Two short videos have been circulating on social media, one an artificial intelligence (AI)-generated video depicting Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chair candidate Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) on stage kissing KMT Taipei City Councilor Liu Tsai-wei (柳采葳), and the other a viral Douyin remix of various clips of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Shih-chien (王世堅).
Despite the fact that both videos clearly contain politically sensitive content, they have been allowed to spread freely — and even trend — within China’s tightly controlled online environment. This suggests that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is conducting a public opinion experiment aimed at Taiwan — testing which kinds of content can influence opinion and shape the political atmosphere without triggering official censorship. What is most intriguing is why the CCP would target figures from two of Taiwan’s major political parties, the KMT and the DPP.
Beijing’s motives for the KMT are relatively clear. During his campaign for KMT party chair, Hau’s policy was “peaceful toward China, but not sucking up to the CCP” and “pro-US, but not kneeling to the US.”
Although his wording was moderate, it effectively crossed a line that Beijing found unacceptable. China hopes that the KMT’s future leader would be someone who can engage in direct dialogue — or even cooperate — with its “united front” agenda. Hau demonstrated a degree of autonomy, removing him from Beijing’s list of potential partners.
Media personality Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康), who backs Hau, is seen as a figure with major influence over media and financial resources. This plutocratic image clashes with the “anti-corruption” touted by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).
Beijing’s approach toward Wang, on the other hand, is completely different. Wang, known for his outspoken nature, is regarded as a maverick within the DPP — yet he unexpectedly went viral. This sudden surge in attention has boosted his popularity among young people, but has also made some DPP supporters uneasy. By allowing such content to spread freely, the CCP is effectively sowing seeds of competition and internal conflict within the DPP. This kind of provocation is more effective than outright verbal attacks, because it exploits the diverse opinions and disagreements inherent in democratic society, and prompts the DPP to spend its energy on infighting.
These seemingly humorous online creations are, in fact, a cognitive warfare tactic. Some politicians and media outlets deliberately downplay them, saying that they are just part of Internet culture and even accusing others of conspiratorial thinking. However, any awareness of the factors at work would lead one to realize something far stranger than AI-generated videos or parody songs is happening: The fact that Beijing is allowing them.
Specific clips of Hau and Wang have been allowed to circulate freely on Chinese platforms. This indicates that the content of these videos is regarded as “safe” discourse, something useful for achieving political objectives. That they are a means of observing Taiwanese society’s reactions and even testing the boundaries of influence over public opinion.
Taiwanese society values freedom of speech. We are not afraid of diverse voices, nor do we impose limits on creative expression. When an authoritarian regime exploits Taiwan’s free environment to deliberately disseminate specific messages, we must identify its motives. Only with transparency and public scrutiny can a democratic society possess the resilience to withstand external interference. That way, perhaps it would not be the free society that ultimately collapses, but the regime that relies on manipulation and censorship.
Wang Hung-jen is a professor in National Cheng Kung University’s Department of Political Science.
Translated by Kyra Gustavsen
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