Dr. Puma Shen highlights sophisticated CCP interference operations in Taiwan at US Congress Hearing; urges establishment of a joint ‘center of excellence’ to study disinformation

Key Takeaways

• The U.S. and Taiwan should exchange expertise on countering Communist Party of China (CCP) influence and disinformation by establishing a “center of excellence” to analyze and address disinformation campaigns, including the investigation of IP addresses to uncover the source of campaigns.
• The U.S. can learn from Taiwan’s experience of CCP influence operations, which blend online and offline methods and originate from multiple Chinese government departments, including the United Front Work Department.
• They primarily target the "young generation" and "grassroots" organizations to establish ideology and build dependence among business people, gang members, local officials, religious groups, and politicians.
• U.S. Congress can facilitate the exchange of information and methodologies on countering CCP influence and disinformation operations with Taiwan – and civil society organizations like Doublethink Lab – particularly regarding how to identify CCP proxies and agents.
• China Index data can highlight similarities and differences in the nature of CCP influence and interference globally, and shows how the U.S. is experiencing more significant pressure than Taiwan in the arenas of #economy and #academia.

Puma Shen, Assistant Professor at National Taipei University and Chairperson of Doublethink Lab, today delivered expert testimony to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission calling for the U.S. and Taiwan to exchange expertise on countering Communist Party of China (CCP) influence and disinformation.

Speaking at the "Hearing on China’s Global Influence and Interference Activities" in Washington D.C., Dr. Shen recommended establishing a U.S.-Taiwan “center of excellence” (COE) to analyze and address disinformation campaigns, including the investigation of IP addresses to uncover the source of campaigns.

“This COE would mirror those established within NATO, and cultivate expertise in Chinese language terms to store and analyze CCP disinformation, propaganda, and conspiracy theories,” he said.

Dr. Shen advocated for the U.S. Congress to facilitate the exchange of information and methodologies on countering CCP influence and disinformation operations with Taiwan, particularly regarding how to identify CCP proxies and agents.

U.S. executive branch agencies, including the State Department, should engage proactively in pushing back against China's propaganda and disinformation campaigns in Taiwan, which often aim to undermine the U.S.-Taiwan relationship by spreading anti-U.S. messages, he said.

“Taiwan has developed a model for countering disinformation: legislature, government taskforce and civil society,” he said. “The legal framework is so important ­because it raises public awareness, but China is not passive, it will counter by saying Taiwan and the U.S. have their own influence operations and cyber armies.”

To illustrate, researchers from Dr. Shen’s Doublethink Lab recently exposed how CCP information operations amplified societal divisions around alleged plans to relocate key Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (TSMC) facilities to the American mainland.

The key CCP disinformation narrative was that the U.S. is solely concerned with protecting its semiconductor supply chains, and if the imperative of defending TSMC is removed, it would not come to Taiwan’s aid in the event of conflict in the Taiwan Strait.

Dr. Shen also noted that building resilience and preparedness in Taiwanese society is essential for countering China's aggression, and requires strong military and robust civil defense capabilities.

“Taiwan's military requires more advanced weaponry, and civil defense groups should have more opportunities to engage with their U.S. counterparts to learn from their experiences and best practices,” he said.

Drawing on the research report published alongside the China Index 2022, the first cross-regional project to measure and visualize the PRC’s overseas influence through comparable data in 82 countries, Dr. Shen also outlined how CCP interference can be classified into a framework of three categories: ideological interference, establishing dependence, and rule-making.

“The China Index reveals that the U.S. is experiencing more significant pressure than Taiwan across a spectrum of influence battlegrounds from economy to academia” he noted. China Index data for the U.S., which was collated by the National Bureau of Asian Research between 2020 and 2021, can be viewed on the China Index U.S. country page.

Shen articulated how China’s influence operations target specific groups in Taiwan, and are divided across multiple government departments, including the Ministry of State Security, the Taiwan Affairs Office and the United Front Work Department.

His written testimony, which can be read in full here, elaborated on how China blends online and offline influence methods, primarily to target the "young generation" and "grassroots" organizations, with the aim of establishing ideology and building dependence among business people, gang members, local officials, religious groups, and politicians.

For further information on Doublethink Lab’s work, or to schedule interviews with Dr. Shen and other staff members, please contact david@doublethinklab.org and follow our Twitter @doublethinklab.

About Doublethink Lab
Doublethink Lab (Doublethink) is a civil society organization devoted to studying the malign influence of digital authoritarianism. Doublethink’s strengths lie in the ability to combine a diverse set of research approaches in the social, behavioral, and computational sciences to study state-funded propaganda campaigns, psychological warfare, and related information operations. Doublethink seeks to foster global networks connecting academics, democracy movements, digital communities, like-minded CSOs, and experts on the People’s Republic of China, in order to strengthen global democratic resilience.

About China In The World (CITW)
In 2019, Doublethink Lab and its partners established the China In The World (CITW) network to bring together stakeholders researching the People’s Republic of China (PRC)’s global influence and disinformation strategies. CITW aims to support and unite these stakeholders, improve global and regional awareness of related challenges, and strengthen democratic resilience worldwide. CITW oversees publication of the China Index, the first cross-regional initiative to measure and compare the PRC’s influence in various countries.