Просмотр кода страницы Английская Википедия:COVID-19 misinformation by China

{{Английская Википедия/Панель перехода}}
{{Short description|none}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{Broader|COVID-19 misinformation by governments|Chinese government response to COVID-19}}
{{pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{missing information|section|domestic misinformation (rather, outlandish claims backed with nothing): repeated claims of fomite transmission in contact tracing (e.g. [https://news.sina.cn/gn/2022-01-28/detail-ikyamrmz7931669.d.html coffee machine]), claim of "PCR-negative Covid-infected symptomatic" individuals existing ([http://bj.news.cn/jzzg/2022-05/05/c_1128621147.htm early May, Beijing]), claim of "intermittent shedding" as explanation for PCR shenanigans  ([http://www.news.cn/politics/2022-05/20/c_1128666747.htm mid May, Beijing])|date=May 2022}}  
The [[Government of China|Chinese government]] has actively engaged in [[disinformation]] to downplay the emergence of [[COVID-19]] in China and manipulate information about its [[COVID-19 pandemic|spread around the world]].<ref name="Diplomat">{{Cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/05/welcome-to-the-new-era-of-chinese-government-disinformation/|title=Welcome to the New Era of Chinese Government Disinformation|first=Sarah|last=Cook|website=thediplomat.com|access-date=8 February 2021|archive-date=29 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210329171913/https://thediplomat.com/2020/05/welcome-to-the-new-era-of-chinese-government-disinformation/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NYT 2020-04-22">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/coronavirus-china-disinformation.html|title=Chinese Agents Helped Spread Messages That Sowed Virus Panic in U.S., Officials Say|first1=Edward|last1=Wong|first2=Matthew|last2=Rosenberg|first3=Julian E.|last3=Barnes|newspaper=The New York Times|date=22 April 2020|access-date=8 February 2021|archive-date=4 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210404150302/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/coronavirus-china-disinformation.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The government also detained whistleblowers and journalists claiming they were spreading rumors when they were publicly raising concerns about people being hospitalized for a "mysterious illness" resembling [[SARS]].<ref name="Shih Knowles 2020">{{cite news | last1=Shih | first1=Gerry | last2=Knowles | first2=Hannah | title=A Chinese doctor was one of the first to warn about coronavirus. He got detained - and infected. | newspaper=Washington Post | date=4 February 2020 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/02/04/chinese-doctor-has-coronavirus/ | access-date=10 February 2021 | archive-date=11 February 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210211231105/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/02/04/chinese-doctor-has-coronavirus/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Guardian-Yu 2020">{{cite web | last=Yu | first=Verna | title='Hero who told the truth': Chinese rage over coronavirus death of whistleblower doctor | website=the Guardian | date=7 February 2020 | url=http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/feb/07/coronavirus-chinese-rage-death-whistleblower-doctor-li-wenliang | access-date=30 January 2021 | archive-date=28 February 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228043356/https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/feb/07/coronavirus-chinese-rage-death-whistleblower-doctor-li-wenliang | url-status=live }}</ref>

The blame for the failure to report cases of COVID-19 at the onset is unclear because of the difficulty pinpointing it as a failure by either local or national officials.<ref name="AP NEWS 2020-04 Key days">{{cite web | title=China didn't warn public of likely pandemic for 6 key days | website=AP NEWS | date=15 April 2020 | url=https://apnews.com/article/68a9e1b91de4ffc166acd6012d82c2f9 | access-date=30 January 2021 | archive-date=29 March 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210329200122/https://apnews.com/article/68a9e1b91de4ffc166acd6012d82c2f9 | url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Associated Press]] reported that, "increasing political repression has made officials more hesitant to report cases without a clear green light from the top."<ref name="AP NEWS 2020-04 Key days" /> There are ongoing investigations in an effort to understand what happened, including an investigation by the [[World Health Organization]] (WHO) which will probe into what Wuhan officials knew at the time of the outbreak.<ref name="BBC News 2021-WHO">{{cite web | title=Covid: WHO probe team in China exits Wuhan quarantine | website=BBC News | date=28 January 2021 | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55837009 | access-date=30 January 2021 | archive-date=9 February 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209174827/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55837009 | url-status=live }}</ref>

A 14 February 2021 [[Investigative journalism|exposé]] by the Associated Press said that China took a "leading role" in spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories about COVID-19.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-beijing-only-on-ap-epidemics-media-122b73e134b780919cc1808f3f6f16e8 |title=Anatomy of a conspiracy |access-date=19 February 2021 |archive-date=13 March 2021 |date=15 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313172917/https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-beijing-only-on-ap-epidemics-media-122b73e134b780919cc1808f3f6f16e8 |url-status=live |work=[[Associated Press]] |last1=Kinetz |first1=Erika }}</ref>

==Initial response==

===Downplaying early signs===
In the first weeks, the dangers to the public were downplayed, leaving 11 million Wuhan residents unaware and vulnerable to the virus. Political motivations were blamed in part for the reluctance by local officials to go public as they were "preparing for their annual congresses in January".<ref name="NYTimes-2020-02 Delay">{{cite web | title=As New Coronavirus Spread, China's Old Habits Delayed Fight | website=The New York Times | date=1 February 2020 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/01/world/asia/china-coronavirus.html | access-date=30 January 2021 | archive-date=18 May 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518135637/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/01/world/asia/china-coronavirus.html | url-status=live }}</ref> Despite the increase in COVID cases, officials continued to declare that "there had likely been no more infections."<ref name="NYTimes-2020-02 Delay" />

In a March 2020 interview, Ai Fen, the director of Wuhan Central Hospital's emergency department, stated in an interview that "she was told by superiors ... that Wuhan's health commission had issued a directive that medical workers were not to disclose anything about the virus, or the disease it caused, to avoid sparking a panic."<ref>{{cite web |title=The 'Occam's Razor Argument' Has Not Shifted in Favor of a Lab Leak |url=https://www.snopes.com/news/2021/07/16/lab-leak-evidence/ |website=Snopes.com |date=16 July 2021 |publisher=Snopes |access-date=19 July 2021}}</ref>

Chris Buckley and Steven Lee Myers wrote in the ''New York Times'' that "The government's initial handling of the epidemic allowed the virus to gain a tenacious hold. At critical moments, officials chose to put secrecy and order ahead of openly confronting the growing crisis to avoid public alarm and political embarrassment."<ref name="NYTimes-2020-02 Delay" />

