Entering 2026, let’s take this time to reflect on a year of social media in China and the most noteworthy trending stories.

This is a list of major controversies & online moments that not only went completely viral but were also intrinsically connected to China’s social media sphere, either because they blew up on Weibo, originated on Douyin, or would not have even come to light if it weren’t for Xiaohongshu or other Chinese apps.

This is my pick of the top 10 topics and discussions that stood out most this year, capturing the broader sentiments shaping China’s social media landscape in 2025.

(PS: The items on this list are numbered chronologically and are not indicative of the importance/weight of the story.)

10. The ‘TikTok Refugee’-Xiaohongshu Honeymoon

At the beginning of 2025, a rare moment unfolded on Chinese social media. As American TikTok users faced a looming U.S. ban, they migrated to the Chinese app Xiaohongshu. This massive influx of so-called “TikTok refugees” (TikTok 难民) unexpectedly propelled Xiaohongshu to the number-one spot in app stores across the U.S. and beyond.

While the movement initially began as a tongue-in-cheek protest mocking U.S. authorities’ panic over Chinese companies stealing data, it soon turned into a genuine moment of cultural connection, as international users began building real relationships with the Chinese community on a fully domestic platform—sharing recipes, discussing culture, and practicing language.

Amid geopolitical tensions and a desire for cultural exchange, the fictional character ‘Li Hua’ unexpectedly emerged as a bridge between Chinese and American netizens. Li Hua (李华) is a familiar figure in China’s English writing exams, often used as a ‘stand-in’ for students to write letters to an imaginary foreign friend. Chinese users began digging up old exam papers and sharing the letters they had written years ago, often with captions like “Why didn’t you reply?” as a playful suggestion that Chinese students had been reaching out to foreign friends for years without ever hearing back.

Then, something extraordinary happened: Americans started replying to Li Hua. Posts appeared addressed to the fictional character, with messages like, “Dear Li Hua, I’m sorry the world kept us apart.”

These exchanges came to symbolize the distance that has long separated Chinese and American people. For many, this ‘Xiaohongshu moment’ underscored how anti-Chinese and anti-American sentiments have shaped narratives for years, fostering mutual misunderstanding. At the same time, the moment demonstrated not only the growing reach of Chinese-made platforms, but more importantly the power of online spaces to reshape relationships & create moments of unity amid a widening digital and geopolitical divide.

🔗 Full story here.

9. The China Tour of American Livestreamer IShowSpeed

Before March of 2025, many people in China had never heard of American livestreamer IShowSpeed. In the United States, many followers of the online celebrity, whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins Jr, knew little about China. That all changed when the YouTuber, who already had over 34 million followers at the time, toured across China and did a total of eight livestreams, filming over 43 hours of footage from, among others, Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, and Chongqing.

IShowspeed’s China tour was an important media moment for several reasons. In China, where the 20-year-old IShowSpeed is known as Jiǎkànggē (甲亢哥) or ‘Hyperthyroid Bro’ for overdrive being his modus operandi, his tour was seen as a huge win for China’s foreign-facing propaganda and cultural diplomacy. Watkins’ livestreams became an ultimate representation of the Chinese cultural promotion playbook, featuring traditional opera, pandas, Kung-fu, the Great Wall, and traditional medicine alongside futuristic cities, high-speed rail, dancing robots and stunning drone shows.

Outside of China, the streams filled with cultural highlights mixed with cutting-edge technology were also embraced by fans who loved seeing the encounter of a young modern American with old traditional China, and appreciated how his energetic livestreams showed an entirely different side of China than that usually highlighted in American mainstream media. The tour attracted millions of new subscribers, and boosted Watkins’ brand and global fame.

What his visit showed is that China has entered a phase in which it is becoming more skilled at letting others help tell its story in ways that resonate with a young, global, online audience, with more livestreamers and influencers now following in his footsteps through similar trips and China-focused promotions. Even if the government did not pay the YouTuber directly (as his team emphasized), the trip was clearly coordinated and fit seamlessly into China’s broader soft power strategy.

