{"id":10784,"date":"2026-03-19T13:12:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T12:12:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/savetibet.nl\/?post_type=nieuws&#038;p=10784"},"modified":"2026-04-09T12:37:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T10:37:54","slug":"deepzang-the-digital-propaganda-front-in-chinas-tibet-narrative","status":"publish","type":"nieuws","link":"https:\/\/savetibet.nl\/en\/news\/deepzang-the-digital-propaganda-front-in-chinas-tibet-narrative\/","title":{"rendered":"Deepzang: the digital propaganda front in China\u2019s Tibet narrative"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">Chinese state media reported extensively on 16 March regarding the launch of Deepzang, a Tibetan large language model ostensibly intended to provide \u201can authentic platform for global users seeking to learn about Tibetan culture, history, and politics.\u201d Its stated purpose is to \u201cprevent the dissemination of distorted ideologies and values.\u201d In reality, Deepzang serves as a vehicle to effectively position Chinese state-controlled artificial intelligence (AI) as the authoritative voice, propagating the party-state\u2019s position and propaganda to entrench China\u2019s narrative on Tibet. The very name DeepZang feeds into the CCP strategy of Sinicization by including the Chinese term \u201cZang\u201d for Tibet rather than using the Tibetan term \u201cBod.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">Content analysis of Deepzang<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">The functions of the party-state\u2019s propaganda have remained constant for decades, although the delivery mechanisms have changed over time. China has fully embraced the age of AI technology, and Deepzang is the latest incarnation of Beijing\u2019s efforts to push its position, propaganda and narratives on Tibet. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP)\u2019s intent is clear in the politicized answers Deepzang provides to user queries. Translations of selected queries in Tibetan by users and Deepzang\u2019s responses in Tibetan are appended at the end of this report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">When a user in India enters the word \u201cTibet\u201d (Bod in Tibetan), Deepzang returns text asserting that Tibet has been an inseparable part of China since ancient times. It also states that the name \u201cXizang\u201d (China\u2019s official name for Tibet) is better suited to represent the region\u2019s characteristics and history. The app further frames its responses within the ideology of Chinese socialism, claiming that its outputs are designed to benefit the social and economic development of the Tibetan ethnic group in accordance with China\u2019s laws and policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">When users ask Deepzang about the Dalai Lama, the app returns the CCP position that the 14th Dalai Lama is a religious figure whose activities are not in line with Chinese law and policy. The app regurgitates that Tibet has been part of China since ancient times, and that any attempt to divide the country is firmly opposed. When users attempt to ask in Tibetan about the Dalai Lama specifically as a religious leader of Tibet, the app, instead of giving an answer, displays a message instructing the user to inquire about \u201clegally compliant content.\u201d Open questions about \u201cTibet\u2019s independence\u201d receive a response in line with CCP talking points or the system tells the user to be \u201clegally compliant.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">Similarly, when users ask Deepzang about the Tibetan national anthem, books about Tibetan political history or the self-immolation protests that have occurred inside Tibet, Deepzang again prompts the user to inquire about \u201clegally compliant content,\u201d effectively blocking access to information on these topics entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">User response in Tibet<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">Although Chinese state media claimed that the app was widely downloaded in Tibet within hours of launch, analysis of user comments on Chinese social media Douyin (Tiktok) reveals a mixed overall sentiment with some skeptics questioning if it\u2019s more symbolic than practical. While some commenters said the app is a breakthrough for Tibetan language support, common complaints reference the Deepzang paywall compared to free alternatives like Doubao and Deepseek, slow processing speeds for queries, login issues, Huawei compatibility, search and download difficulties, translation errors and unhelpful content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">One user commented, \u201cThe price is very expensive, unreasonably expensive \u2014 it\u2019s basically designed so that ordinary people won\u2019t use it. It\u2019s not made for regular Tibetan people; it\u2019s just something to put makeup on to polish the image for Xi Jinping and others.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">Another user commented, \u201cI believe this is just something to scam the user for funds that satisfies Xi Jinping\u2019s grand unification ideology. It\u2019s something that other AI models already have (Doubao and several other Chinese AIs support languages like English, German, and even models for China\u2019s other minority languages), but they single it out to demonstrate China\u2019s stance and determination on unity. In reality, it\u2019s engaging in nationalism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">Another user commented, \u201cDownloading requires payment, the translations are nonsense and there are tons of confusing or contradictory information. I just don\u2019t understand why every app or mini-program related to Tibetan language requires payment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">The Yongzin search engine as precedence<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">The CCP has a clear history of attempting to use digital tools to advance its Tibet policy. In 2016, it launched a Tibetan language search engine called Yongzin, which it also promoted as the world\u2019s largest of its kind. However, content analysis of Yongzin revealed that while the platform was presented as a tool for preserving Tibetan culture and history, the actual information it provided on sensitive topics aligned entirely with the Chinese government\u2019s official political narrative. Historical accounts were distorted, and topics related to the Dalai Lama and actual conditions inside Tibet were in alignment with common Chinese state propaganda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">World\u2019s first Tibetan AI?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">China\u2019s externally facing <em>Global Times<\/em> claimed on 16 March that \u201cthe world\u2019s first Tibetan large language model and its application, Deepzang, has been officially unveiled in Lhasa\u2026 The World Record Certification Agency (WRCA) also awarded certification for \u2018the world\u2019s first Tibetan large language model\u2019 at Deepzang\u2019s launch event.\u201d China\u2019s narrative and the promotion of Deepzang as \u201cthe world\u2019s first\u201d disregards earlier developments in Tibetan AI, particularly those from Tibetan exile communities and academic research outside of China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:18px\">Support Tibetans in their struggle for freedom by donating <a href=\"https:\/\/savetibet.nl\/en\/donate\/\">here<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chinese state media reported extensively on 16 March regarding the launch of Deepzang, a Tibetan large language model ostensibly intended to provide \u201can authentic platform for global users seeking to learn about Tibetan culture, history, and politics.\u201d Its stated purpose is to \u201cprevent the dissemination of distorted ideologies and values.\u201d In reality, Deepzang serves as [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":10980,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"categorie":[],"news_tag":[],"class_list":["post-10784","nieuws","type-nieuws","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - 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