By summer 2020, China had the virus largely under control.<ref name="Lancet-COVID-China-lessons2">{{cite journal |last1=Lancet |first1=The |date=25 July 2020 |title=COVID-19 and China: lessons and the way forward |journal=The Lancet |volume=396 |issue=10246 |pages=213 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(20)31637-8 |pmc=7377676 |pmid=32711779}}</ref> In December 2020, the BBC published a retrospective into how Chinese [[state media]] and China's online government censors had suppressed negative information and propagandized what was reported.<ref name="BBC News 2020">{{cite web | title=China Covid-19: How state media and censorship took on coronavirus | website=BBC News | date=29 December 2020 | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55355401 | access-date=30 January 2021 | archive-date=1 February 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201232609/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55355401 | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Silencing of medical workers ===
[[Li Wenliang]] was an ophthalmologist at [[Wuhan Central Hospital]]. On 30 December 2019, he had seen seven cases of a virus he thought looked like [[SARS]]. He sent a message to fellow doctors in a chat group warning them to wear protective clothing to avoid infection. He and seven other doctors were later told to come to the Public Security Bureau and told to sign a letter. The letter accused them of "making false comments" that would "disturb the social order". Wang Guangbao, who is a Chinese surgeon and science writer, later said that by 1 January, people in medical circles thought that a SARS-like virus might be spreading, but the police warning discouraged them from talking openly about it.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shih |first1=Gerry|last2=Rauhala |first2=Emily|last3=Sun|first3=Lena H.|title=Early missteps and state secrecy in China probably allowed the coronavirus to spread farther and faster |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/02/01/early-missteps-state-secrecy-china-likely-allowed-coronavirus-spread-farther-faster/ |newspaper=Washington Post |date=1 February 2020}}</ref> Li later died of the virus, and China later apologized to his family and overturned the warning in the letter.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-51403795|title=Li Wenliang: Coronavirus kills Chinese whistleblower doctor|work=BBC News|date=7 February 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/20/chinese-inquiry-exonerates-coronavirus-whistleblower-doctor-li-wenliang | title=Chinese inquiry exonerates coronavirus whistleblower doctor | work=The Guardian | date=21 March 2020 | access-date=21 March 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200320234908/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/20/chinese-inquiry-exonerates-coronavirus-whistleblower-doctor-li-wenliang | archive-date=20 March 2020 | url-status=live }}</ref>

A nurse said that by early January, doctors and nurses had noticed that they too were getting sick. Hospital administrators made long calls to the City Government and Health Commission. However, medical personnel were not allowed to wear protective gear, because it would cause panic. Health and governance experts place much of the blame on higher-level officials, as local authorities in China can be punished for reporting bad news.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/wuhan-health-international-news-social-media-beijing-b981ea744ee2a25f89c5abb0e8c1e92f|title=Wuhan officials face questions, anger over virus response|date=29 April 2021|website=AP NEWS}}</ref>

=== Arrest or disappearance of citizen journalists ===
As of December 2020, around a year after the outbreak, at least 47 journalists were currently in detention in China for their reporting on the initial coronavirus outbreak.<ref>{{Cite web|author=Nectar Gan and James Griffiths|title=Chinese journalist who documented Wuhan coronavirus outbreak jailed for 4 years|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/28/asia/china-journalist-zhang-zhan-intl-hnk/index.html|access-date=29 December 2020|website=CNN|date=28 December 2020 |archive-date=29 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201229153534/https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/28/asia/china-journalist-zhang-zhan-intl-hnk/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Chinese citizen journalist [[Chen Qiushi]] started reporting on the outbreak from Wuhan on 23 January 2020. He disappeared on 6 February. On 24 September, a friend said he had been found. He was being supervised by "a certain government department", but would not face prosecution for the moment because he had not contacted opposition groups.<ref name=guardianChenQiushiMissing>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/10/coronavirus-journalist-missing-in-wuhan-as-anger-towards-chinese-authorities-grows|title=Coronavirus: journalist missing in Wuhan as anger towards Chinese authorities grows|date=10 February 2020|work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref name=GuardianChenQiushiFound>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/24/wuhan-covid-journalist-missing-since-february-found-says-friend-chen-qiushi-china|title=Wuhan Covid journalist missing since February found, says friend|date=24 September 2020|work=The Guardian}}</ref>

[[Fang Bin]] is a Chinese citizen journalist who broadcast images of Wuhan during the outbreak several times on social media. He was arrested several times during February 2020. The last arrest was on 9 February, and as of September 2020, he had not been seen in public since.<ref name=GuardianChenQiushiFound/>

[[Li Zehua]] was reporting on the outbreak from Wuhan in February 2020. On 26 February, he was caught by the authorities after livestreaming part of the chase. On 22 April, he returned to social media with a brief statement in which he quoted a proverb that the human mind was "prone to err." A friend said he may have been told by authorities to make the statement.<ref name=GuardianLiZehuaReappears>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/22/missing-wuhan-citizen-journalist-reappears-after-two-months|title=Missing Wuhan citizen journalist reappears after two months|date=22 April 2020|work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Missing citizen journalist Li Zehua back online after 'quarantine'|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3081298/missing-chinese-citizen-journalist-li-zehua-back-online-after|date=23 April 2020|website=South China Morning Post|language=en|access-date=1 June 2020}}</ref>

Another citizen journalist, [[Zhang Zhan]], stopped sharing information on social media in May 2020. On 28 December, she was sentenced to 4 years in prison. According to one of her attorneys, she was convicted of "[[picking quarrels and provoking trouble]]".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2020/12/29/951258654/u-s-and-eu-condemn-jailing-of-lawyer-who-reported-on-coronavirus-in-wuhan|title=U.S. And EU Condemn Jailing Of Lawyer Who Reported On Coronavirus In Wuhan|newspaper=NPR|date=29 December 2020|last1=Oxner|first1=Reese}}</ref>