🔗 Full story here.

8. The Mysterious Death of Internet Celebrity Cat Wukong

Wukong became one of China’s most beloved internet celebrity cats after Douyin bikepacking vlogger Zhao Shuo (赵朔) met the stray while camping during his journey across China (video). Cold and hungry, the cat meowed outside Zhao’s tent until he let her warm up inside his sleeping bag.

Zhao named her “Wukong,” after the Monkey King from Journey to the West, and took her along on his travels through western China, winning over millions of netizens in the process.

The happy story took a dark turn in April of 2025 in Ruoqiang County, Xinjiang, when Wukong suddenly went missing from the campsite. Using her GPS collar, Zhao found her lifeless body beside a highway just two hours later. Veterinarians found no signs of trauma, ruling out a vehicle collision or accident, while GPS data suggested the cat had been moved unusually far in a short time, raising unanswered questions about what had happened.

As Zhao searched for answers, local authorities became involved. Soon after, Zhao suddenly released a video apologizing for the “negative impact” of the incident and said he would stop pursuing the matter. Online mourning over Wukong quickly turned into backlash, with many netizens accusing local officials of pressuring Zhao into an apology and prioritizing narrative control over transparency.

As the story was muted, tributes to Wukong spread across China in the form of graffiti, artwork, and memorial posts (see here). For many, Wukong became more than an internet cat: her story became a symbol of ordinary citizens searching for truth in the face of official silence. Beyond representing the limits of speaking out online, this story was above all else about the special and moving bond between a man and his cat friend.

🔗 Full story here.

7. The Dr. Xiao Medical Scandal of the Year

Many things came together in late April of 2025 when a letter written by the legal wife of the renowned Beijing surgeon Xiao Fei (肖飞) at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital was widely circulated from WeChat to Weibo, Zhihu, and beyond.

In the letter, addressed to the hospital’s Disciplinary Committee, the wife exposed her husband’s serious violations of professional ethics and his extramarital affairs with, among others, a head nurse and the young resident physician Dong Xiying (董袭莹). Most shockingly, she provided evidence that Xiao had left a patient on the operating table for 40 minutes during a surgery due to a dispute involving his mistress.

As the hospital verified the claims, Xiao’s employment was terminated and he was expelled from the Communist Party, briefly becoming one of the most hated figures on the Chinese internet. Public attention then shifted toward Dong Xiying and her suspicious academic rise. Netizens questioned how she managed to transition from an economics degree to becoming a “model student” at the prestigious Peking Union Medical College (PUMC) in just a few years.

The scandal intensified when PUMC, which had previously promoted Dong as a success story, suddenly deleted articles about her and edited her name out of official commencement addresses.

The entire story caused something of an earthquake—not just within medical circles, but also in academic ones and across the internet at large, where netizens were particularly concerned about the broader social issues this story touched on: from fairness in education and corruption in academia to medical negligence and moral integrity.

🔗 Full story here.

6. The Labubu Craze & Globalization of Chinese Designer Toys

Known and loved by tweens, teens, and (female) Gen Z consumers all over the world, Labubu became the hottest toy and fashion accessory of 2025—as well as a breakthrough success for the Chinese designer toy market at large.

Labubu is a Gremlin-like character created by renowned Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung (龍家昇), whose work is inspired by Nordic legends of elves. Although Labubu has been around since 2015, it wasn’t until it became part of Chinese pop culture store POP MART’s toy lineup in 2019 that it began reaching a mass audience.

And so, the story of Labubu’s success is just as much the story of the success of POP MART and that of other Chinese companies following a similar journey by covering the entire chain of trendy toys, from product development to retail and marketing. From Labubu to other dolls such as Wakuku and Baby Three (BB3), these brands managed to hit such a cultural and commercial sweet spot over the past year.

