By: Amanda Seitz, Mike Catalini and Eric Tucker
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Instagram and TikTok influencers, including the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” TV star, Paralympic swimmer and self-proclaimed “brand king,” were paid by Chinese officials Expenses to promote Beijing’s winter Olympics, a discreet event, new Justice Department documents show.
The social media posts spread across various popular Instagram and TikTok accounts, with a combined 5 million followers following their videos, photos and content about travel destinations, sports, fashion and women’s issues. The Chinese consulate in New York paid New Jersey-based Vippi Media $300,000 to recruit the influencers. These posts were not properly marked as ads as required by TikTok and Instagram.
Jessica Brandt, an expert on foreign interference and disinformation at the Brookings Institution, said of China’s social media activity: “It allows them to increase the reach and resonance of their message, making it seem It’s authentic, independent content.”
More details about the social media activity were revealed in a Justice Department filing on April 4, just days after an Associated Press investigation showed that China was using a broad network of influencers and social media accounts to cleverly to advertise to users around the world.
The Associated Press report found that Vippi Media has yet to submit an update to the Justice Department about its influencer activity, even though federal law requires the company to do so within 24 hours of the material being circulated. The company is registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, which is designed to let Americans know when a foreign entity is trying to influence public opinion or policymakers.
Vippi Media’s campaign targeted U.S. social media users, with nearly 12 influencers spreading ads across stories, videos and posts on TikTok and Instagram in January, February and March, reaching roughly 4 million users. The accounts mentioned in the document shared posts promoting the Olympics with the hashtags (hash)Beijing2022, (hash)partner and (hash)ad.
Much of the Instagram and TikTok content shared by influencers simply promotes the Winter Olympics, shares photos of some celebrations or provides insight into Chinese cultural practices.
Crystal Kung Minkoff, one of the cast members of Bravo’s “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and listed as one of the influencers hired by Vippi Media, posted a video on her Instagram where she performed at home A fake news broadcast. Simulate the Olympic chair grab game with her kids.
The post then congratulated “Team USA” and said Beijing was the first city to host the Summer and Winter Games. Messages to Minkoff were not immediately answered.
Meanwhile, award-winning Paralympic swimmer and Instagram personality Jessica Long posted to her nearly 100,000 followers on Jan. 27 celebrating the upcoming Olympics. “Have unforgettable memories and fun at the Winter Olympics in Beijing, China.” Lang did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
One of the most compelling videos came from TikTok influencer Ryan Dubs, a “brand king” with more than half a million followers, where he regularly pedds skincare.
Dubs posted a 3-minute interview with Huang Ping, the Chinese consul general in New York, who spoke behind him holding Chinese and American flags.
The ad’s headline includes the Beijing 2022 Olympics hashtag. Huang and Dubs condemned the U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports. Dubs said he has excellent suppliers in China and encourages American entrepreneurs to do business with China. Haung then invited American companies to China in the video. The Beijing Olympics are characterized by brevity, with the dub saying they “helped define China in 2022.” Dubs did not immediately respond to The Associated Press’ request for comment.
It’s unclear how much each influencer is paid for publishing content.
Minkoff, Long, and Dubs use (hash) partners in their posts, but do not directly identify who sponsored the content. Instagram requires influencers to tag sponsors, while both TikTok and Instagram require their users to register posts as a paid partnership with the company. However, most influencers ignore these rules – leaving social media users unaware of who is paying for the posts they see in their feeds.
A Justice Department spokesman did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
