Gen Z (short for Generation Z) refers to the demographic cohort of people born between 1997 and 2012. Following Millennials, they are known as the first true “digital natives” who have grown up with smartphones, social media, and the internet constantly at their fingertips.
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Lately, my Instagram algorithm has been this. [music] Overnight, it seems that every Jenzir has entered a very Chinese part of their life, smoking Chungwa cigarettes and getting piss drunk with Chinese uncles in the middle of Eunan province. For many people of my generation, China has become a new cool and hip place. Even though just a couple of years ago it was vilified as one of the biggest evils in the world. Terrorizing protesters, genociding Muslims, and watching its citizens every move. So what changed? And why does Gen Z love China so much? >> [music] >> One of the big factors in Gen Z’s opinion about China could be seeing their progress and wondering why can’t we have what they are having.
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If you look up China on social media, you’ll be bombarded with videos of high-speed trains, shiny new buildings with neon lights, and reels of two Chinese dudes explaining what kind of animal this is. >> What kind of animal is this? >> This is a hierax. It is not just some [ __ ] with fur. >> For the most part, there is a genuine obsession with China. I mean, it’s this far away land with this mysterious government and even more cryptic cuisine. But I think a lot of this fascination with the country comes from dissatisfaction with Western stagnation. In the eyes of many, Western countries, especially the USA,
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have dropped the ball and burnt a lot of international goodwill in the past few years. If you go on Twitter, you’ll find a buttload of posts saying how the West has fallen, showcasing trash on streets, the homeless doing the phanto, politicians saying outrageous [ __ ] you know, just to name a few things. But worst of all, black people online. The West is depicted as a civilization in decline. No shiny new infrastructure and just continuous bickering. And as people living in the West, we tend to be far more self-critical of ourselves, as that’s who we’re most familiar with. But besides online photos,
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one of the biggest factors in China’s image online amongst the younger generation would have to be politics. I think Gen Z’s sentiment towards China can be best summed up with this meme. The 2020s so far have been marked by a chaotic geopolitical scene. It seems that every year there’s a new war erupting. Out of all of them, the Israel Gaza war has been by far [music] the most influential. For a lot of people, Israel’s conduct during this conflict has been absolutely despicable. Over 75,000 people were killed, 90% of whom are believed to be civilians. Schools and hospitals blasted to smitherines and between 85 to 95% of all buildings in the strip destroyed.
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Most Genzers watched this unfold live. All the while, many Israelis online were cheering for the destruction of Palestine. As a result, Gen Z has become the most anti-Israel generation in human history. But unlike them, most Western governments have continued to support the country as it absolutely pummeled Gaza. As a result, my generation has become overly critical of the West. For years, both the United States and Europe have propagated how therefore peace, stability, democracy, human rights, and blah blah blah blah, invading countries all across the globe just to stop genocide, you know.
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But when uh Israel was conducting one, not a single sanction was put against them. For years prior to this, China was painted in the west as this authoritarian boogeyman that was going to invade Taiwan any second now. Just look at all these YouTube videos about it, you know, and what do we get? A [ __ ] nothing burger. Because nothing ever happens. Can you believe it, guys? A war with Taiwan is just a week away. Wow. Just a week away. And then we got the war with Gaza again. [ __ ] me. So when America continued supporting Israel despite its attacks on civilians, many started questioning this narrative.
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Despite being a superpower, China hasn’t really intervened in any foreign wars. Instead, they’ve been developing their country and projecting this image of also developing other less fortunate nations. But that’s not to say that China is this perfect utopian country that wants nothing more but world peace. You know, far from it. [laughter] China’s authoritarianism, treatment of minorities, and bullying of its neighbors in the South China Sea is more than well documented. And despite what angsty teens might say online, not everything bad that China does is a CIA propaganda. So why is China still so appealing to Gen Z?
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On one hand, statistics show that Gen Z is more left-leaning than their older folk. This generation perceives centralized planning not as a cold war relic, but as a necessary tool to combat modern crisis like climate change and housing affordability that in their eyes the free market has failed to solve. On the other hand, Gen Z seems to lean more authoritarian and is less into democracy than other generations. Wild times we live in >> [singing] >> Like, what the [ __ ] are you doing? What? >> Don’t do it. [laughter] This reads more as desiring an end to political squables and red tape and less like surrendering their rights to the whim of a dictator.