Following the global popularity of the Chinese game Black Myth: Wukong and with China’s animation hit Ne Zha 2 hitting cinemas across the world, Labubu is lauded as another example of a successful Chinese cultural export, with experts calling it ‘a benchmark for China’s pop culture’ and viewing its success as a sign of the globalization of Chinese designer toys.

🔗 Full story here.

5. The “Nanjing Sister Hong” Case That Shook People’s Worldview

Recently, I was talking to a group of young Chinese students in Wuhan, explaining the kind of trending topics I write about for What’s on Weibo / Eye on Digital China. I mentioned a few examples, and not all stories seemed to ring a bell, but when I said I also covered the “Nanjing Sister Hong” (南京红姐) case, every single one of them had a strong reaction—from squeaks to giggles to burying their faces in their hands. It’s clear that this is a story that not only became one of the most discussed viral topics of the year, but also one that has become part of China’s popular cultural memory, with references to the story popping up everywhere, from online memes to comedy shows and Halloween costumes.

The case centers on the 38-year-old Mr. Jiao, who posed as a woman on different Chinese dating apps. As the red-haired ‘Ahong,’ he hooked up with many men in his rented room, secretly recording these encounters and uploading all of the footage online. The scandal surfaced online in July of 2025.

The exact number of men Jiao met and filmed remains unknown. While authorities have dismissed the viral claim of over 1,600 men as exaggerated, dozens of videos spread widely online, showing Jiao engaging in various forms of sexual activity with different male partners from all walks of life, from married businessmen to fitness trainers and foreign exchange students. Some women who saw the videos recognized their own partners in them.

The story caused significant social shock; the fact that so many (married) men would be willing to hook up with a stranger online who arguably, yet obviously, wasn’t actually female shook people’s worldviews on multiple levels. Although this triggered many jokes, it also raised uncomfortable questions about how many of these men put their wives and romantic partners at risk because of these unprotected encounters.

Chinese commentators and bloggers therefore tied the case to women’s sexual health, but social media discussions around the case also touched on other issues such as privacy violations, gender identity, fluid sexuality, and marginalized communities.

🔗 Full story here.

4. The Maskpark Scandal That Couldn’t be Displayed

Back in 2020, an online sex crime scandal known as the “Nth Room” shook South Korea. It made global headlines after news revealed that dozens of women and underage girls had fallen victim to a network of cybersex trafficking and exploitation on Telegram.

In August 2025, the Chinese internet was hit by a similar storm. The discovery of a large-scale, anonymous Chinese-language community on the encrypted Telegram app revealed a vast network of sexual exploitation and voyeuristic content, leading many to label the case China’s own “Nth Room.”

The group, named “Maskpark,” had over 100,000 members and dozens of subchannels sharing voyeuristic footage: girls recorded with hidden cameras in bathrooms; videos leaked through private home surveillance; and women unknowingly filmed in hotels, hospitals, or on the subway. The group even had a specific term for members sharing footage of their own sisters, mothers, wives, or daughters: “offering tributes” (shàng gòng, 上供).

As Maskpark switched to private, frustration grew over the lack of official investigation into the matter. Another major issue fueling the anger was the censorship of “Maskpark Gate.” The story was kept off trending lists, and searching the hashtag on Weibo returned the message: “This topic content cannot be displayed.”

While online sleuths and victims tried to amplify their voices to force action, they instead saw their posts deleted. This left many wondering who is actually standing up for women’s safety, while others pointed out that the scandal reveals how advanced hidden camera technology has become, making this not just a women’s issue, but a national problem.

🔗 Full story here.

3. The Jiangyou Incident: From School Bullying to Public Protests

In August 2025, the city of Jiangyou in Sichuan became the scene of a rare, large-scale protest following public outrage over a severe bullying incident and how it was handled.

