Propaganda no match to human connections

A smartphone without filter has defeated negative propaganda worth billions. According to a legislation, last year, the United States allocated $1.6 billion under the "Countering PRC Malign Influence Fund" to shape global narratives on China by subsidizing pliable media and NGOs.

But the 37 million YouTube followers of US internet celebrity Darren Watkins Jr, known online as iShowSpeed, have eclipsed the reach of most of these US-funded outlets. His unscripted journey through China, filmed on a simple smartphone, has countered what $1.6 billion in taxpayer money tried to do — paint China in a poor light.

A fatal flaw in the playbook of US politicians and media outlets is that they work on the premise that China must be portrayed as a problem, and then retrofit facts to justify their claim. The $1.6 billion fund bankrolls entities that systematically amplify China's shortcomings.