# social media
Latest news and articles about social media
Total: 12 articles found
Viral Post Teaches 'How to Use a Grenade' — Another Sign of Militarized Online Pop Culture in China
A social-media style post on Huanqiu’s feed that read “Every day one small skill, today we learn grenade use” has drawn attention for normalizing weapons instruction in casual online formats. The item illuminates a wider trend of militarized pop culture in China and raises enforcement and safety questions for platforms and regulators.
China's Long‑Dormant Forum Tianya Says It Will Reopen on June 1, Offering Paid 'Founding' Memberships
Tianya Community plans to resume public access on June 1 after nearly three years offline, and appears to be pursuing a paid 'founding member' model. The relaunch will test whether legacy Chinese forums can rebuild user communities and commercial viability amid tighter regulation and platform consolidation.
A Cookhouse Goes Viral: What a PLA Kitchen Clip Says About China’s Military Messaging
An official PLA video highlighting the professionalism of a military cook squad has gone viral, drawing praise and attention not for combat capability but for troop welfare and logistical competence. The clip is a deliberate public-relations move that underscores the PLA’s modernization beyond hardware, with implications for recruitment, domestic legitimacy and strategic messaging.
Beijing Cracks Down on Social‑media Misinformation Around Central Drug Procurement
China’s internet and health regulators have jointly removed and sanctioned social‑media accounts spreading false claims about the state’s centralized drug and consumable procurement programme. The initiative aims to curb panic, protect public confidence in volume‑based procurement, and signal stricter platform accountability as Beijing tightens online governance around health policy.
Pony Ma’s RMB1bn AI Counterattack: Tencent Bets ‘Yuanbao’ and Red‑Envelope Growth to Reclaim Social Ground
Tencent has launched a concentrated RMB1 billion push to embed AI into social products, notably upgrading its Yuanbao offering to group chat and using culturally resonant red‑envelope incentives to drive adoption. The plan leverages Tencent’s social graph and payments infrastructure but must navigate regulatory scrutiny and fierce competition from Chinese AI rivals.
Beijing Kindergarten Career Catwalk Celebrates a Chef and Sparks Conversation on the Dignity of Work
A Beijing kindergarten’s career-themed fashion show went viral after a child dressed as a chef received enthusiastic applause, prompting online praise that ‘every job deserves respect.’ The episode highlights a trend in Chinese early education to use role-play to teach vocational diversity, while also raising questions about pedagogy, social messaging and the commercialization of school events.
Israeli Woman Shocked to See Her Photo Used as a Dead Victim in Report on Iranian Protests
An Israeli woman, Noa Zion, discovered Channel 12 had used her photograph in a news segment that portrayed her as a casualty of protests in Iran. She posted video proof that she was alive, sparking social media debate about media verification and the potential consequences of misidentified images amid tense Israeli–Iranian relations.
China Purges Financial Influencers After ¥83m Penalty Exposes Social‑Media Stock Racket
Chinese regulators and major tech platforms have moved to punish and deplatform influential stock‑picking social media accounts after a high‑profile ¥83 million penalty exposed systematic manipulation. The coordinated action targets a wider problem: monetised investment communities and celebrity traders whose recommendations materially sway prices and leave retail investors exposed.
Copper Bars Go Viral in China — A Genuine Bet on Electrification or a Retail Fad?
Small one-kilogram copper bars have become a social-media-driven retail fad in China's Shenzhen jewellery market, marketed as a low-cost way to invest in copper. While copper's industrial demand is structurally strong and prices have recently hit records, the bars trade at large premiums and lack established buyback channels, creating liquidity and valuation risks for retail buyers.
Edited Photo by Trump Spurs Venezuelan Push to Counter 'Map' Misinformation
President Trump posted a doctored photo showing US flags over several countries, including Venezuela, prompting Caracas to urge citizens to share the official national map to combat perceived disinformation. The episode highlights how edited imagery can be used as geopolitical signalling and underscores risks from rapid spread of unverified claims.
When Viral Sympathy Rescued a Hospital: Li Yapeng, Social Media and the Fragility of Chinese Charity
A candid video by Li Yapeng about rent arrears at the Yanran Angel Children’s Hospital triggered a wave of online donations that raised nearly 20 million yuan in days. The surge highlights the power of Chinese social media to mobilise aid quickly but also exposes structural limits: legal separation between fund and hospital, rising urban rents and the need for sustainable funding mechanisms for non‑profit medical providers.
Ren Zeping Accepts Dan Bin’s Olive Branch — A Public Truce Among China’s Market Influencers
Prominent economist Ren Zeping has publicly accepted an apology from private-equity boss Dan Bin, ending a high-profile social-media feud over the strength and nature of China’s post‑September 2024 stock-market rally. The truce calms a bout of acrimony between two influential market voices but does not erase the substantive disagreements about the rally’s durability.