The bullying incident at the center of this story happened outside school premises, involving three girls between the ages of 13 and 15 who ganged up on a 14-year-old girl named Lai (赖). Footage of the assault, recorded by bystanders, began circulating widely on Chinese social media, sparking widespread outrage among concerned netizens and parents.

When authorities acted not only slowly but also leniently towards the bullies, public anger grew—especially because one of the bullies could be heard saying in the videos, “It’s not like I haven’t been taken in [to jail] before.” The incident sparked anger due to lenient laws for minors, the calculated moves by the brutal bullies, and the epidemic of school violence that has been ongoing in China for years, which many feel is being inadequately handled by local authorities.

The outrage in Jiangyou grew so large that it spilled from online to offline, with crowds gathering outside the municipal building. As the crowd grew, tensions escalated, leading to rare clashes between protesters and police, footage of which spread online before being censored.

The case showed that as the rising number of bullying cases continues to fuel public frustration nationwide, local anger will continue to intensify, especially if authorities fail to address and prevent school bullying. Most of all, it shows that while public protests rarely grow so big on Chinese social media, it only takes a spark to create a heated crowd.

🔗 Full story here.

2. The Jingdezhen “Chicken Chop Bro”

Andy Warhol’s famous “15 minutes of fame” phrase, coined around 1967, predicted that modern media & pop culture would eventually make everyone briefly famous. By now, we know there is truth to his words. While social media didn’t make everyone famous, it has proven that anyone could be, if only for a little while.

But Warhol perhaps couldn’t have predicted that the recipe for online fame in China’s 2025 isn’t about money, flashy fashion, or showbiz talent. Instead, it is about being down-to-earth and raw. One of the Chinese hot phrases of the year was “Real-Person Vibes” (huó rén gǎn, 活人感), describing people or stories that feel unpolished and unfiltered—something that has become increasingly precious in a year dominated by AI-generated content.

Around the National Day holiday, a seller of chicken chops in the town of Jingdezhen in Jiangxi became insta-famous. Not just because his chicken chops suited the tastes of locals, but mostly due to his pragmatic attitude and lively energy, along with his superspeed service and clear order of serving customers. He ran his little food stall like a serious operation, and people appreciated that.

Under the nickname “Chicken Chop Brother” (鸡排哥 jīpáigē), Li Junyong (李俊永) became an overnight viral sensation, so successful that local authorities had to implement crowd management for his stall.

While these kinds of successes aren’t always everlasting, their impacts are major. In a time when many are trying to replicate this viral formula, his story shows that for a moment to truly strike a chord with the masses, it needs to be real—and tasty, too.

🔗 Full story here.

1. The Kuaishou Livestream Controversy

On the night of December 22, 2025, users scrolling through livestreams on the popular short video app Kuaishou noticed something deeply disturbing: their screens suddenly filled with pornographic and violent content. Soon, millions of users scrolled into the same shocking footage. The chaos continued for approximately 90 minutes before Kuaishou—which has over 415 million daily active users, including many minors—eventually shut down its entire livestreaming function around 11:30 PM.

In a statement the following day, Kuaishou claimed the platform had fallen victim to an attack by “the underground and gray industries,” announcing that the incident had been reported to the police. The event is not just China’s worst platform-level catastrophe of the year; it is one of the most dramatic management failures in Chinese internet history, considering millions witnessed explicit content in real-time for an hour and a half.

The incident is indicative of Kuaishou’s failing security operations, particularly its slow response time and lack of emergency protocols. More significantly, it revealed the advanced techniques of the attackers. They used approximately 17,000 “zombie accounts” acquired through long-term “account farming” to exploit vulnerabilities and bypass reviews. They then pushed pre-recorded explicit files to livestream servers while simultaneously paralyzing Kuaishou’s banning system.

This serves as a massive wake-up call for both Chinese platforms and authorities. In what is already one of the most extensive & sophisticated internet censorship systems in the world, regulatory control and scrutiny will only further intensify in China’s online environment in the year to come.

