Over the past week, as the ban drew nearer, a large number of American TikTok users flocked to a Chinese social media app called Xiaohongshu. The platform, which translates to “little red book” and is being called RedNote by many, surged to top position on the US Apple Store on January 14, with over 700,000 new users. Chinese users have greeted the so-called “TikTok refugees” by producing more English language content.
The reasons why these TikTok users chose Xiaohongshu over other platforms are varied. Some reported wishing to snub the US government over its TikTok ban, while others cited how Xiaohongshu combines the features of TikTok and other familiar social media platforms like Instagram. Few seem to be concerned over fears concerning data collection by the Chinese government.
The move to Xiaohongshu is an unexpected win for China’s soft-power push. The term “soft power” was coined in the late 1980s by American political scientist Joseph Nye. It refers to the ability of a country to influence others through attraction rather than coercion.
The competition between Beijing and Washington for global economic and technological dominance has long been underpinned by soft power. Chinese political theorists such as Yan Xuetong have argued that soft power is the key to China becoming a “great power”. And the US passed a bill in 2024 dedicating US$1.6 billion (£1.3 billion) to “countering Chinese propaganda” over the next five years.
But China has historically been seen as unable to emulate the attractiveness of the world’s more established soft-power bastions. These include not only the US, but also Japan and South Korea, whose popular culture has enjoyed global appeal through television dramas, pop music, anime and video games.
This perception has been challenged by the flood of TikTok refugees to Xiaohongshu. The platform is, like most Chinese apps and internet services, subject to Beijing’s censorship requirements. But its growing western user base has seen online audiences exposed to Chinese content and culture in a way and scale that has not been seen before.
In a comment posted on the platform in Chinese, a self-declared TikTok refugee named Amanda said: “I am so happy to talk to Chinese people and learn about your culture and experiences”. Many Chinese users on Xiaohongshu have welcomed American users, even offering to teach them Chinese.
On January 16, language learning platform Duolingo said it had seen a 216% increase in new Mandarin learners in the US compared to the same time the previous year. This development may well be related to the growing number of Xiaohongshu users in the west.
Interactions between American and Chinese users have also helped challenge mainstream narratives concerning China. Several western users of the platform have questioned the more adversarial rhetoric around China that has become a linchpin of political debates concerning the country. These interactions have, in turn, led Chinese internet users to query their assumptions about the west, with a greater degree of discussion on issues varying from geopolitics to healthcare.
It’s not certain whether Xiaohongshu’s growth, coupled with recent developments in Chinese popular culture such as the success of the Black Myth Wukong video game, will create a “Chinese wave” akin to the movement that saw South Korean popular culture reach global audiences in the late 1990s. Nevertheless, it remains a key step in improving the attractiveness of Chinese culture in the English-speaking world.
Towards the future
Xiaohongshu’s rapid rise, as well as the debates in the west about the threat posed by TikTok, also show how social media and the internet as a whole have become increasingly fragmented in recent years. This has been one of the consequences of a wider backlash against globalisation, with differing geopolitical regions working to create their own version of the internet.
The most prominent example of this has been China’s Golden Shield Project. Known as the “Great Firewall of China”, the project has effectively created an indigenous Chinese internet environment by restricting access to certain websites and building Chinese versions of major western platforms. Should further restrictions occur, it is possible that the internet will be split further from one unified entity into several.
However, this is not an inevitable outcome. In contrast to US Congress, Trump himself has been more reluctant to ban TikTok, and even invited the platform’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, to his inauguration. Such a move is perhaps motivated by the key role TikTok has played in spreading the message of the Maga movement, which is something Trump’s base is loath to part with.
It remains to be seen whether the growth of Xiaohongshu will continue or be a one-off fad. What is clear, though, is that it is the latest phase of the interactions between China and the west – and one that suggests the previous playbook on “great power relations” needs updating.
Tom Harper, Lecturer in International Relations, University of East London
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.