A Chinese marketing firm, using a network of 70 news websites to promote pro-China propaganda, helped promote and potentially even organize protests in the U.S. capital, The Washington Post and CNN reported, citing a Mandiant study.
Mandiant, a security firm owned by Google, studied the activity of Shanghai Haixun Technology Co., Ltd., and concluded pro-China campaigns — promoted through fake news websites — organized protests and even hired paid protesters in an operation "intended to sow discord in U.S. society," analyst Ryan Serabian told CNN.
Mandiant reported: "Narratives promoted by the campaign criticize the U.S. and its allies, attempt to reshape the international image of Xinjiang due to mounting international scrutiny, and express support for the reform of Hong Kong’s electoral system — a change which gave the PRC more power over vetting local candidates.
"In addition to these broader themes, the campaign leveraged fabricated content designed to discredit opponents who have been critical of the Chinese Government, including Chinese businessman Guo Wengui (Miles Kwok) and German anthropologist Adrian Zenz — known for his research on Xinjiang — and China’s reported genocide against the Uyghur population."
According to CNN: "One of the protests was against a U.S. government ban on goods produced in China’s Xinjiang region, where U.S. officials have accused the Chinese government of systematic repression of the Uyghurs. The other protest was on the sidelines of a June conference on international religious freedom, Mandiant said."
In addition to coordinating protests with paid protesters, the Post reported Shanghai Yihuan Cultural Communication Co., Ltd., which goes by the name Haixun Press, boasted on its website it can plant stories with U.S. news organizations and boost likes and shares on Big Tech platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Haixun Press is a private company, but has links to the Chinese government, according to the Post.
"These actors are trying to blur the line between fiction and fact by placing these pro-[China] articles onto legitimate U.S. news outlets, likely without their knowledge," Serabian told the Post. "So, I think it's very important for us to shine a spotlight on that so that measures are taken to prevent this from happening."
Shanghai Haixun Technology did not respond to CNN's requests for comment.
The Chinese embassy in Washington denied the allegations brought forth by Mandiant and reported by the Post and CNN.
"China has always adhered to non-interference in other countries' internal affairs," spokeswoman Liu Pengyu wrote in an email to CNN.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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