 
By Manya Koetse

(follow on X, LinkedIn, or Instagram)

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A noteworthy story in Chinese media recently, which also made it to the top trending lists on Kuaishou and Weibo, concerns the uncovering of a widespread criminal network that smuggled blood samples from over 100,000 pregnant women across the border, exposing a black-market chain active across all provinces of China. In this deeper dive, I look at what received far less attention: why so many pregnant women were willing to provide their blood in the first place.

The case was part of a major operation by Guangzhou’s anti-smuggling authorities following a year-long investigation and the mobilization of 265 officers. As part of the operation, two professional criminal groups specializing in the smuggling of pregnant women’s blood samples were dismantled, and a total of 26 people were arrested.

The groups earned a staggering 30 million yuan (US$4.2 million) from their blood-smuggling activities.

So far, the story reads almost like a vampire novel, especially with Chinese media detailing how the blood was smuggled: smugglers reportedly strapped tubes of blood to their bodies to cross the border. Others hid them in specially modified suitcases with concealed compartments.

Some commenters framed the story as the smuggling of “life samples carrying the genetic code of Chinese citizens,” and as the “poaching of ethnic genetic resources,” arguing that the data security implications could be serious if the blood were to be used for research by those with ulterior motives.

Other netizens suggested that “insiders within medical institutions must be involved,” possibly even through broader “cross-border project collaborations.” These suspicions were fueled by official reporting. Overall, the online media discourse surrounding the case focused on the risks these practices pose to national biosecurity, with fears that foreign entities could appropriate China’s human genetic information.

In reality, however, this story is about the widespread demand in China for prenatal blood testing for fetal sex determination.

The groups uncovered by Guangzhou authorities received blood from some 100,000 pregnant women because the women provided it themselves. The groups (illegally) advertised on social media that they offered non-invasive fetal sex identification and genetic disease screening, with clients paying fees of 2,000–3,000 yuan (US$285–US$426) for these blood tests.

According to Guancha.cn, the blood would be drawn by “acquaintances” or through online medical platforms, after which the samples would be mailed by courier to a designated address, where they were collected, concealed by smugglers, and delivered to overseas laboratories for testing.

Smuggled blood as seen in CCTV feature

Although none of the Chinese news reports on this case disclose where these “overseas labs” are actually located, the reports mention cooperation between authorities in Guangzhou, Foshan, and Shenzhen, and the details provided make it highly probable that the case concerns the mainland–Hong Kong border.

In a recent CCTV feature on the news, Zheng Zhong (郑重), Deputy Director of the Investigation Division of the Guangzhou Customs Anti-Smuggling Bureau, said:

“China has explicitly prohibited the determination of fetal sex for non-medical needs, which is a protection of the fetus’s right to life. It is also to maintain a healthy population ratio. Blood sample smuggling poses a high potential risk to public interests and national biosecurity.”

Fetal sex determination has been illegal in China since the first regulation in 1989, with later laws specifically outlawing the use of ultrasound imaging or other techniques to identify fetal sex.

Why Fetal Sex Determination Still Matters

Why did Zheng mention the prohibition of fetal sex determination tests in China to “maintain a healthy population ratio”?

Although abortion has generally been permitted in China—which has one of the most lenient abortion regimes in the world—strict controls on sex-selective abortions have been in place since the early 1990s.

One of the unintended effects of China’s one-child policy since 1979 has been the widespread occurrence of sex-selective pregnancy terminations, linked to traditional son preference. Fetal sex identification has been a precursor to these abortions, contributing to severe distortions in the country’s sex ratio. Non-medical fetal sex identification and sex-selective abortion came to be known as the “two illegitimates.”[1]

Now that China is entering its first decade since the end of the one-child policy, you might expect that these “two illegitimates” have become less pressing issues. After all, with couples now allowed to have more than one child (even three children or more), why would sex determination still be so relevant that 100,000 women would continue to submit blood samples despite the practice officially being illegal?

