I’d rather be beheaded than be a criminal in the eyes of history.”

— General Xu Qinxian, who was sentenced to five years in prison for refusing to lead the PLA’s 38th Group Army into Beijing in late May of 1989. Six hours of video from Xu's trial were recently leaked online—a vital historical document.

 

CDT Highlights

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CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

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The Guardian Interviews Chinese Fighters for Ukraine

The involvement of Chinese nationals in Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine received widespread media attention earlier this year. This included an extended interview by Chinese journalist Chai Jing with one such combatant, "Macaron," which was was subsequently translated in two parts by CDT. The much smaller number of Chinese fighters on the Ukrainian side has received less notice. One notable exception is Peng Chenliang, who was killed in 2024 and, before joining the war, had reportedly been detained for seven months in China over his anti-Russia, pro-Ukraine posts on X....

Ahead of Global Women’s Summit in Beijing, More Feminist Content Blocked on WeChat

In the run-up to the Global Women’s Summit slated for October in Beijing, which will mark the 30th anniversary of that city’s influential 1995 U.N. World Conference on Women, some WeChat accounts focused on feminism and women’s empowerment have been blocked or had their content deleted. Earlier this month, feminist blogger Jiang Chan (姜婵, Jiāng Chán) had her official WeChat account blocked. The account now displays a message saying that it has been blocked, and that the content cannot be viewed because it is in violation of Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) regulations. Jiang hasn’t...

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

CDT’s “404 Deleted Content Archive” Summary for November 2025, Part Two

CDT presents a monthly series of censored content that has been added to our “404 Deleted Content Archive.” Each month, we publish a summary of content blocked or deleted (often yielding the message “404: content not found”) from Chinese platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Douyin (TikTok’s counterpart in the Chinese market), Xiaohongshu (RedNote), Bilibili, Zhihu, Douban, and others. Although this content archived by CDT Chinese editors represents only a small fraction of the online content that disappears each day from the Chinese internet, it provides valuable insight into which topics are...

Interview: Jessica Batke and Laura Edelson on China’s “Locknet”

In June, ChinaFile published a new report, "The Locknet: How China Controls Its Internet and Why It Matters"—the product of 18 months’ work by Jessica Batke, ChinaFile’s senior editor for investigations, and Laura Edelson, assistant professor of computer science at Northeastern University. The report gives a concise but thorough overview of China’s online censorship system, including the motivations behind it and the mechanisms by which it is implemented. It expands on the familiar image of the "Great Firewall" as a perimeter barrier, adopting a broader...

Interview: Badiucao and Melissa Chan on Their Graphic Novel, You Must Take Part in Revolution

You Must Take Part in Revolution is a graphic novel by Badiucao, political cartoonist and former CDT contributor, and Melissa Chan, a journalist who in 2012 became the first reporter to be expelled from China in more than a decade. The book was conceived in the wake of the 2019 Hong Kong protests, and follows the divergent paths of three friends in Hong Kong and Taiwan from their involvement in the protests through to 2035. CDT: I’m sure anyone reading CDT is familiar with each of you separately. How did the two of you come to join forces? Melissa Chan: I’d interviewed Badiucao for a...

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

Translation: Plunging Prices, Sprouting Weeds, and Broken Dreams

At The New York Times on Monday, columnist Li Yuan describes how, as "wages stagnate and jobs disappear, the promise of upward social mobility is eroding, especially for those from modest backgrounds. For many […], the Chinese Dream no longer feels achievable." Similar themes have featured prominently on CDT in recent months, from uproar over the "4+4" fast-track for medical qualifications to commentary on the decline of former "golden ticket" degrees like computer science and the resurgent appeal of official careers. Other examples include gallows humor...

Human Rights

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Ahead of Global Women’s Summit in Beijing, More Feminist Content Blocked on WeChat

In the run-up to the Global Women’s Summit slated for October in Beijing, which will mark the 30th anniversary of that city’s influential 1995 U.N. World Conference on Women, some WeChat accounts focused on feminism and women’s empowerment have been blocked or had their content deleted. Earlier this month, feminist blogger Jiang Chan (姜婵, Jiāng Chán) had her official WeChat account blocked. The account now displays a message saying that it has been blocked, and that the content cannot be viewed because it is in violation of Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) regulations. Jiang hasn’t...

Politics

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Words of the Week: WeChat Account “New New New Silence” and China’s Online “Reincarnation Party”

Last week’s CDT Chinese 404 Archives podcast highlighted the recent revival of the Silent Observer WeChat account. The account, which for several years has provided a platform for philosophically-inclined reflections on Chinese society and current affairs, is now on its fourth incarnation: from 默存格物 Mòcún géwù, or "Silent Observer"; to 新默存 Xīn mòcún, or "New Silence"; to 新新默存 Xīn xīn mòcún, or "New New Silence"; and now on to 新新新默存 Xīn xīn xīn mòcún, or "New New New Silence." Its editor, writer and former journalism professor Song Shinan,...

