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Even the country's regulatory authority supports the prevention of ostentatious displays of wealth, fearing negative influences on the younger generation.
In response to Chinese President Xi Jinping's call to build a new system for 'common prosperity,' a Chinese social media platform has decided to ban the posting of ostentatious displays of wealth on its platform.
Last Thursday, Xiaohongshu, often dubbed as China's version of Instagram, revealed that from May to October this year, they have flagged over 8,700 posts and penalized 240 accounts for showcasing their wealth. However, the platform did not specify the actions taken against these accounts, only emphasizing that they have enhanced their artificial intelligence algorithm to more accurately detect boastful posts.
Boastful content on Xiaohongshu is now tagged with warnings and hidden from view.
Even according to Xiaohongshu's newly updated community standards effective since April, users are required to 'refrain from boasting about spending abilities beyond the ordinary person'.
Founded in 2013, Xiaohongshu has attracted approximately 160 million users each month, predominantly women who frequently share lifestyle content, including makeup tips, skincare, and fashion through short clips, livestreams, images, and posts.
As a result, this platform stores a vast amount of content about shopping processes and consumer decisions. According to Xiaohongshu representatives, the decision is 'a good way to evaluate (showing off) whether it is useful or not'.
For a long time, this social media app has been associated with overly exaggerated content. Recently, the app faced severe criticism after discovering some users using its filters to excessively edit or inaccurately describe posted landmarks. Xiaohongshu then had to apologize, stating they support 'sharing authentically', and advising users to avoid excessive embellishment in their posts.
This move by Xiaohongshu also mirrors a new campaign launched by China's leading cyberspace management agency last May. The campaign urges social media platforms to curb ostentatious, extravagant, and hedonistic behaviors that could negatively impact youth development.
But even before the launch of this campaign, since March of this year, Xiaohongshu had been vocal about actions to prevent flaunting behavior by banning over 2,300 accounts suspected of 'intentionally flaunting wealth and malicious calculations.' The month before, two short video platforms in China, including Douyin and Kuaishou, also announced the banning of thousands of accounts for flaunting their wealth.
The commitment of Chinese internet giants to restrain ostentatious content on their platforms comes as the country aims for 'common prosperity' and income redistribution. The wealth gap has been widening in this country over the past four decades as China rises to become the world's second-largest economy.
Refer to Sixthtone