=== Early response disinformation ===
[[File:Xi_jinping_and_Li_keqiang.jpg|thumb|240x240px|[[Chinese Communist Party]] general secretary [[Xi Jinping]] (left) and [[State Council of the People's Republic of China|State Council]] Premier [[Li Keqiang]]]]
In the early stages of the outbreak, the Chinese [[National Health Commission]] stated it had no "clear evidence" of human-to-human transmissions.<ref name="SCMPH2H">{{Cite news|date=31 January 2020|title=Paper on human transmission of coronavirus sets off social media storm in China|work=South China Morning Post|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3048460/paper-human-transmission-coronavirus-sets-social-media-storm|url-status=live|access-date=5 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200205122018/https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3048460/paper-human-transmission-coronavirus-sets-social-media-storm|archive-date=5 February 2020}}</ref> However, at this time the high prevalence of human-to-human transmission was evident to doctors and other health workers, but they were forbidden to express their concerns in public.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-55756452|title=Covid-19: Five days that shaped the outbreak|work=BBC News|date=26 January 2021|access-date=14 February 2021|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213224857/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-55756452|url-status=live}}</ref> The Chinese government maintained the stance that human-to-human transmission had not been proven until 20 January 2020 when it was finally confirmed.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kuo|first1=Lily|date=21 January 2020|title=China confirms human-to-human transmission of coronavirus|work=[[The Guardian]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/20/coronavirus-spreads-to-beijing-as-china-confirms-new-cases|access-date=19 April 2020|archive-date=14 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200714011704/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/20/coronavirus-spreads-to-beijing-as-china-confirms-new-cases|url-status=live}}</ref> Research published on 29 January 2020 indicated that, among officially confirmed cases, human-to-human transmission may have started in December 2019, and the delay of disclosure on the results until then, rather than earlier in January, brought criticism of health authorities.<ref name="SCMPH2H" /> [[Wang Guangfa]], one of the health officials, said that "There was uncertainty regarding the human-to-human transmission";<ref name=":0">{{cite web|script-title=zh:卫健委专家组成员王广发回应"可防可控"：并无不妥 外界存在误解_腾讯新闻|trans-title=Wang Guangfa, a member of the expert group of the Health Commission, responded "preventable and controllable": there is nothing wrong with misunderstanding outside_Tencent News|url=https://new.qq.com/omn/20200201/20200201A03EDU00.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200201074528/https://new.qq.com/omn/20200201/20200201A03EDU00.html|archive-date=1 February 2020|access-date=2 March 2020|website=new.qq.com}}</ref> he was infected by a patient within 10 days of making the statement.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="creaders2181398">{{cite web|script-title=zh:上央视称疫情可控 中共专家自己中招被隔离 – 万维读者网|trans-title=CCTV said that the epidemic is controllable, CCP experts themselves were recruited and quarantined – Wanwei Reader Network|url=http://news.creaders.net/china/2020/01/21/2181398.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200302172357/http://news.creaders.net/china/2020/01/21/2181398.html|archive-date=2 March 2020|access-date=2 March 2020|website=news.creaders.net}}</ref>

On 26 January 2020, the editor of the ''[[People's Daily]],'' the official newspaper of the [[Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party|Central Committee]] of the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP), tweeted a claim that the first building of the [[Huoshenshan Hospital]] had been completed in only 16 hours. ''[[The Daily Beast]]'' reported the next day that the building shown in the picture accompanying the tweet was actually a marketing photo of a [[Modular building|modular container building]] sold by the Henan K-Home Steel Structure Company, and not of the actual hospital. A [[Human Rights Watch]] researcher claimed that the post was part of the Chinese government's misinformation campaign to hype the government's response.<ref name="20200127thedailybeast">{{cite news|date=27 January 2020|title=The Chinese Government Is Spreading Coronavirus Disinformation|newspaper=[[The Daily Beast]]|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/coronavirus-disinformation-being-spread-by-chinese-government-to-convince-foreigners-its-doing-a-good-job|access-date=8 February 2021|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420134724/https://www.thedailybeast.com/coronavirus-disinformation-being-spread-by-chinese-government-to-convince-foreigners-its-doing-a-good-job|url-status=live}}</ref> The tweet was later removed and replaced with a video of the modular container buildings being assembled at Huoshenshan Hospital, again stating that the first building had been completed in only 16 hours.<ref>{{cite tweet|user=zlj517|number=1221828307144134656|date=27 January 2020|title=Lijian Zhao}}</ref>

On 15 February 2020, China's [[paramount leader]] and [[General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party|CCP general secretary]] [[Xi Jinping]] published an article which claimed he had learned of the epidemic on 7 January 2020 and had the same day issued a request for information on activities to contain the spread of the disease. However, the original public announcement of that 7 January 2020 meeting did not mention the epidemic, and Xi's claim was unsupported by the evidence.<ref name="yahoo00163380">{{cite web|date=16 February 2020|script-title=ja:習近平「1月7日に感染対策指示」は虚偽か|trans-title=Xi Jinping "infection control instructions to the January 7" is either false|url=https://news.yahoo.co.jp/byline/endohomare/20200216-00163380/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200216131334/https://news.yahoo.co.jp/byline/endohomare/20200216-00163380/|archive-date=16 February 2020|access-date=28 February 2020|website=Yahoo! Japan News|quote=According to the issue of Chinese Communist Party Central Magazine '[[Qiushi]]' printed on February 15, Xi Jinping wrote, in the February 3rd meeting he claimed he had already warned about the novel coronavirus pneumonia on the January 7th meeting. However, there are no record of such in neither the February{{nbsp}}3 meeting announcement nor the 7 January meeting announcement. Which indicate this is a retrospectively made excuse and Xi Jinping have made a lie.}}</ref><ref name="20200217cnn">{{cite web|last=Griffiths|first=James|date=17 February 2020|title=Did Xi Jinping know about the coronavirus outbreak earlier than first suggested?|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2020/02/17/asia/china-coronavirus-xi-jinping-intl-hnk/index.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219052546/https://edition.cnn.com/2020/02/17/asia/china-coronavirus-xi-jinping-intl-hnk/index.html|archive-date=19 February 2020|access-date=28 February 2020|publisher=CNN}}</ref>

== Propagation of multiple locations of origin ==
The Chinese government has made repeated claims that COVID-19 did not originate just in Wuhan, but across multiple locations around the world, from Autumn of 2019.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Sudworth|first=John|date=23 January 2021|title=Wuhan marks its anniversary with triumph and denial|language=en-GB|work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55765875|url-status=live|access-date=3 April 2021|archive-date=31 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331154656/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55765875}}</ref><ref name=":2x" /><ref name=":1" />

