Two traditions run in parallel every Chinese New Year: in the first, officially sanctioned one, the state broadcaster China Central Television airs a gaudy variety show called the New Year’s Gala. In the second, Internet users tear it to shreds with sharp jokes online.
But this year, propaganda authorities declared victory ahead of time. Just after the Gala finished on Feb. 7 this year, the Cyberspace Administration of China ran an article saying that “The Innovative New Year’s Gala in 2016 Wins the Applause of Netizens.”
Reposted on the website of CCTV, the piece said that over 100,000 Internet users had given the “thumbs-up” to the Gala, that the hashtag #CCTVGala had been seen 2.15 billion times, and that 2.6 million comments had been made about it.
