[US Trending] Why was Mbappe banned? | New York Times: Is Wang Qishan also in danger? | 3rd Anniversary of Li Keqiang's Death | Primary school student forced to film apology video for wearing red scarf on head
This episode mainly covers multiple trending topics: French star Kylian Mbappé facing a nationwide ban, product pull-downs, and official protests in China over remarks involving a "Chinese dictator" meme; a primary school student forced to apologize for a video mimicking the Young Pioneers' red scarf; heavy police presence for stability maintenance in Hefei, Anhui on the third anniversary of Li Keqiang's death; Shenzhen's new horn-ban regulation sparking complaints from citizens; a Kunming rescue station questioning a petitioner's intentions; a Huawei Zunjie salesman involved in serious verbal threats against a blogger; social security payment demands drawing public attention; the US Department of Defense listing Confucius Institutes as a national security threat; and The New York Times analyzing Xi Jinping's ongoing purges and Wang Qishan's recent status.
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US Trending brings you the voices from outside the Great Firewall. Hello friends and viewers, welcome to today's US Trending, I am Qi Xiaotian. First, let's enter the segment of today's major news. French football superstar Kylian Mbappé recently "disappeared" in China because of a single sentence. Brand terminations, ad pull-downs, account bans, his name in football news becoming "person unknown," and even La Liga match broadcasts suspended by CCTV. What on earth did this French captain say? The story begins with an interview. The video below is behind-the-scenes footage recorded by Mbappé in April this year for the French online show "The Bridge." In the video, Mbappé was asked which internet meme about himself he found the funniest. He said that someone photoshopped his face onto a "Chinese dictator." When playing video games with friends, he often uses this meme. However, Mbappé's mention of the "Chinese dictator" sparked a massive storm in China.
On the evening of October 26, the Chinese football news platform Dongqiudi took the lead in issuing a statement criticizing Mbappé for making remarks that hurt China and the Chinese people. However, the statement immediately added: Because his remarks "involved hurting China and the Chinese people," "we cannot translate them." In other words, the platform could tell you that Mbappé said the wrong thing, but what did he say? That cannot be told to you. Meanwhile, CCTV began a comprehensive halt to the broadcast of events involving La Liga and Mbappé, and related advertisements were also pulled. On the same day, CCTV headquarters also sent a letter to La Liga President Tebas, demanding that Real Madrid and Mbappé himself issue a public apology and submit a written letter of apology to CCTV headquarters. Starting in the early hours of October 27, Chinese brands quickly severed ties with Mbappé. "Bu Shuila," a brand under Dongpeng Beverage, announced the termination of all cooperation; Mengniu subsequently also announced the termination of cooperation; and Milkground deleted related promotional content. Major international brands including Dior, RIMOWA, On, Nike, Hublot, and Oakley also removed Mbappé-related content from their official Chinese platforms. Xiaohongshu specifically issued a statement emphasizing that cooperation between the two sides had ended as early as the end of 2024 and deleted its related materials. That afternoon, Mbappé's Weibo and Xiaohongshu accounts were successively banned from posting. The actions of major Chinese sports platforms were also swift. In Hupu's Ballon d'Or rankings, Mbappé was directly removed; when Dongqiudi announced the complete rankings for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, Mbappé, who was originally ranked second, had his name directly changed to four characters: "Person not found." Netizens joked: The football star ranked second in the world is still here; once in Chinese cyberspace, his name is gone.
Offline merchants also began to take action. A netizen in Hebei went to a Lawson convenience store to buy a "Bu Shuila" drink printed with Mbappé's portrait, but when checking out, the clerk suddenly received a notice and immediately took back the drink, refusing to sell it. At the Xujiahui subway station in Shanghai, a netizen filmed that Mbappé's face on the Bu Shuila advertisement had been covered up. Netizens joked: "Hurry up and buy two bottles, they're already collector's items." Meanwhile, Chinese state media also began densely criticizing Mbappé. The Guangming Daily stated that "the deceased great leader of China cannot be allowed to be insulted"; the Global Times said Mbappé "deserved to fall"; and the Dahe Daily criticized him for "biting the hand that feeds him." On October 27, this matter even escalated from sports news to the diplomatic level. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs press conference, an AFP journalist asked about the Chinese government's attitude toward the matter. Spokesperson Guo Jiakun responded: "Words and deeds that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be jointly resisted by all sectors of Chinese society." The absurdity is that even after the matter reached this point, netizens inside the Great Firewall still do not know: What on earth did Mbappé say? Some well-informed netizens played charades in the comment section, but that interview which truly sparked the controversy could not be seen by anyone in mainland China. Some netizens even posted a selling listing on Xianyu saying "4.9 RMB to tell you what Mbappé said." Other netizens went to ask Doubao, DeepSeek, and Xiaowei AI: "What on earth did Mbappé say?" As a result, multiple domestic AIs all showed situations of refusing to answer. But when netizens asked the auto-reply robot on Weibo, the voice response they got turned out to be: "He just spoke the truth, some people just don't like to hear it."
