Censorship, homework help and cats: China’s RedNote users welcome ‘TikTok refugees’

Americans fleeing the looming TikTok ban have been warmly welcomed to app Xiaohongshu – or RedNote – despite China’s tight restrictions on what can be posted

“It is the coolest thing,” says Huang Ziyan, a longtime user of Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu, describing the experience as a “21st-century Tower of Babel”.

Huang is referring to the influx of US “TikTok refugees” fleeing the impending ban and the resulting cross-cultural exchange that has seen Americans warmly welcomed – and sometimes given a few helpful tips.

Topics

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