The Paris Olympics have sparked major discussions among “ultra-fans” in China, leading to the deletion of thousands of social media posts and the suspension of hundreds of users.
China is fed up with disputes related to Olympic Games from Paris and has begun cracking down on what it sees as a “negative culture” of defamation and slander.
Beijing authorities deplore the rise of online battles by “fan leaders” who attack athletes and other fans and manipulate comment sections to provoke conflicts between fan groups.
In the latest controversy, A 29-year-old Chinese woman was arrested after allegedly posting defamatory messages on athletes and coaches in relation to the women’s table tennis final played on Saturday between two Chinese competitors, Chen Meng and Sun Yingsha.
Los staunchest followers supported Sun, whose popularity reached new heights after winning the mixed doubles gold medal in Paris. But she ended up losing the final, a result that did not sit well with Sun’s followers, who flooded social media with hostile comments towards Chen.
Weibo, the main Chinese social media platform, stated that the day after the game more than 12,000 messages and comments were deleted, and more than 300 accounts were suspended. Two short video platforms – including Douyin, which runs TikTok overseas – later said they had removed thousands of videos and comments and suspended or banned hundreds of users since the start of the Olympics.
Police did not say what the detained woman had published, but accused her of “maliciously fabricating information and blatantly slander otherscausing a negative social impact.”
He internet regulatory body in china has previously cracked down on a similar “fan culture” built around showbiz stars. The phenomenon spread to Chinese athletes after the 2016 Rio Olympics, according to the state newspaper ‘Global Times’.