By the evening of October 27, the matter began to enter the apology stage. La Liga President Tebas first apologized in Spanish on Twitter, and then released a Chinese version of the statement saying: "On behalf of LALIGA, I extend my sincere apologies to the Chinese people." A few hours later, Mbappé himself also issued an apology statement. He said: "Today I understand that these remarks of mine have hurt many people in China and Chinese communities around the world." He stated that he respects the Chinese people and their history and sincerely apologizes for the harm caused. This apology quickly exceeded 30 million views on Twitter. On the evening of October 27, the French interview program The Bridge also released a bilingual French and English statement on Instagram apologizing for the controversy caused by Mbappé discussing memes. On October 28, the Real Madrid club released apologies in French and Chinese regarding "Mbappé's remarks." The CCP party media demanded that those who should apologize all came out to apologize. Dramatically, under every post about the apology on Twitter, it was added below:
Mao Zedong is indeed a dictator
community notes. Meanwhile, Mbappe's supporters have also begun to fight back. An increasing number of Mbappe fans have stated that they are canceling orders for Chinese products such as Alibaba and Huawei to support Mbappe. Netizens pointed out that Mbappe has over 100 million followers on Instagram and a massive base of hardcore fans, many of whom do not believe Mbappe did anything wrong. As of now, the relevant La Liga broadcasts and commercial partnerships with Mbappe have yet to fully recover. The "culprit" behind the whole incident, that set of memes featuring Chinese dictators, was not created by Mbappe himself, nor is it a recently emerged "work insulting China." As early as 2023, the French media outlet 20 Minutes reported on this meme. At that time, because Mbappe held enormous influence within Paris Saint-Germain, European fans began to tease him as the "dictator" of the team, so someone photoshopped his face onto various dictators; Mao Zedong was one of them, and that video, set to Chinese red songs, turned "Mbappe" into "Chairman Mbappe." This meme has been circulating online for at least three years. The matter has blown up so much that, in the end, people behind the Great Firewall cannot even know what Mbappe actually said; everyone was notified that they should be angry, yet they are not allowed to see why they should be angry. Netizens joked: "Only extreme inferiority leads to extreme sensitivity."
Next, we enter the "Phone View of China" segment. Chinese education does not value children's mental health or study pressure, but when it comes to various forms of formalism, it cannot be sloppy at all. Recently, a primary school student wore a red scarf on his head and filmed a video imitating a rapper. Unexpectedly, after the video was released, some netizens accused him of "profaning the red scarf" and demanded an apology. In the end, the primary school student actually recorded an apology video, stating that after being educated by his parents, he had realized the sanctity of the red scarf and would definitely cherish and protect it more in the future. Chinese education emphasizes cultivating innovative talent every day, but as soon as a child shows a little creativity, someone is in a rush to give them a political lecture. The saddest part is not that the red scarf was worn in the wrong place, but that a child might have learned from a young age: expressing oneself is not important; the most important thing is to never make a political mistake. A netizen lamented: A father reporting his own child is just like the Cultural Revolution.
On October 27, 2023, former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang passed away. Three years later, Li Keqiang's death anniversary still seems to make the General Secretary very nervous. Yesterday was the third anniversary of Li Keqiang's death. Some netizens revealed that a large number of police and plainclothes officers appeared around Hongxing Road in Hefei, Anhui. From one end of the street to the other, there were people observing passersby, and on another nearby road, there were also many plainclothes officers wearing earpieces. According to this netizen's estimate, there were about a dozen to twenty police and plainclothes officers at the scene, and people were stared at when passing by, making it inconvenient even to take photos. Netizens speculated: This is having a guilty conscience; otherwise, why not let people go to commemorate him?