In March 2020, ''[[The Washington Post]]'' reviewed Chinese state media as well as posts in social media and discovered that anti-American conspiracy theories that were circulating among Chinese users had "gained steam through a mix of unexplained official statements magnified by social media, censorship and doubts stoked by state media and government officials."<ref name="WaPo 2020-03-05">{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/conspiracy-theorists-blame-the-us-for-coronavirus-china-is-happy-to-encourage-them/2020/03/05/50875458-5dc8-11ea-ac50-18701e14e06d_story.html|title=Conspiracy theorists blame U.S. for coronavirus. China is happy to encourage them.|first=Gerry|last=Shih|via=www.washingtonpost.com|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=18 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200318050859/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/conspiracy-theorists-blame-the-us-for-coronavirus-china-is-happy-to-encourage-them/2020/03/05/50875458-5dc8-11ea-ac50-18701e14e06d_story.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In March 2020, Chinese state media propagated the theory that the spread of the virus may have started in Italy before the Wuhan outbreak, pointing to an interview Italian doctor Giuseppe Remuzzi gave to [[NPR|National Public Radio]], wherein he mentioned reports of unusual pneumonia cases dating back to November and December 2019.<ref name="Quartz">{{Cite web|url=https://qz.com/1823417/italy-now-key-to-china-coronavirus-origin-propaganda-efforts/|title=An Italian doctor is now key to China's efforts to sow confusion over the coronavirus's origins|first=Quartz|last=Staff|website=Quartz|date=24 March 2020 |access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=25 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125224742/https://qz.com/1823417/italy-now-key-to-china-coronavirus-origin-propaganda-efforts/|url-status=live}}</ref> Remuzzi later said that his words were "twisted".<ref name="Times UK">{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/beijing-twisted-my-words-on-coronaviruss-italian-origin-says-scientist-giuseppe-remuzzi-6twwhkrvn|title=Beijing twisted my words on coronavirus's Italian origin, says scientist Giuseppe Remuzzi|first=Didi Tang|last=Beijing|via=www.thetimes.co.uk|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=28 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128101036/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/beijing-twisted-my-words-on-coronaviruss-italian-origin-says-scientist-giuseppe-remuzzi-6twwhkrvn|url-status=live}}</ref>

In November 2020, Chinese state media propagated a misleading account of statements by [[World Health Organization]]'s top emergency director Michael Ryan, speculating that the virus could have originated outside of China.<ref name="NYTimes 2020-12-06">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/06/world/asia/china-covid-origin-falsehoods.html|title=China Peddles Falsehoods to Obscure Origin of Covid Pandemic|first=Javier C.|last=Hernández|newspaper=The New York Times|date=6 December 2020|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=23 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123185015/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/06/world/asia/china-covid-origin-falsehoods.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In an interview with [[Reuters]] on 27 November 2020, Ryan said, "It is clear from a public health perspective that you start your investigations where the human cases first emerged" and repeated that the WHO would seek to send an investigative team to China to probe the origins of the virus.<ref name="Reuters 2020-11-27">{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-who-china-idUSKBN28726F|title=WHO says would be 'highly speculative' to say COVID did not emerge in China|newspaper=Reuters|date=27 November 2020|via=www.reuters.com|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=19 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119160445/https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-who-china-idUSKBN28726F|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 2020, Chinese state media misconstrued research from [[Alexander Kekulé]], the director of the Institute for Biosecurity Research in Halle, using it to suggest the virus emerged in Italy.<ref name="IT Hernandez">{{Cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/asia-pacific/pure-propaganda-china-pushes-case-that-coronavirus-began-elsewhere-1.4429728|title='Pure propaganda': China pushes case that coronavirus began elsewhere|first=Javier C.|last=Hernández|newspaper=The Irish Times|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=19 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219230415/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/asia-pacific/pure-propaganda-china-pushes-case-that-coronavirus-began-elsewhere-1.4429728|url-status=live}}</ref> In media published by [[Xinhua News Agency]], ''[[China Daily]]'', and [[China Global Television Network]] (CGTN), excerpts from an interview Kekulé gave to [[ZDF]] were quoted, purporting that 99.5 percent of the coronavirus spreading around the world at the time was from a variant originating in northern Italy.<ref name="zdf.de">{{Cite web|url=https://www.zdf.de/uri/593c92c4-f4bd-4783-bdb7-5c961c7e7652|title=Kekulé wehrt sich gegen Vereinnahmung durch China|website=www.zdf.de|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=20 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420134728/https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/politik/corona-china-kekule-100.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In follow-up interviews, Kekulé said his words were twisted, calling the Chinese media reports "pure propaganda".<ref name="HT 2020-12-14">{{Cite web|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/german-expert-denies-saying-covid-origin-not-in-wuhan-as-china-passes-the-buck/story-C97H1gRVT4VjBQ4CwLGTAK.html|title='Pure propaganda': German scientist rebuts Chinese media on Covid origin|date=14 December 2020|website=Hindustan Times|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=21 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121234102/https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/german-expert-denies-saying-covid-origin-not-in-wuhan-as-china-passes-the-buck/story-C97H1gRVT4VjBQ4CwLGTAK.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 2020, the ''People's Daily'' featured a study by scientists associated with the state-backed [[Chinese Academy of Sciences]] positing that the earliest human-to-human transmission occurred on the [[Indian subcontinent]] three to four months before the Wuhan outbreak. The study, which was not [[Peer review|peer-reviewed]], was posted on the [[preprint]] platform [[Social Science Research Network|SSRN]]. It was later withdrawn from the platform at the authors' request.<ref name="wsj._China_Floats">{{Cite web |title=China Floats Covid-19 Theories That Point to Foreign Origins, Frozen Food |last=Hua |first=Sha |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=8 December 2020 |access-date=19 January 2021 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-pushes-alternative-theories-about-origin-of-covid-19-11607445463 |archive-date=19 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119075612/https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-pushes-alternative-theories-about-origin-of-covid-19-11607445463 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Origin disinformation ===
[[File:Geng_Shuang_(cropped).png|thumb|Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang promoted claims that the US had engineered a bioweapon.]]
There is evidence that the Chinese government has made a vigorous effort to play down its early failures in the crisis and to mitigate the damage it has wrought to its image, by claiming the virus originated outside of China. Chinese state media misconstrued research from academics such as [[Alexander Kekulé]], the director of the Institute for Biosecurity Research in Halle, suggesting it was Italy, not China, where the virus began. Chinese state media also misrepresented statements from Michael Ryan, the World Health Organization's emergency director, insinuating that the virus may have originated outside of China.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Hernández|first=Javier C.|date=6 December 2020|title=China Peddles Falsehoods to Obscure Origin of Covid Pandemic|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/06/world/asia/china-covid-origin-falsehoods.html|access-date=23 January 2021|archive-date=22 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122180556/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/06/world/asia/china-covid-origin-falsehoods.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[CNN]], [[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]], ''The Washington Post,'' ''[[Financial Times]]'', Associated Press and others have reported that Chinese government officials, in response to the outbreak, launched a coordinated disinformation campaign seeking to spread doubt about the origin of the coronavirus and its outbreak.<ref name="RoginPost">{{cite web|last=Rogin|first=Josh|author-link=Josh Rogin|date=18 March 2020|title=China's coronavirus propaganda campaign is putting lives at risk|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/18/chinas-coronavirus-propaganda-campaign-is-putting-lives-risk/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319145226/https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/18/chinas-coronavirus-propaganda-campaign-is-putting-lives-risk/|archive-date=19 March 2020|access-date=18 March 2020|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref><ref name="CNNChineseDiplomat">{{cite news|last1=Westcott|first1=Ben|last2=Jiang|first2=Steven|date=13 March 2020|title=Chinese diplomat promotes conspiracy theory that US military brought coronavirus to Wuhan|publisher=CNN|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/13/asia/china-coronavirus-us-lijian-zhao-intl-hnk/index.html|url-status=live|access-date=18 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200318182148/https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/13/asia/china-coronavirus-us-lijian-zhao-intl-hnk/index.html|archive-date=18 March 2020}}</ref><ref name=":2a">{{Cite news|date=24 March 2020|title=An Italian doctor is now key to China's efforts to sow confusion over the coronavirus's origins|work=[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]]|url=https://qz.com/1823417/italy-now-key-to-china-coronavirus-origin-propaganda-efforts/|access-date=25 November 2020|archive-date=20 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120191502/https://qz.com/1823417/italy-now-key-to-china-coronavirus-origin-propaganda-efforts/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2x">{{Cite news|date=26 November 2020|title=Chinese media step up campaign to muddy probe into Covid origins|work=[[Financial Times]]|url=https://www.ft.com/content/edda14d0-145b-42e4-a1d2-4d64ab73bda1|access-date=26 November 2020|archive-date=26 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126063254/https://www.ft.com/content/edda14d0-145b-42e4-a1d2-4d64ab73bda1|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last1=Molter|first1=Vanessa|last2=DiResta|first2=Renee|date=8 June 2020|title=Pandemics & propaganda: how Chinese state media creates and propagates CCP coronavirus narratives|url=https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/pandemics-propaganda-how-chinese-state-media-creates-and-propagates-ccp-coronavirus-narratives/|journal=Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review|language=en-US|volume=1|issue=3|doi=10.37016/mr-2020-025|doi-access=free|access-date=8 February 2021|archive-date=9 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109173716/https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/pandemics-propaganda-how-chinese-state-media-creates-and-propagates-ccp-coronavirus-narratives/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Kinetz|first=Erika|date=15 February 2021|title=Anatomy of a conspiracy: With COVID, China took leading role|work=[[Associated Press]]|url=https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-beijing-only-on-ap-epidemics-media-122b73e134b780919cc1808f3f6f16e8|url-status=live|access-date=18 February 2021|archive-date=13 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313172917/https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-beijing-only-on-ap-epidemics-media-122b73e134b780919cc1808f3f6f16e8}}</ref> A review of Chinese state media and social media posts in early March 2020, conducted by ''The Washington Post'', found that anti-American conspiracy theories circulating among Chinese users "gained steam through a mix of unexplained official statements magnified by social media, censorship and doubts stoked by state media and government officials".<ref name="ShihChinaEncourage">{{cite web|last=Shih|first=Gerry|date=5 March 2020|title=Conspiracy theorists blame U.S. for coronavirus. China is happy to encourage them.|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/conspiracy-theorists-blame-the-us-for-coronavirus-china-is-happy-to-encourage-them/2020/03/05/50875458-5dc8-11ea-ac50-18701e14e06d_story.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200318050859/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/conspiracy-theorists-blame-the-us-for-coronavirus-china-is-happy-to-encourage-them/2020/03/05/50875458-5dc8-11ea-ac50-18701e14e06d_story.html|archive-date=18 March 2020|access-date=18 March 2020|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> United States Department of State officials,<ref name="AFPDangerous">{{cite news|last=Tandon|first=Shaun|date=16 March 2020|title=US summons Chinese ambassador over 'dangerous and ridiculous' coronavirus conspiracy theory|agency=Agence France-Presse|url=https://www.hongkongfp.com/2020/03/16/us-summons-chinese-ambassador-dangerous-ridiculous-coronavirus-conspiracy-theory/|url-status=live|access-date=18 March 2020|archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20200412062954/https://hongkongfp.com/2020/03/16/us-summons-chinese-ambassador-dangerous-ridiculous-coronavirus-conspiracy-theory/|archive-date=12 April 2020}}</ref> as well as sinologist [[Dali Yang]], have said the campaign was intended to deflect attention away from the Chinese government's mishandling of the crisis.<ref name="ShihChinaEncourage" />