🔎 In reality, research suggests that the end of China’s one-child policy has not been the turning point it was perhaps expected to be. Although it has reduced pressures, its impact on son preference and sex-selective practices has been somewhat underwhelming.[2]

Since 2016, there has indeed been a rise in daughter preference and gender indifference, as well as a decline in male-to-female sex ratios at birth, but significant regional differences remain and son preference persists, alongside sex-selective abortion.[3] As a result, the sex ratio at birth remains skewed in certain provinces, especially for first births.[4]

👉 So what does this mean in practice? It means that, despite laws and regulations, expecting parents are still eager to find ways to identify fetal sex by whatever means possible (blood-based tests, ultrasound scans), and that agencies able to profit from this desire have been widespread for years.

In provinces like Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hubei, and Hunan, which together with Hainan accounted for more than a third of all births in China in 2020, there is still a deeply rooted familism culture and an abnormally high number of male births.[5]

Even though Chinese authorities introduced specific measures more than a decade ago to ban the mailing of blood samples overseas for fetal sex identification, underground networks smuggling fetal blood samples to Hong Kong for gender testing have been rampant—and this goes well beyond 100,000 samples.

Framing Pregnant Women’s Blood Smuggling in Chinese State Media

It is noteworthy that Chinese coverage of this case leaves out issues related to fetal sex selection, the persistence of sex-selective practices in post–one-child China, and parents’ willingness to learn the sex of their fetus to such an extent that they are prepared to pay large sums of money for this information.

In the 8-minute CCTV feature on this case, as well as in other reports, the core narrative centers on how an organized criminal network that endangered national biological security by illegally smuggling pregnant women’s blood samples was successfully dismantled by Chinese authorities through state surveillance and coordinated law enforcement.

China has, in fact, strict laws on the protection of human genetic resources. Since 2019, regulations have specifically prohibited foreign entities from collecting genetic material within China and restricted the transfer of genetic material and related data out of China. Any research involving Chinese human genetic resources must be conducted through approved collaboration with a qualified Chinese institution (see China Law Translate).

In the CCTV report, fetal sex identification is mentioned only briefly: first, in describing how the criminal group attracted customers online, and second, by Zhong, to emphasize that the practice is illegal. This framing places the entire issue within the domains of legality, regulation, and security, while the ethical, socio-cultural, and gender dimensions that lie at the root of the practice are entirely ignored.

Word cloud generated with the assistance of AI, based on the fully transcribed and translated text of the main CCTV investigative report on the blood-smuggling case.

Instead, the case is narrated using dominant language such as “blood smuggling,” “genetic resources,” and “security.” This framing has led to some confusion online. One of the most popular search queries related to the story on Weibo was: “What is the purpose of smuggling pregnant women’s blood samples abroad?” (孕妇血液样本走私境外目的是什么).

On Xiaohongshu, some commenters similarly asked: “I just don’t understand what pregnant women’s blood is used for.” Another user replied: “They can extract genetic codes, create a virus, and kill us with it.”

There are, however, many commenters who directly connect the case to its underlying issue. One woman on Xiaohongshu asked: “Isn’t it possible to tell [the fetus’s sex] just by doing a B-ultrasound? Why would they spend so much money to draw blood?” Another commenter replied: “It takes several months before you can do an ultrasound. A blood test is faster, and you can know the result before the abortion deadline.” (In some regions of China, non-medical abortions are not permitted after 14 weeks of pregnancy.)

Demographic Anxiety and Shifts in Narratives

Chinese headlines about the uncovering of the blood-smuggling operations appeared in the same week when netizens discussed unofficial reports about China’s 2025 estimated birth rates, suggesting that the country’s fertility rate will hit another historic low and fall to second-lowest in the world (higher only than South Korea), with a total fertility rate of about 1.09.