Chinese policy is always a one-size-fits-all approach. Recently, Shenzhen's new ban on honking was implemented, and the people of Shenzhen have all entered the "atavistic" era. Starting November 1, a ban on motor vehicle honking was implemented on all roads throughout Shenzhen, with a fine of 300 yuan for violations, valid for 5 years. However, "for every policy from above, there is a countermeasure from below," and Shenzhen netizens have begun to make memes, posting videos of "Shenzhen citizens using their throats to howl instead of car horns." Netizens complained: Trash cans cannot hold trash, car horns cannot honk, boxes and cabinets cannot store things, and tables cannot have objects placed on them. Why do these people love playing these kinds of tricks? In their minds, is this called "civilization," rather than pure perversion? Sometimes the most chilling thing is not that no one is willing to help you, but that those who should have helped you first think about how to guard against you. On October 25, a netizen posted a video claiming that he went to a relief station in Kunming, Yunnan, to seek help. Unexpectedly, after showing his ID card, the staff first questioned him: "What are your intentions?" In the end, this netizen did not receive any supplies. Netizens said: Chinese relief stations have strict regulations for distributing supplies; for example, if there is no official media tracking and reporting, they will not distribute them. Some Chinese netizens often compare the CCP to the mafia, believing that both share a common characteristic: whoever dares to criticize them may face intimidation.
Of course, Huawei, which is strongly supported by the CCP, has also begun to use mafia-style threats. On October 14, a Xiaohongshu blogger posted an exposé claiming that they had been subjected to severe verbal threats from a suspected sales representative for Huawei's Maextro brand. The other party posted multiple comments containing violent implications, even claiming they would drive a car and a tank to harm the blogger. This account claimed to be a senior consultant for Maextro and Stelato in Haicang, Xiamen. Netizens joked: The salesperson used the following keywords: tank, collision, crushing, meat paste. This salesperson insulted China; it is suggested they surrender to the police immediately.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) recently announced plans to use big data to identify individuals who have not paid into the social security system and mobilize them to enroll. On October 23, a netizen posted a list titled "Roster of Residents Over 22 Not Enrolled in Social Insurance," with the caption: "Those who haven't paid social security have already been found." In the comments section, one netizen complained that collection calls were not only made to him but to every member of his family, causing his entire family to pester him about why he hadn't paid. He remarked: "I just wanted to quietly lie flat on my own, but they ended up making my whole family aware of it." Another netizen said: "I don't even have a job; no matter how many calls they make, it's useless."
Next, we move to our segment on foreign media coverage of China. The United States is further severing the tentacles of China's soft power overseas. This time, the target is the Confucius Institutes that Beijing has operated for years. These institutions, which operate under the guise of Chinese language teaching and cultural exchange, were originally important tools for China to expand its influence abroad. However, the U.S. Department of Defense has now not only listed them as a national security threat but also accused them of changing their names and signage to continue infiltrating American universities. Al Jazeera reported that U.S. Secretary of Defense Hegseth posted a video on social media last Friday, announcing that the Pentagon has added Confucius Institutes to the list of institutions that threaten U.S. national security. For a long time, the U.S. government has accused these institutions of being tools for Beijing's external propaganda and soft power expansion, and has restricted their activities on American campuses through congressional legislation. But Hegseth stated that these institutions have not truly disappeared; instead, they have changed their names and charters to continue operating within American university campuses. Hegseth claimed that the U.S. Department of Defense found 80 new propaganda institutions appearing under different names at 30 universities. According to him, although these institutions have different names, their mission has not changed: to steal intellectual property and exert ideological influence on American college students. Hegseth also stated that over the past two months, the Pentagon has systematically cleared out these institutions. Chinese culture is worth spreading, but cultural exchange and government political propaganda are, after all, two different things. Truly successful soft power should make foreigners voluntarily understand and appreciate a culture, rather than making people suspicious of whether there is a political mission behind it. What do you think? Has the soft power of the Confucius Institutes expanded China's influence, or has it overdrawn the credibility of Chinese culture?
