CCP’s Attempt to Control American Perception Through Suppression of Falun Gong
Chinese influence operations are designed to manipulate people’s perspectives in a way that benefits the Chinese regime.
In a panel marking the 25th year of Beijing’s campaign against Falun Gong, researchers at the Hudson Institute highlighted how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is manipulating Western narratives and minds while suppressing Falun Gong beyond China’s borders. The regime’s influence campaign has led Western media to repeat hate propaganda against Falun Gong, organizations to dismiss evidence of forced organ harvesting in China, and theaters to avoid highlighting China’s human rights abuses.
Nina Shea, director of the Center for Religious Freedom at the Hudson Institute, described it as a propaganda war with severe consequences for Americans who can fall prey to such campaigns and end up acting against their own country’s interests.
The State Department has identified combatting these operations globally as a top priority, recognizing the threat posed by certain countries spreading misinformation and disinformation, both within and outside their borders.
The CCP’s influence operations strategy involves creating negative news around hot-button issues in the West to push them into mainstream channels. Levi Browde, executive director at the Falun Dafa Information Center, shared an example of how Chinese consulate posts in 2009 spread false claims about Falun Gong to spark controversy.
Such tactics have been consistently embedded in Beijing’s directives, with internal government documents instructing officials to suppress Falun Gong activities overseas. The regime uses widespread propaganda, misinformation, and vilification campaigns to dehumanize practitioners and obscure its actions from the international community.
Media manipulation is a key part of the CCP’s strategy, targeting Western media outlets to spread its messages, often without proper context. The regime’s efforts to silence criticism of its human rights abuses extend to collaboration between Chinese and Western companies that inadvertently aid in crimes like forced organ harvesting. Additionally, Chinese diplomats aggressively target artistic expressions like Shen Yun Performing Arts, aiming to defame Falun Gong and suppress performances that depict the persecution faced by practitioners.
Americans should remain vigilant against these threats, as the CCP’s influence operations aim to control America without resorting to physical conflict. It’s crucial to recognize and counter these manipulative tactics to protect national interests and counter misinformation spread by the Chinese regime.
