China used TV, TikTok stars in discreet Winter Olympics campaign

WASHINGTON >> A “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” TV star, a Paralympic swimmer and a self-described “brand king” were among the Instagram and TikTok influencers who were paid by Chinese officials for a discreet campaign that promoted the Beijing Winter Olympics, new Justice Department documents reveal.

The social media posts fanned across a variety of popular Instagram and TikTok accounts that have a combined following of 5 million people who follow their videos, photos and content about travel destinations, sports, fashion and women's issues. The Chinese Consulate in New York paid $300,000 to New Jersey-based firm Vippi Media to recruit the influencers. The posts were not properly labeled as ads in the way that TikTok and Instagram requires.

“It allows them to boost the reach and the resonance of their messaging to make it appear to be authentic, independent content,” Jessica Brandt, a Brookings Institution expert on foreign interference and disinformation, said of China's social media campaign.

More details about the social media campaign were disclosed in filings Monday with the Justice Department, just days after an Associated Press examination revealed that China is using a sweeping network of influencers and social media accounts to subtly proffer propaganda to users around the globe. The AP's reporting found that Vippi Media had not yet filed updates with the Justice Department on its influencer campaign, even though federal law requires the company to do so within 24 hours of materials being disseminated. The company had registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, a 1938 law that is meant to allow Americans to know when foreign entities are trying to influence public opinion or policymakers.

Vippi Media's campaign, targeted at U.S. social media users, reached roughly 4 million users with ads that were scattered in stories, videos and posts across TikTok and Instagram in January, February and March by nearly a dozen influencers. The accounts named in the filing shared posts promoting the Olympics with the hashtags #Beijing2022, #partner and #ad.

Crystal Kung Minkoff, a cast member of Bravo's “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” was listed as one of the influencers hired by Vippi Media. Others included Jessica Long, a decorated Paralympic swimmer, and TikTok influencer Ryan Dubs.