Society

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Translations: As Tributes Pour In, Chengdu’s You Xing Bookstore Gets a Reprieve From Feared Closure

Following more than a week of speculation that Chengdu’s You Xing Bookstore (有杏书店, Yǒu Xìng Shūdiàn) would soon close, amid an outpouring of tributes from customers and supporters, it appears that the beloved bookstore and events space has been granted a reprieve and will remain in business. Started in August 2023 by former financial reporter and prolific blogger Zhang Feng and a group of friends, You Xing Bookstore has become a vibrant public space, providing books, coffee, free public events, and a much-needed sense of community following three years of “zero-COVID” policy-induced...

China & the World

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Netizen Voices: Tencent’s Positive Energy Algorithm Task Force and the Perils of “Information Cocoons”

This week, a report at IT Home described recent corporate initiatives in the fight to promote "positive energy" and suppress "malicious" negativity online. (As China Media Project explains, "’Positive energy’ has been an important phrase in the Xi Jinping era to refer to information controls and official messaging, both domestically and internationally. The term generally refers to the need for uplifting messages as opposed to critical or negative ones – and particularly the need for content that puts the Party and government in a positive light.")...

Law

Latest

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

Information Revolution

Latest

Translation: Special One-Month Reconnaissance Operation Against “Overseas Cyber Forces”

A pair of recently surfaced screenshots appear to offer unusual detail about a special month-long operation, held in Beijing and involving over 40 Ministry of Public Security computer specialists from around the country, to combat “overseas cyber forces” in the battle for public opinion. The apparently leaked internal instructions from the Ministry of Public Security are likely to be the result of an email breach. They include the names and locations of many of the computer-specialist officers, as well as the name and contact information of the individual in charge of the operation. At some...

Culture & the Arts

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Netizen Voices: Sardonic Comments on “How to Get Back at Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi” Offer Socio-Political Commentary on China

Ongoing Sino-Japanese diplomatic tensions—touched off last month by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments on Japan’s willingness to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack—continue to result in cancellations of flights, tours, concerts, and people-to-people exchanges between the two nations. The most recent casualty is Japan-bound tourism during the upcoming New Year’s holiday, with Chinese carriers reportedly cancelling flights on 46 routes, affecting 38 airports in both China and Japan. Chinese government and state-media criticism of Takaichi has drawn a variety of...

The Great Divide

Latest

Translation: Plunging Prices, Sprouting Weeds, and Broken Dreams

At The New York Times on Monday, columnist Li Yuan describes how, as "wages stagnate and jobs disappear, the promise of upward social mobility is eroding, especially for those from modest backgrounds. For many […], the Chinese Dream no longer feels achievable." Similar themes have featured prominently on CDT in recent months, from uproar over the "4+4" fast-track for medical qualifications to commentary on the decline of former "golden ticket" degrees like computer science and the resurgent appeal of official careers. Other examples include gallows humor...

Sci-Tech

Latest

CDT 2025 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part One)

As 2025 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content (Chinese) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2025 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese editors’ introduction to the following selection of key quotes from China’s online discourse over the past year explains how these nuggets are more significant than they might appear at first glance: The tone that emerged in China’s...

Environment

Latest

CDT’s “404 Deleted Content Archive” Summary for November 2025, Part One

CDT presents a monthly series of censored content that has been added to our “404 Deleted Content Archive.” Each month, we publish a summary of content blocked or deleted (often yielding the message “404: content not found”) from Chinese platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Douyin (TikTok’s counterpart in the Chinese market), Xiaohongshu (RedNote), Bilibili, Zhihu, Douban, and others. Although this content archived by CDT Chinese editors represents only a small fraction of the online content that disappears each day from the Chinese internet, it provides valuable insight into which topics are...

Hong Kong

Latest

CDT’s “404 Deleted Content Archive” Summary for November 2025, Part Two

CDT presents a monthly series of censored content that has been added to our “404 Deleted Content Archive.” Each month, we publish a summary of content blocked or deleted (often yielding the message “404: content not found”) from Chinese platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Douyin (TikTok’s counterpart in the Chinese market), Xiaohongshu (RedNote), Bilibili, Zhihu, Douban, and others. Although this content archived by CDT Chinese editors represents only a small fraction of the online content that disappears each day from the Chinese internet, it provides valuable insight into which topics are...

Taiwan

Latest

Netizen Voices: Sardonic Comments on “How to Get Back at Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi” Offer Socio-Political Commentary on China

Ongoing Sino-Japanese diplomatic tensions—touched off last month by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments on Japan’s willingness to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack—continue to result in cancellations of flights, tours, concerts, and people-to-people exchanges between the two nations. The most recent casualty is Japan-bound tourism during the upcoming New Year’s holiday, with Chinese carriers reportedly cancelling flights on 46 routes, affecting 38 airports in both China and Japan. Chinese government and state-media criticism of Takaichi has drawn a variety of...

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