“Let people with money have kids,” some commenters suggested. “Right now, it’s hard for young people to get a job. When you can’t even find a job, who would think of having kids?”

Another person on Weibo wrote: “I’m part of the elite social class with a PhD degree, and yet I’m miserable. I’m pessimistic and disappointed about the future. I won’t have kids, won’t buy [a house], and won’t get married.”

Over the past years, and especially recently, Chinese authorities have introduced numerous measures in attempts to boost the country’s birth rates, from child-rearing subsidies to taxes on contraceptives.

In this light, tackling illegal practices involving fetal sex identification is more relevant than ever—and pushing such news to the top of China’s trending lists, together with frightening narratives about blood thieves and biosecurity risks, serves as a warning as much to smugglers as to expecting mothers not to engage in such practices. In this context, expecting parents would not only be crossing legal red lines by testing the sex of their unborn child, but would also be framed as handing over China’s national DNA to potential foreign enemies.

🔴 In doing so, Chinese official narratives shift, yet also fall back into old habits: at a time when fertility is dramatically dropping and confidence among young people in love & marriage is eroding, the state does more than regulate or guide ideas about family planning and fetal sex determination; it changes the meanings attached to it.

But there’s also a side effect to these stories. Because official news coverage presents the case as one of potential risks of Chinese genetic data being stolen, while largely leaving out the relevant social context, some ordinary Chinese netizens have begun to worry about what happens to their blood samples at hospitals once they leave their check-up appointments.

“Can they profit from it?” some wonder, while others worry about unintentionally contributing to future biological warfare.

Ultimately, the story of “blood smuggling” is not just about smugglers or overseas laboratories. It is about how, in an era of increasing demographic anxiety, reproductive behavior is increasingly reframed through the language of security.

Luckily, many genuinely don’t see what all the fuss is about: “People would really smuggle pregnant women’s blood abroad for what? Is it really so important to know whether you’re having a boy or a girl?”🔚

📌🎬 Although I also published last week, I didn’t send that article as a newsletter. So, in case you missed it, here’s a short recap: the past year has been a tumultuous one for China’s entertainment industry, and especially for renowned director Wong Kar-wai. After the success of the TV drama Shanghai Blossoms, a former screenwriter accused Wong and his team of discrediting, exploiting, and abusing him.

The case was already explosive, but it became even more sensitive when audio recordings were leaked in which Wong criticised the Party. Almost any other celebrity would likely have been blacklisted for such remarks, yet Wong seems to have escaped that fate. Why? You can explore the case in this in-depth article by Ruixin Zhang. It’s worth the read.

👉 This piece is part of Chapters, the format I use for deeper, more analytical pieces. Alongside Chapters, I also publish Signals, which tracks slower-moving shifts in Chinese online culture and digital life, and China Trend Watch, which offers a regular overview of what has been trending across China’s digital platforms. Keep an eye on the upcoming editions to follow the thread.

By Manya Koetse

(follow on X, LinkedIn, or Instagram)

[1] Ruby Lai Yuen Shan, “The Transformation of Abortion Law in China,” in Research Handbook on International Abortion Law, edited by Mary Ziegler (Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023), 172–73.

[2] Xinyi Zhang, “Estimating the Effect on the Sex Ratio of the Two-Child Policy: Evidence from China,” Proceedings of the International Conference on Social Psychology and Humanity Studies 9 (2023): 1–8.

[3] Li Mei and Quanbao Jiang, “Sex-Selective Abortions over the Past Four Decades in China,” Population Health Metrics 23, no. 6 (2025): 1–16.

[4] Mengjun Tang and Jiawei Hou, “Changes of Sex Ratio at Birth and Son Preferences in China: A Mixed Method Study,” China Population and Development Studies 8 (2024): 1–27.

[5] Tang and Hou, “Changes of Sex Ratio at Birth,” 4–5.

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