Transcript of Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi’s Opening Statement from Hearing on CCP Discourse Power
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Tonight, the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) held a hearing exploring the role of propaganda, censorship, and disinformation in the CCP’s broader strategy to advance its interests around the world, including here in the U.S.
The following witnesses provided testimony:
- Ms. Yaqiu Wang, Research Director, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Freedom House
- Mr. John Garnaut, Analyst, Garnaut Global
- Mr. Miles Yu, Director of the China Center, Hudson Institute
Below is a transcript of the opening statement from Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL). Footage of the Ranking Member’s opening statement can be found here, and his questions to the witnesses can be found here.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Before I begin, I’d like to share a message with all of you.
Now, before you ask, no, Donald Trump did not become fluent in Mandarin since he left the White House. In fact, this video is not even real. It’s an AI-generated deepfake from TikTok that came from the PRC.
During our time on this committee, we’ve seen how our strategic competition with the CCP has unfolded across many sectors. But tonight, we’re here the CCP’s efforts to conduct “discourse power” – or what some experts describe as information warfare – and the CCP’s use of social media.
This deepfake of Donald Trump is a peek into what the future holds for all of us. As technology improves, so too will deepfakes’ ability to run undetected across social media.
Tonight, I want to highlight two points: first, the threat that new social media technologies pose to our national security, and second, how such tactics fit into the authoritarian playbook used by the CCP.
Now first—We’re already familiar with the threats existing technologies pose. In 2016, we saw firsthand how Russia used social media to sow domestic discord, muddy people’s newsfeeds and interfere in our elections. Now we’re seeing how pro-CCP forces have adopted similar tactics. Take this news story about the Maui wildfires, for example: the headline reads, “Is America Behind the Hawai’i Wildfires? MI6 Says It Was A Weather Weapon Experiment.” The article’s text wildly claims the fires were a “deliberate act of sabotage.” This story was part of a disinformation campaign that over 85 pro-CCP accounts spread across 15 social media platforms.
As we head into the 2024 elections, we must now contend with additional technologies, like the deepfake video you just saw, that present new challenges. One video featuring fake Donald Trump is alarming enough, but similar tactics applied on a broader scale by a foreign adversary present challenges we have never faced before.
Of course, we cannot talk about the CCP’s influence over online content without discussing TikTok. As many of you know, TikTok’s parent corporation is ByteDance, a PRC-based company. According to independent analysts, there are many cases when ByteDance and TikTok suppressed content unfavorable to the CCP. This is unacceptable and raises the concern that social media platforms in the U.S. are subject to coercion by the CCP, or even other regimes.
Put in the wrong hands, online influence operations can foment unrest, sway elections, and in the worst circumstances, could cause political violence. This is the authoritarian playbook.
This leads me to my second point: the CCP is intent on using its authoritarian playbook. The intent is clear in Chairman Xi Jinping’s own words. In a 2013 speech called “Telling China’s Story Well,” he outlines that telling China’s story well means “doing a good job in external propaganda.” To Chairman Xi, the emphasis is on painting a pretty picture, not an accurate one.
This is the challenge we face: a tech savvy CCP intent on twisting narratives to undermine the U.S. and come out on top in this strategic competition. If we turn our heads and look away, we risk ceding control of our public discourse to the CCP.
We must be resolute in embracing facts and repelling malign influence operations. This starts with being clear-eyed about the challenges we face and leaning hard on our values of truth and democracy.
I look forward to the discussion tonight on the CCP’s information manipulation tactics and how we can combat them moving forward.
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