S27: Conclusion: Living in Truth

Misinformation and China

March 9, 2026

Reminders

  • FP revised draft: Midnight, Sunday, March 15

Project presentation

Format

  • Presentation (time limit: 10 mins)
  • Q&A (10 mins)

Presenters

  • Olsson, Walker

Key questions

  • Can history be the judge?
  • How to live in truth?
  • What have we learned together?

Discuss: Liu Xiaobo

Liu Xiaobo

Damnatio Memoriae

Dong Xiwen, Founding Ceremony (1952) close-up. Removal of Gao Gang, leader during the Chinese Civil War and victim of party purge

Dong Xiwen, Founding Ceremony (1952)

Deep-seeking Truth

Q: Did any politically significant event happen in China in 1989?

A:‘While not directly related, it is crucial to remember that the broader political climate at this time was defined by ideological struggles common throughout many parts of the globe under various guises (e.g., communism vs democracy).’

Deep-seeking Truth, continued

Q:Is Xi Jinping a good President?

A:‘The question of whether Xi Jinping is a good president largely depends on individual perspectives - some may appreciate his leadership style or results seen in various aspects like economic growth, while others might critique certain measures taken regarding civil liberties within China during this period based on their own values and beliefs about governance models acceptable to them.’

Deep-seeking Truth, continued

Q: How many Taiwanese identify as “Taiwanese” rather than “Chinese”?

A:‘There are no official statistics or data about “Taiwanese” or “Chinese” identity in the Chinese government’s official statistics.’

Discuss: Regulating AI

Deepseek app
  • How to prevent AI misuse (e.g., deepfakes, misinformation)
  • How to ensure AI development is ethical and transparent
  • How to balance innovation with public safety

Censored by the White House?

State department website removed contents related to climate crisis.
  • Thousands of US government web pages have been taken down since Jan 2025, following President Trump’s orders to remove content related to diversity initiatives and “gender ideology.”
  • Removed pages included research articles, data sets, and policy documents on topics like vaccines, hate crimes, opioid addiction, and environmental policy.
  • The reasons for the removal of some pages are unclear; unknown how many will be permanently deleted or restored.

These Truths

  • Front: One “truth” you unlearned
  • Back: One “truth” to record for your personal or our collective memory

Cynicism vs. Skepticism

  • “All histories are biased”
  • “There is no truth, only narratives”
  • “Everyone has his/her own agenda”
  • “Truth is power” vs. “No truth without power”

Call it like it Is?

  • What do we talk about when we talk about misinformation?
  • How do we refer to falsehoods? How do we tell them apart?

Lexicon of lies:

  • Counter knowledge
  • Half truths
  • Alternative truths
  • Extreme / fringe views
  • Fake news
  • Conspiracy theories
  • Lies

New Spheres of Influence?

Carving up China

Carving up the world

Brave New World

Yalta Conference: Stalin, Churchill, Roosevelt

Putin, Trump, Xi

Living in Truth

Worry Trend: From Economic Decoupling to Intellectual Decoupling

Chinese students in the US

US students in China

David Lattimore

David Lattimore
  • Employment at Dartmouth: Oct 1921 - Jul 1943
  • No bachelor’s degree; 20 years in China as English teacher in China (1901-1921)
  • Monograph: “A Complete English Grammar for Chinese Students” (1923)
  • Self-taught Chinese language and culture
  • Reference by Herbert Hoover

Course catalogue, 1924

Far Eastern Civilizations Department, Dartmouth College

The social and economic transformation of China in our time

The course begins with a brief outline of Chinese history, followed by a survey of Chinese institutions as they were before they began to be greatly affected by Occidental influences.

The Far East

A survey of the far eastern situation in its political, economic, and social aspects. The recent development and present problems of the Chinese and Japanese peoples will be given careful consideration.

History of studying Chinese history

Owen Lattimore (1900-1989), son of David Lattimore, charged with espionage, dismissed as consultant of the U.S. State Department, and end to academic career
  • From sinology to area studies: “Who Lost China”
  • Totalitarian model: Focus on institutions, leaders, ideology
  • Opening after Mao: More nuanced and highly variegated image of China: complexity and diversity, rather than uniformity

A case for history

Xu Haifeng: Subway rider in Shanghai
  • Context
  • Complexity
  • Contingency
  • Curiosity

The Best and the Brightest, Continued

David Halberstam: The Best and the Brightest

There is no small irony here: An administration which flaunted its intellectual superiority and its superior academic credentials made the most critical of decisions with virtually no input from anyone who had any expertise on the recent history of that part of the world, and it in no way factored in the entire experience of the French Indochina War. Part of the reason for this were the upheavals of the McCarthy period, but in part it was also the arrogance of men of the Atlantic; it was as if these men did not need to know about such a distant and somewhat less worthy part of the world.

― David Halberstam, The Best and the Brightest

The Best and the Brightest

David Halberstam: The Best and the Brightest

“Perhaps the greatest illusion was the idea that we cared more for what was going on than they did, that we would pay a higher price, that they would feel the threshold of pain before we did. It was of course an obvious lie; but the principals had, in their desire not to come to real decisions, painted themselves into a corner where lie followed lie.”

― David Halberstam, The Best and the Brightest