The Chinese Internet is subject to strict censorship and critical posts are quickly deleted. But a little pink dinosaur is now giving people courage. What it’s all about.
A pink dinosaur is shaking up the Chinese internet. Tens of thousands of accounts on the Chinese online networks Xiaohongshu and Douban have the same name: Momo. And they comment as much as they can. Their profile pictures show a pink dinosaur with small, round button eyes, flushed cheeks and usually a smile. Sometimes he has a watermelon or flowers in his hand, sometimes he is wearing glasses or headphones. It is an emoji that has been around on the Chinese internet since 2014 and is now finding new use.
Momo is cute, the users think. The little dinosaur, alias Momo, has it all by Chinese standards: he speaks his mind.
“I can say whatever I want”
Someone who uses Momo as an online identity talks to him about it ARD Studio Shanghai – anonymous. Because that’s the reason he has a Momo account in the first place: to remain anonymous. “I sometimes have the feeling that anonymity is very comfortable for me,” he says: “It allows me to express my opinion. I like that. I can say what I want and retain a certain personality.”
The name Momo was originally the default username for new accounts on both Douban and Xiaohongshu. Now he stands for anonymity on the Internet. There are a lot of momos in the comment columns, including on political issues such as high youth unemployment in China. The same applies to feminism or gossip about stars from the democratically ruled island of Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Many people dare to express their opinions under the code name Momo. Employees’ online activities also remain hidden from employers.
Schoolgirls walk through a mall in Beijing with their cell phones. Censorship authorities can find out the identity of “Momo users” via their cell phone numbers.
How anonymous does Momo really make you?
However, you cannot browse the Chinese Internet completely anonymously. In China, every social media account must be verified. With the mobile phone number, which in China must be registered with the ID card. This allows censorship authorities to identify users.
However, many see themselves better protected from attacks and criticism from other Internet users in the illusion of anonymity. Because what is first visible online is the name Momo and the pink dinosaur in the picture. This means there is less personal attack surface. “I have a Momo account because I want to have easier discussions on the Internet in the future. It will stop people from attacking a particular person based on certain characteristics or even attacking them personally,” says dem ARD Studio Shanghai one of the momos: “I want to create a better environment for discussion.”
Cohesion in the Momo community
In addition, momos in the comments also protect each other from harassment and personal hostility from others, explains another Chinese Internet user: “It’s an army of momos. They are very loyal. Even if one momo makes a mistake, all momos become responsible for it take over and defend each other. They are everywhere.”
It’s a gathering of thousands on the Internet that couldn’t exist on the street in China. At least a little anonymous, if not completely.