The only thing sadder than Chinese propaganda is the ostensibly free news outlet that would repeat it.
When the coronavirus pandemic passes, whenever that is, Chinese tourists are most excited to visit Wuhan, according to a supposedly serious tourism study published this week by the Chinese government and parroted by CNN.
Though it is possible the Chinese are, in fact, super stoked to visit ground zero of a viral pandemic that has killed more than 235,300 people worldwide (and who knows how many more in China), this so-called study immediately falls into dubious territory when it goes out of its way to say Chinese tourists no longer want to visit the United States. The survey’s real purpose then becomes a bit too obvious when it claims that interest in overseas tourism has declined precipitously in China because its citizens believe domestic attractions are “safer.”
It is suspicious enough already that a study conducted by a central planning-happy government would conclude that its people are very eager to visit a city that is in desperate need of an economic boost. But it is the obvious dig at an international foe coupled with the none-too-subtle assertion that it is the rest of the world, and not China, that poses the real coronavirus risk, that puts this alleged survey over the top.
The Chinese Communist Party is engaged in a wide-scale propaganda effort to absolve itself of culpability for the pandemic it enabled, all the while positioning itself as the world’s leading superpower. This tourism “study” is almost certainly part of that propaganda effort.
Shamefully, the survey found a credulous and willing audience this week in CNN, which uncritically repeated its top-lines in an actual, honest-to-God news report.
“Wuhan has been named the no.1 destination Chinese citizens want to visit after the crisis is over, a study says,” CNN International reported Friday. The “study,” by the way, comes from the Tourism Research Center under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. In other words, the survey is state-approved.
“Wuhan overtook Beijing as the top domestic city on Chinese travelers’ wish list after the lockdown,” reported Hong Kong-based CNN digital producer Maggie Hiufu Wong.
Her article, which is sourced entirely from a blog post published by the China Internet Information Center, continues, citing an anonymous social media user who sums up the allegedly real desire by the Chinese people to visit Wuhan.
“I think the real reason why netizens would want to visit Wuhan is to see the city that has experienced the historical moments,” the Weibo user wrote. “The epidemic situation has imprinted Wuhan on our minds. We have seen the perseverance and industriousness of Wuhan people.”
Come on. Are we really quoting anonymous social media users who praise their brave and most glorious leaders? Where are the CNN editors for whom these quotes and the article’s sourcing should stand out as massive, glaring red flags?
The CNN report, which does not so much as question the survey’s findings, then cites the director of the Tourism Research Center, Song Rui, who said of the study’s alleged results, “It could be said that the result of the study embodied the deep emotions from the people from around the country, expressing the public’s concerns and supports towards the ‘hero city.’”
The Chinese Communist Party blog post upon which the CNN article is based also quotes the director as saying, “COVID-19 has created the greatest challenge the world’s tourism sector has seen in some time.”
He added: “The industry is in a slow recovery thanks to the government’s strong and effective measures to control the epidemic.”
Guys. Even Ray Charles could have seen this tourism study for what it was. What’s CNN’s excuse?
