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The
Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) launched a special
campaign to clean up online information, focusing on social
media accounts that disseminate "fake news" and impersonate
state-controlled media.
The regulator said it had wiped 107,000 accounts of counterfeit
news units and news anchors and 835,000 pieces of fake news
information since April 6.
The cleanup comes as China and countries across the globe
grapple with an onslaught of fake news coverage online, with
many implementing laws to punish culprits.
News dissemination on Chinese social media, however, is already
heavily controlled, with platforms like the Twitter-like Weibo
favouring topic hashtags produced by state media, while
censoring hashtags on issues or incidents considered sensitive
by Beijing, even if they go viral.
The CAC said its review found accounts that had disguised
themselves as authoritative news media by falsifying news studio
scenes and imitating professional news presenters, using
artificial intelligence (AI) to create anchors to mislead the
public.
Fake news identified covered hot topics such as social incidents
and international current affairs, according to a statement the
CAC posted on Monday on its website.
"(The CAC) will guide online platforms ... to safeguard the
legitimate rights and interests of the majority of internet
users to obtain authoritative and real news," the regulator
said, adding it encouraged users to provide leads on counterfeit
news and anchors.
China's government has regularly ordered sweeping measures to
scrub the internet of material and language it deemed
inappropriate, offensive and a threat to the public and
businesses.
Recently, the CAC vowed to crack down on malicious online
comments that damage the reputation of businesses and
entrepreneurs.
Nascent generative AI technology like ChatGPT has introduced
another layer of caution. China recently arrested a man in Gansu
province for allegedly using ChatGPT to generate a fake story
about a train crash.
(Reporting by Bernard Orr; additional reporting by Ethan Wang;
Editing by Jamie Freed)
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