respect they were once denied.”Zhang believes this sentiment has created an environment where even crude scams like Detrez’s can thrive.“There is a demand for foreigners who reinforce this mindset. Many Chinese people have limited means to verify information and a lack of critical thinking, combined with a strong sense of empathy, making them more susceptible to deception,” he said.To read the original story in Chinese, click <a href="https://www.voachinese.com/a/from-foreign-wu-mao-to-foreign-influencers-to-foreign-scammers/7999299.html" target="_self" rel="" title="https://www.voachinese.com/a/from-foreign-wu-mao-to-foreign-influencers-to-foreign-scammers/7999299.html">here</a>.
Content Type Article
Language English
NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing Available No
Network GNS
English Title How China uses ‘patriotic’ foreigners to fuel propaganda
Embargo Date March 12, 2025 13:41 EDT
Byline Bo Gu
Brand / Language Service Global News Service