The CCP's Fifth Plenary Session is currently being held in Beijing, and the General Secretary is paving the way for next year's 21st National Congress and his own fourth term as General Secretary. Even Wang Qishan, once a hero of the anti-corruption campaign, may be affected. New York Times reporter Chris Buckley recently published an article titled "A Continuing Purge: Xi Jinping Paves the Way for His Next Term." The article states: Xi Jinping is preparing to begin his fourth term as General Secretary in 2027, at which time he will need to appoint a new group of officials to form the leadership team for the next five years. Neil Thomas, a China politics expert at the Asia Society Policy Institute, believes that the political legacy the General Secretary most wants to leave behind is not a powerful China, but a more powerful Communist Party. This is because, in Xi Jinping's view, only with a powerful Party can there be a powerful country. And to ensure that the new leadership team is absolutely obedient to him, the General Secretary is continuing to push forward what is being called a "continuing purge."
The article specifically mentioned Huang Qifan, the former mayor of Chongqing who was suddenly ousted from power recently. Although retired for eight years at the age of 74, Huang Qifan had maintained a high profile, frequently delivering economic speeches and writing books. In the past, he had worked under multiple senior Chongqing officials who later fell from grace, yet he always remained unscathed. However, this month, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) suddenly announced that Huang Qifan is suspected of severe violations of discipline and law, and is currently under investigation. The New York Times believes that this case may make other retired senior officials feel uneasy. After all, if a former senior official who has been retired for many years and still retains social influence can be investigated, others naturally cannot assume that retirement means safety. Even more sensitive than Huang Qifan is Wang Qishan, the General Secretary's formerly most important anti-corruption ally. The article points out that although 78-year-old Wang Qishan has retired and has not been accused of any illegal acts, multiple former subordinates of his have run into trouble one after another. These include financial official Zhou Liang, disciplinary inspection official Li Xiaohong, and Dong Hong, who once served as Wang Qishan's secretary. Dong Hong was sentenced for corruption as early as 2022. This year, two other former subordinates of Wang Qishan were also transferred away from their positions in the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The specific reasons for these cases remain unclear at present, and there is no evidence to prove that Wang Qishan himself was involved in illegal activities. However, The New York Times points out that these developments have sparked outside speculation: Is the General Secretary beginning to worry that retired senior officials can still retain their political influence through old subordinates and personal networks? Ryan Hass, a China scholar at the Brookings Institution and former CIA analyst, believes that although Wang Qishan once made great contributions to the General Secretary's anti-corruption campaign, he is also one of the few figures who might have sufficient capability and courage to pose political trouble for the General Secretary. This does not mean that Wang Qishan has become the target of an investigation, but rather reflects analysts' assessments of how Xi Jinping views potential political risks within the party.
Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign has gradually shifted from a political movement into a routine system within official circles of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Alicia Garcia-Herrero, a China political scholar at the University of Vienna, described that the "benefits" officials receive are getting smaller and smaller, while the "iron fist" they face is getting heavier and heavier. She believes that next year's party congress is an important moment for the General Secretary to reshuffle the leadership team. During times of economic difficulty, different voices may emerge within the party, and for Xi, creating a sense of fear helps the leadership reach a consensus. However, this long-term purge also has side effects. Benjamin Hillman, a professor at the Australian National University, pointed out that many local governments, especially in rural areas, simply do not have sufficient resources to complete the tasks constantly assigned by the central government. Officials neither have enough money nor enough autonomy, yet they still must produce results. As a result, some people dare not take risks, while others can only cope with inspections by faking results. The General Secretary wants a stronger Chinese Communist Party (CCP), but what ends up being cultivated is a group of officials who only dare to nod and dare not take responsibility. While power becomes increasingly centralized, there may be fewer and fewer people actually solving problems.
At the end of the program, we enter the netizen interaction segment. Charo Pin commented on Feng Ge's documentary about Majuqiao, saying: I predict that this casual labor gathering place of Majuqiao will soon be cleaned up and banned. The awakened Chinese leek commented on China's taxpayers, saying: The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is afraid of the public having a taxpayer consciousness. As long as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) remains in power, taxes and fees within the wall will never be as transparent as in civilized countries. Gaga said: The characteristic of an autocratic government is that it is armed to the teeth yet still fears an infant in swaddling clothes; any slight disturbance makes them panic. Today's US Trending Searches ends here. Thank you all for watching. New viewers and friends, if you like our program, please help like and subscribe, and help us spread these voices outside the wall further. In addition, friends who want to further support our channel can consider joining the membership of US-China Benchmarking. See you in the next episode.