China launches campaign against ‘fake news’ as Beijing seeks to purify online information, targeting social media

China’s censors go after fake news and unlicensed citizen journalists in latest move to cleanse cyberspace of information deemed fake or harmful. The joint campaign from 10 regulatory agencies is expected to hit social media platforms like WeChat and Douyin, popular with content creators. — SCMP

China has launched a new campaign to crack down on “fake news” in Beijing’s latest effort to clean up online content, placing additional pressure on the country’s social media platforms to screen out unsanctioned information, likely impacting citizen journalists.

The campaign will target “illegal news activities” by news organisations and staff, Internet platforms and public accounts, as well as unaccredited social organisations and individuals, according to a summary of a recent teleconference by the Central Propaganda Department of the Communist Party, which is published on government websites.