Taiwanese Internet Celebrity “Goes Undercover” to Expose CCP United Front Tactics, Obtains Rare Direct Evidence

Screenshot from the documentary "China’s United Front Documentary: Part 1," produced by Taiwanese YouTuber "Bajiong," known for his anti-CCP videos. (VOA)

[People News] A Taiwanese influencer, long active in the Chinese market and previously regarded as a “Little Pink” (pro-CCP supporter), released a new documentary last Friday (December 6) after changing his political stance. The film exposes the specific methods used by grassroots CCP United Front units to entice Taiwanese influencers, captured through undercover recordings.

According to Voice of America, Taiwanese scholars noted that while numerous international studies have revealed the CCP’s use of online cognitive warfare, direct evidence has always been lacking. The documentary’s greatest value lies in its use of firsthand material to directly validate longstanding suspicions about CCP activities.

Pro-CCP Influencer "Switches Sides" and Goes Undercover

A scene from the documentary shows a Taiwanese influencer known as "Min Nan Wolf PYC" holding a Chinese flag on the video-sharing platform Douyin, expressing support for a controversial Chinese student delegation visiting Taiwan. The video quickly gained over 5 million views, 180,000 likes, and multiple commercial offers.

However, the person behind the camera was Taiwanese YouTuber "Bajiong," known for his anti-CCP content. It was later revealed that this was a promotional video for their collaborative documentary "China’s United Front Documentary: Part 1."

In the documentary released last Friday on YouTube, “Min Nan Wolf PYC,” whose real name is Chen Boyuan, used his military service completion in Taiwan and plans to return to work in China as a cover to contact Taiwanese influencers living in China and two former collaborators from the Fujian United Front Department. The documentary reconstructs how the CCP recruits and hosts Taiwanese influencers.

One segment features a Fujian Wuyishan United Front officer promising Chen assistance in organizing a "group tour" for influencers visiting the region. The officer also stated that influencers with high online traffic could receive additional travel subsidies on the condition that they share related information upon returning to Taiwan.

Another call was made to a senior editor at Fujian’s Straits Herald newspaper. In the documentary, Chen displayed WeChat messages that revealed past collaborations where the editor sent him extensive news data and asked him to write songs criticizing Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to influence Taiwan’s political environment.

During the call, the editor assured Chen that upon his return to China, he could continue the previous collaboration model and offered to liaise with the Taiwan Affairs Office system to create long-term opportunities for Chen and his associates.

Wen Ziyu, known as "Bajiong," told Voice of America that he had long sought a Taiwanese influencer willing to "switch sides" and help expose the CCP’s United Front tactics. This opportunity materialized in August when Chen approached him for collaboration.

Wen noted that in the second part of the documentary, scheduled for release at the end of December, they will further expose how the CCP United Front Department uses intermediaries like Chen to attract small-scale Taiwanese influencers, online personalities, and video bloggers to China. The film will also reveal details on how funds are legally transferred to Taiwanese influencers to finance their activities.

Sponsoring Travel and Boosting Traffic: Wen Ziyu Exposes CCP’s "Foster, Trap, Eliminate" Strategy

Beyond directly sponsoring travel expenses, Wen Ziyu analyzed that the CCP’s United Front Department also covertly supports Taiwanese influencers through other means. These include employing online bots to boost their traffic on various platforms, making it easier for influencers to secure commercial performances and endorsement deals. They even directly sponsor companies, mandating that specific Taiwanese influencers be used as brand ambassadors, ensuring that all financial transactions remain legal and beyond the reach of Taiwanese regulatory authorities.

Wen explained that the CCP employs similar methods to establish widespread connections with various types of Taiwanese influencers. While their usual content revolves around food, travel, and entertainment, during critical times like elections, they can be mobilized to produce politically oriented content to shape public opinion. Influencers, accustomed to the perks provided by the CCP, often find it hard to refuse such demands for fear of losing their boosted traffic. This "foster, trap, eliminate" approach is a core United Front tactic.

Wen stated: "The initial United Front content is all entertainment. Over time, I get used to the quick and lucrative nature of producing short videos on Douyin (TikTok). I might even gradually abandon my YouTube channel. Then, when election time comes and they ask me to make a video about Ko Wen-je or some political party, how can I say no? If I refuse, my traffic will drop, and I’ll lose my income. This is the essence of 'foster, trap, eliminate.'"

Chen Boyuan: CCP United Front Budgets Influencer Funding Based on Popularity

In an interview with Voice of America, Chen Boyuan admitted that he once genuinely believed the CCP could make China better, based on his personal experiences studying and living in China. However, he became disillusioned in recent years due to betrayals by close friends who seized control of his company. During his military service in Taiwan earlier this year, he encountered information from Taiwan that opened his eyes. This inspired him to create videos to expose the truth.

Chen compared mainland China to The Truman Show, describing it as a world where external criticism of the CCP is inaccessible. This environment fosters a herd mentality among Taiwanese influencers who enter China, leading them to believe that "China isn’t as bad as Taiwan claims," eventually drawing them deeper into the CCP’s influence.

On the other hand, Chen noted that Taiwanese "intermediaries" capable of organizing influencer groups to visit China approach the matter purely as business.

Chen told Voice of America: "The key is the list you submit. What kind of groups are you bringing? For example, influencer groups come at one price, while student groups are priced differently. Whether they include airfare or on-ground reception depends on the CCP’s budget. The budget is determined by your status in Taiwan."

Chen Fangyu: CCP Has Been Using "Influencer United Front Tactics" for Over a Decade

Chen Fangyu, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at Soochow University in Taipei, noted that international think tanks have conducted extensive research on the CCP’s use of influencers for United Front work. For example, Microsoft has published policy reports on this topic. However, these studies often lack firsthand accounts from those directly involved. The recently released documentary on the CCP’s United Front tactics fills this critical gap.

Chen acknowledged that the academic community struggles to accurately assess the exact scale of the CCP’s United Front operations targeting Taiwan. Nonetheless, he emphasized that the situation is indeed severe. The CCP has systematically attracted and trained influencers since as early as 2014, often involving traditional media collaborations. This strategy is well-documented in official CCP publications, making it an overt plan rather than a covert conspiracy.

Chen explained:"They openly tell everyone to do it this way. They’ve even established a central ‘kitchen’ to train influencers and provide them with materials. Once they identify targets, they invite them over through various means. The pool of targets is vast, and the invitations are widespread."

Shen, a Toronto-based YouTube political commentator known as “Gongzi Shen,” elaborated that the CCP’s United Front work targeting Taiwan operates at multiple levels, from different angles, and with varying target groups. The CCP has a highly complex United Front system with operational manuals distributed to local governments, guiding them on how to engage with Taiwanese individuals living in their jurisdictions.

Shen pointed out that the CCP’s United Front tactics invariably revolve around offering benefits, leveraging financial or policy incentives to co-opt Taiwanese influencers. The ultimate goal is to sway public opinion in Taiwan.

Shen told Voice of America: "No matter what the CCP does, who it bribes, or what it says, we must always remember its ultimate goal: promoting unification. If unification were to happen, just look at Hong Kong—freedom and democracy would vanish."

Both Shen and Chen emphasized that Taiwan, as a democratic society, faces significant challenges in defending against such United Front tactics. Strengthening public "media literacy" and fostering an accurate understanding of the CCP’s genuine threat to Taiwan are essential to countering and resisting the manipulation of United Front propaganda.