At a press conference on 12 March 2020, two spokesmen for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, [[Zhao Lijian]] and [[Geng Shuang]], promoted the conspiracy theory that the coronavirus had been "bio-engineered" by Western powers and suggested that the US government, specifically the US Army, had spread the virus.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Molter|first1=Vanessa|last2=Webster|first2=Graham|date=31 March 2020|title=Virality Project (China): Coronavirus Conspiracy Claims|url=https://fsi.stanford.edu/news/china-covid19-origin-narrative|access-date=26 November 2020|website=Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies|publisher=[[Stanford University]]|language=en|archive-date=10 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110160854/https://fsi.stanford.edu/news/china-covid19-origin-narrative|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Taiwan News March 2020">{{cite web|last1=Cheng|first1=Ching-Tse|title=China's foreign ministry accuses US military of bringing virus to Wuhan|url=https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3896257|access-date=13 March 2020|work=Taiwan News|date=13 March 2020|archive-date=23 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200323161737/https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3896257|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CNNChineseDiplomat" /> No evidence supports these claims.<ref name="CNNChineseDiplomat" /><ref name="20200318cnn">{{cite news|last=Griffiths|first=James|date=18 March 2020|title=Trump and Beijing agree on the coronavirus crisis: It's someone else's fault|publisher=CNN|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/17/asia/trump-chinese-virus-tweet-intl-hnk/index.html|url-status=live|access-date=18 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200318173526/https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/17/asia/trump-chinese-virus-tweet-intl-hnk/index.html|archive-date=18 March 2020}}</ref> Zhao also pushed these conspiracy theories on Twitter, which is [[Internet censorship in China|blocked in mainland China]] but is used as a [[public diplomacy]] tool by Chinese officials to promote the Chinese government and defend it from criticism.<ref name="CNNChineseDiplomat" /> China's ambassador to South Africa also made these claims on Twitter.<ref name="RoginPost" /><ref name="20200328voanews">{{Cite news|last1=Yuwen|first1=Cheng|last2=Zhan|first2=Qiao|date=28 March 2020|title=US Pushes Back Against Russian, Chinese, Iranian Coronavirus Disinformation|publisher=[[Voice of America]]|url=https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-pushes-back-against-russian-chinese-iranian-coronavirus-disinformation|access-date=28 March 2020|archive-date=28 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328142235/https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-pushes-back-against-russian-chinese-iranian-coronavirus-disinformation|url-status=live}}</ref>

An "intentional disinformation campaign" by China was discussed among the [[Group of Seven]] (G7),<ref name="20200325reuters">{{cite news|last1=Mohammed|first1=Arshad|last2=Brunnstrom|first2=David|date=25 March 2020|title=Pompeo says G7 discussed China's coronavirus 'disinformation'|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-heath-coronavirus-pompeo-china/pompeo-says-g7-discussed-chinas-coronavirus-disinformation-idUSKBN21C2N9|access-date=31 March 2020|archive-date=1 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200401214635/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-heath-coronavirus-pompeo-china/pompeo-says-g7-discussed-chinas-coronavirus-disinformation-idUSKBN21C2N9|url-status=live}}</ref> and the Chinese efforts were condemned by the US Department of State,<ref name="RoginPost" /> which criticized Chinese authorities for spreading "dangerous and ridiculous" conspiracy claims.<ref name="AFPDangerous" /> The US summoned China's ambassador to the United States, [[Cui Tiankai]], to issue a "stern message" over the Chinese government's claims;<ref name="AFPDangerous" /> Cui had disavowed the US military conspiracy theory as "crazy" in a February interview and affirmed his belief in another one in mid-March.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Swan|first1=Jonathan|last2=Allen-Ebrahimian|first2=Bethany|date=22 March 2020|title=Top Chinese official disowns U.S. Military lab coronavirus conspiracy|work=[[Axios (website)|Axios]]|url=https://www.axios.com/china-coronavirus-ambassador-cui-tiankai-1b0404e8-026d-4b7d-8290-98076f95df14.html|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=27 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200427062535/https://www.axios.com/china-coronavirus-ambassador-cui-tiankai-1b0404e8-026d-4b7d-8290-98076f95df14.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

''[[The Observer]]'' reported in April 2020 that China clamped down on the publication of research on the origin of the virus, requiring that all academic papers containing information on COVID-19 be vetted by China's ministry of science and technology before they can be published.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Kirchgaessner|first1=Stephanie|last2=Graham-Harrison|first2=Emma|last3=Kuo|first3=Lily|date=11 April 2020|title=China clamping down on coronavirus research, deleted pages suggest|language=en-GB|work=The Observer|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/11/china-clamping-down-on-coronavirus-research-deleted-pages-suggest|access-date=26 November 2020|issn=0029-7712|archive-date=11 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411175908/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/11/china-clamping-down-on-coronavirus-research-deleted-pages-suggest|url-status=live}}</ref> CNN, for example, published a report about the imposition of new restrictions and central government vetting, quoting an anonymous Chinese researcher's belief that the crackdown "is a coordinated effort from [the] Chinese government to control [the] narrative, and paint it as if the outbreak did not originate in China."<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gan, Hu and Watson|first=Nectar, Caitlin and Ivan|date=16 April 2020|title=Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research, amid US-China row on virus origin|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/12/asia/china-coronavirus-research-restrictions-intl-hnk/index.html|access-date=25 May 2020|website=CNN|archive-date=17 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117123115/https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/12/asia/china-coronavirus-research-restrictions-intl-hnk/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In May 2020, Twitter placed fact-check labels on two of the Chinese government tweets which had falsely suggested that the virus originated in the US and was brought to China by the Americans.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Fernandez|first1=Marisa|title=Twitter fact-checks Chinese official's claims that coronavirus originated in U.S.|url=https://www.axios.com/twitter-fact-checks-chinese-official-27762aac-153b-4b77-ad63-75826fe04eb3.html|access-date=1 June 2020|website=www.axios.com|date=28 May 2020|publisher=Axios|archive-date=3 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603113436/https://www.axios.com/twitter-fact-checks-chinese-official-27762aac-153b-4b77-ad63-75826fe04eb3.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In November 2020, the ''People's Daily'' published the false claim that COVID-19 was "imported" into China.<ref name=":2x" /><ref>{{Cite news|last1=Graham-Harrison|first1=Emma|last2=McKie|first2=Robin|date=29 November 2020|title=A year after Wuhan alarm, China seeks to change Covid origin story|language=en-GB|work=[[The Observer]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/29/a-year-after-wuhan-alarm-china-seeks-to-change-covid-origin-story|access-date=30 November 2020|issn=0029-7712|archive-date=30 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130000005/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/29/a-year-after-wuhan-alarm-china-seeks-to-change-covid-origin-story|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Palmer|first=James|date=25 November 2020|title=How Will Biden's Team Handle China?|work=[[Foreign Policy]]|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/11/25/how-biden-team-handle-china-diplomacy-national-security-beijing/|access-date=25 November 2020|archive-date=25 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125215951/https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/11/25/how-biden-team-handle-china-diplomacy-national-security-beijing/|url-status=live}}</ref> In October 2021, a [[University of Oxford]] researcher found that Chinese state media accounts spread a theory that the virus originated from [[American lobster]]s from Maine.<ref>{{Cite news|date=21 October 2021|title=China-linked disinformation campaign blames Covid on Maine lobsters|work=[[NBC News]]|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/china-linked-disinformation-campaign-blames-covid-maine-lobsters-rcna3236|access-date=28 October 2021}}</ref> In March 2022, ''China Daily'' and ''[[Global Times]]'' republished an article by the British conspiracy website ''[[The Exposé]]'' which falsely claimed COVID-19 was created by [[Moderna]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Cockerell|first=Isobel|date=2022-03-25|title=British homegrown conspiracies get Beijing's stamp of approval|language=en|website=[[Coda Media]]|url=https://www.codastory.com/newsletters/beijing-british-conspiracies}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=2022-04-01 |first1=Legu |last1=Zhang |first2=William |last2=Echols |title=Made by Moderna? China Spreads Yet Another Debunked COVID-19 Conspiracy Theory |url=https://www.polygraph.info/a/fact-check-moderna-vaccine-covid-conspiracy/31781624.html |website=[[Polygraph.info]]}}</ref>

====Huanan market swabs====
{{see also|Huanan live-animal market#swabs|Common raccoon-dog#Coronaviruses}}

The market was closed on January 1,<ref name=scin>{{cite journal |title=Unearthed genetic sequences from China market may point to animal origin of COVID-19 |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/covid-19-origins-missing-sequences |website=www.science.org |language=en}}</ref> Swab samples were taken of surfaces in the market; samples from the actual animals in the market would be more conclusive but could not be collected,<ref name=rdNYT/><ref name=rdatlan/> as and the animals had been removed before public-health authorities from the Chinese CDC came in.<ref name=rdatlan/><ref name=photos_wuhan>{{cite news |last1=Zimmer |first1=Carl |title='He Goes Where the Fire Is': A Virus Hunter in the Wuhan Market |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/21/health/covid-lab-leak-eddie-holmes.html |work=The New York Times |date=21 March 2022}}</ref> Some Chinese researchers had published a [[preprint]] analysis of the Huanan swab samples in February 2022, concluding that the coronavirus in the samples had likely been brought in by humans, not the animals on sale,<ref name=rdatlan/> but omissions in the analysis had raised questions,<ref name=scin/> and the raw sample data had not yet been released.<ref name=rdNYT/><ref name=rdatlan/>

On March 4 of 2023, the raw data from the [[Huanan live-animal market#Swabs|swab samples of the Huanan live-animal market]] were released, or possibly leaked.<ref name=rdNYT>{{cite news |last1=Mueller |first1=Benjamin |title=New Data Links Pandemic's Origins to Raccoon Dogs at Wuhan Market |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/16/science/covid-wuhan-market-raccoon-dogs-lab-leak.html |work=The New York Times |date=17 March 2023}}</ref> No raw genetic data had previously been accessible to any academics not working at Chinese institutions until the genetic sequences from some of the market swabs were uploaded to [[GISAID|an international database]].<ref name=rdNYT/><ref name=rdatlan/> A preliminary analysis of this data was reviewed by the international research community, which said that it made an animal origin (especially the [[common raccoon-dog]] as an intermediate host) much more likely.<ref name=scin/><ref name=rdatlan/> On March 14, an international group of researchers presented a preliminary analysis at a meeting of the [[World Health Organization]]’s [[Scientific Advisory Group for Origins of Novel Pathogens]], at which Chinese COVID-19 researchers were also present.<ref name=rdatlan/> On the 17th of March, the WHO director-general said that the data should have been shared three years earlier, and called on China to be more transparent in its data-sharing.<ref name=rdatlan/> There exists further data from further samples which has not yet been made public.<ref name=rdNYT/> [[Maria Van Kerkhove]], the WHO’s COVID-19 technical lead, called for it to be made public immediately.<ref name=rdatlan>{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2023/03/covid-origins-research-raccoon-dogs-wuhan-market-lab-leak/673390/|url-access=subscription|last=Wu|first=Katherine J.|website=The Atlantic|title=The Strongest Evidence Yet That an Animal Started the Pandemic|orig-date=Originally published 16 March 2023|date=17 March 2023|access-date=17 March 2023}}</ref>

=== US Army and Fort Detrick origins ===

On 12 March 2020, two spokesmen for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zhao Lijian and Geng Shuang, alleged at a press conference that Western powers may have "bio-engineered" the coronavirus, alluding to the US government, but more specifically to the US Army as having created and spread the virus.<ref name="CNN 2020-03-18">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/13/asia/china-coronavirus-us-lijian-zhao-intl-hnk/index.html|title=Chinese diplomat promotes conspiracy theory that US military brought virus to Wuhan - CNN|website=[[CNN]]|date=18 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200318182148/https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/13/asia/china-coronavirus-us-lijian-zhao-intl-hnk/index.html|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=18 March 2020}}</ref>

In January 2021, [[Hua Chunying]] renewed the [[conspiracy theory]] from Zhao and Geng that the [[SARS-CoV-2]] virus originated in the [[United States]] from the U.S. military biology laboratory [[Fort Detrick]]. This conspiracy theory quickly went trending on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, and Hua continued to refer to it on Twitter, while asking the government of the United States to open up Fort Detrick for further investigation to determine if it is the source of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Li|first=Jane|title=China's gift for the Biden inauguration is a conspiracy theory about Covid-19's US origins|url=https://qz.com/1959825/china-renews-its-push-on-a-conspiracy-theory-about-covid-19/|access-date=21 January 2021|website=Quartz|date=20 January 2021 |language=en|archive-date=20 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210220164052/https://qz.com/1959825/china-renews-its-push-on-a-conspiracy-theory-about-covid-19/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Guardian Davidson">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/20/china-revives-conspiracy-theory-of-us-army-link-to-covid|title=China revives conspiracy theory of US army link to Covid|first=Helen|last=Davidson|newspaper=The Guardian |date=20 January 2021|via=www.theguardian.com|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=13 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313130121/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/20/china-revives-conspiracy-theory-of-us-army-link-to-covid|url-status=live}}</ref> In July 2021, the Chinese foreign ministry called on the WHO to investigate Fort Detrick.<ref>{{Cite web|title=China shifts focus to Fort Detrick in rebuff to WHO proposal|url=https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2021/07/19/china-Chinese-foreign-ministry-Fort-Detrick-lab-WHO/3961626705293/|access-date=24 July 2021|website=UPI|language=en}}</ref>

== Treatment misinformation ==

===Traditional Chinese medicine===
{{see also|Lianhua Qingwen}}
Beijing championed [[traditional Chinese medicine]] (TCM) as a way to treat COVID-19.<ref name="BBC 2020-06-28">{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53094603|title=Covid-19: China pushes traditional remedies amid outbreak|work=BBC News|date=28 June 2020|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=5 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205100933/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53094603|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=China is encouraging herbal remedies to treat COVID-19. But scientists warn against it. |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-encouraging-herbal-remedies-treat-covid-19-scientists-warn-against-n1173041 |access-date=12 February 2021 |work=NBC News |language=en |archive-date=12 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210212175145/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-encouraging-herbal-remedies-treat-covid-19-scientists-warn-against-n1173041 |url-status=live }}</ref> In early June 2020, China's State Council Information Office published a white paper titled ''Fighting COVID-19: China In Action'' which details the plans that were put into place to prevent, control and treat COVID-19, including medical services that integrate TCM and scientific medicine to treat the virus.<ref name="Xinhua 2017">{{cite web | title=Full Text: Fighting COVID-19: China in Action - English.news.cn | website=Xinhua | date=21 March 2017 | url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-06/07/c_139120424.htm | access-date=12 February 2021 | archive-date=21 January 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121080646/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-06/07/c_139120424.htm | url-status=dead }}</ref> The paper states that "Chinese herbal formulas and drugs were administered to 92 percent of all confirmed cases" and that 90 percent of confirmed cases in Hubei Province received TCM treatment that proved effective."<ref name="Xinhua 2017" /> While TCM supporters claim that there is no downside to its use, the US National Institutes of Health believe that while there may be some relief of symptoms using TCM, the overall efficacy against COVID-19 is inconclusive. [[Edzard Ernst]], a retired UK-based researcher of complementary medicines is quoted in the journal [[Nature (journal)|''Nature'']] stating, "For TCM there is no good evidence and therefore its use is not just unjustified, but dangerous."<ref name="BBC 2020-06-28" />

== Propagation of disinformation ==
===Kazakh virus===
In July 2020, misinformation about a deadlier virus appearing alongside COVID-19 in Kazakhstan was traced to the Economic and Commercial Office of the Chinese Embassy in Kazakhstan. The misinformation was picked up by Xinhua News Agency and from there spread to other Chinese outlets and internationally.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Kenderdine|first1=Tristan|title=China Missteps With Wild Allegation of a 'New' Deadly Pneumonia in Kazakhstan|url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/07/china-missteps-with-wild-allegation-of-a-new-deadly-pneumonia-in-kazakhstan/|access-date=19 July 2020|website=thediplomat.com|publisher=The Diplomat|archive-date=18 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200718134045/https://thediplomat.com/2020/07/china-missteps-with-wild-allegation-of-a-new-deadly-pneumonia-in-kazakhstan/|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine ===
In January 2021, multiple Chinese state and CCP-affiliated media outlets, including CGTN and the ''Global Times,'' raised doubts about the efficacy of the [[Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine|Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine]], calling for an investigation into the deaths of elderly people in Norway and Germany after receiving the vaccine. According to Reuters, the reports made allegations of "deliberately downplaying the deaths" and "using propaganda power to promote the Pfizer vaccine and smearing Chinese vaccines" and touted Chinese vaccines as "relatively safer due to their mature technology".<ref>{{Cite news|last=|first=|date=20 January 2021|title=Chinese media criticise Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, tout local shots|newspaper=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vaccine-china-idUSKBN29P1HT|url-status=live|access-date=9 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205202118/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vaccine-china-idUSKBN29P1HT|archive-date=5 February 2021|via=www.reuters.com}}</ref>

In April 2021, the [[European External Action Service]] published a report that cited Chinese state media outlets for "selective highlighting" of potential vaccine side-effects and "disregarding contextual information or ongoing research" to present Western vaccines as unsafe.<ref>{{Cite web|date=28 April 2021|title=EEAS Special Report Update: Short Assessment of Narratives and Disinformation Around the COVID-19 Pandemic (Update December 2020 - April 2021)|url=https://euvsdisinfo.eu/eeas-special-report-update-short-assessment-of-narratives-and-disinformation-around-the-covid-19-pandemic-update-december-2020-april-2021/|access-date=28 April 2021|website=EUvsDisinfo|publisher=[[European External Action Service]]|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Emmott|first=Robin|date=28 April 2021|title=Russia, China sow disinformation to undermine trust in Western vaccines, EU report says|work=[[Reuters]]|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/russia-china-sow-disinformation-undermine-trust-western-vaccines-eu-report-says-2021-04-28/|access-date=28 April 2021}}</ref>

== As part of the Cross-Strait conflict ==
{{Excerpt|COVID-19 misinformation|Misinformation targeting Taiwan}}

== International response ==
On 25 March 2020, the "intentional disinformation campaign" by China was discussed among the [[Group of Seven]].<ref name="Reuters staff">{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-heath-coronavirus-pompeo-china-idUSKBN21C2N9|title=Pompeo says G7 discussed China's coronavirus 'disinformation'|newspaper=Reuters|date=25 March 2020|via=www.reuters.com|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=4 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204140137/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-heath-coronavirus-pompeo-china-idUSKBN21C2N9|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 17 March 2020, CGTN aired a video in Arabic that [[Reporters Without Borders]] classified as [[COVID-19 misinformation|misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Wong|first1=Edward|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/coronavirus-china-disinformation.html|title=Chinese Agents Helped Spread Messages That Sowed Virus Panic in U.S., Officials Say|date=22 April 2020|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=22 April 2020|url-status=live|last2=Rosenberg|first2=Matthew|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|last3=Barnes|first3=Julian E.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200422092226/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/coronavirus-china-disinformation.html|archive-date=22 April 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last1=Lipin|first1=Michael|url=https://www.voanews.com/middle-east/voa-news-iran/iran-china-amplify-each-others-allegations-us-coronavirus-culpability|title=Iran, China Amplify Each Other's Allegations of US Coronavirus Culpability|date=24 March 2020|work=[[Voice of America]]|access-date=22 April 2020|url-status=live|last2=Lu|first2=Liyuan|last3=Samadbeygi|first3=Behrooz|last4=Jedinia|first4=Mehdi|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411090739/https://www.voanews.com/middle-east/voa-news-iran/iran-china-amplify-each-others-allegations-us-coronavirus-culpability|archive-date=11 April 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/coronavirus-media-04212020110715.html|title=Press Group Warns of China's Coronavirus Misinformation War|date=21 April 2020|work=[[Radio Free Asia]]|access-date=22 April 2020|url-status=live|editor-last=Mudie|editor-first=Luisetta|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200421182934/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/coronavirus-media-04212020110715.html|archive-date=21 April 2020}}</ref>

In August 2021, the Swiss [[Federal Department of Foreign Affairs]] asked Chinese state media to remove widely quoted allegations, attributed to a non-existing Swiss biologist, that the United States pressured the WHO to blame China for the pandemic.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Davidson|first=Helen|date=11 August 2021|title=Chinese media in fake news claims over Swiss scientist critical of US|work=[[The Guardian]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/11/chinese-media-fake-news-claims-swiss-scientist-wilson-edwards-critical-of-us|access-date=14 August 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=11 August 2021|title=Swiss ask Chinese media to pull quotes from 'fake' citizen|work=[[Associated Press]]|url=https://apnews.com/article/europe-science-health-media-coronavirus-pandemic-6101e84e52bda05ede28965a141d66ce|access-date=14 August 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bmj.com/content/374/bmj.n2023|last=Dyer|first=Owen|title=Covid-19: China pressured WHO team to dismiss lab leak theory, claims chief investigator|work=[[BMJ]]|date=13 August 2021}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{cite episode|title=China's COVID Secrets|series=Frontline|series-link=Frontline (American TV program)|network=[[PBS]]|station=[[WGBH-TV|WGBH]]|date=February 2, 2021|season=39|number=12|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/documentary/chinas-covid-secrets/|access-date=October 3, 2023}}

{{COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China}}
{{Disinformation|state=collapsed}}
{{Cross-Strait relations}}

[[Category:COVID-19 misinformation by country|China]]
[[Category:Politics of China]]
[[Category:Chinese information operations and information warfare]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theories in China]]
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