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They are instead more willing to trade abstract political freedoms for administrative competence so long as uh the people in charge do their job. >> WISHFUL THINKING, which makes a lot of sense considering lately Western administration seem to be completely out of touch with regular folks. I mean, just look at the Epstein files. Virtually every Western political leader and politicians seems to be implicated in some way, shape, or form, you know. But there’s been uh no convictions or arrests whatsoever. And how many of those uh name dropped in the files are uh still holding office? Distrust in the government is at an all-time high in the west with their country’s leaders being a potential PDF files and starting new unwanted wars every couple of months.
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So China as an alternative becomes very attractive as it project itself as a side that offers desperately needed stability. And seeing the country exude this stability with everything that’s occurred in the US and Europe in the past couple of decades made the younger generation question the mainstream stance on China. And honestly, part of why people are so distrustful now is because it feels like every institution, governments, corporations, social media platforms are constantly collecting information on you which you can put a stop to with incogn. The most valuable thing you possess is not your home,
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not your bank account. Hell, not even your Pokémon card collection from when you were 11, but your data. Everyone wants it, and everyone wants to make money off of it, which is where Incogn steps in. Incognites, including online directories, people search sites, and even commercial databases. Everything from your phone number, address, email, relatives, all the way to your browsing habits is collected and traded between companies you’ve never even heard of. At best, this can result in hundreds of spam calls and at worst to being doxed and even having your identity stolen. Incogn removes that information automatically.
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Instead of spending hours manually emailing hundreds of sketchy data broker sites asking them to delete your information, Incognles requests for you and keeps monitoring them over time. All done in just three easy steps. So if you want to protect your data, go and click the link in the description or use code ironically to get 60% off an annual plan. So don’t waste any time. Go and check out Incogn today. I mean, sure, China is a superpower, and like any, it acts in its own best interest, expanding its sphere of influence as far as possible, which it’s arguably done so in quite predatory ways via death trapping nations in its belt and road initiative,
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as well as its uh neoc colonial efforts in Africa. But in the eyes of many genzers, this method is far more beneficial and more ethical to everyone than the current world policing done by the United States. But there’s more than just politics as to why China became so appealing to the young weaper snappers. That being hyperconumerism. For the past three decades, China has been flooding the global market with all sorts of knickknacks, making people believe that China is this magical place where your gadgets get built, your outfits come from, and your dreams come true. It started off simple with the humble local China shop,
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which evolved into the wacky world of e-commerce sites like AliExpress and its endless possibilities. Overnight, platforms like Teimu and sheen became household names in the world of e-commerce and fast fashion. Jenzers even prefer shopping from Timu than traditional brands like H&M and Zara. To them, it’s the same quality, same unethical practices, but uh much more affordable. And considering Gen Z is the poorest generation in modern history, living in an ever more expensive world, this gives China a lot of leverage. On the other hand, a lot more eccentric fashion heads have also taken the China pill.
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For decades, higherend brands like Prada and Burberry have ditched their classy European artisan heritage, opting instead to outsource their production to regular Chinese warehouses. And China has taken note of this, leveraging the West’s historic dependence on them while also promoting their demands as luxury Chinese goods, taking back what’s theirs. By cutting out the Western middleman, China isn’t just selling products anymore. They are successfully reclaiming the value of their own labor and teaching the new generation that the East is no longer a factory, but the headquarters. But there’s more,
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which brings us to >> [music] >> The internet is more international than ever. Governments all over the world have rushed to it to gain credibility and support through this new medium. Crucially, China understands how to use social media to project soft power and leave a strong cultural impression. And Tik Tok might be the most effective soft power weapon in their arsenal. It starts off simple with Chinese social credit and being chilling memes. two interactive trends like China maxing and you met me in a very Chinese part of my life to shorts dedicated to the superior Chinese lifestyle and innovations or health and beauty remedies.
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I mean there’s a [ __ ] ton of China content. >> I’m telling you the Little John galvanized square steel videos have done more for China’s culture war victory in one year than rock and roll has ever done for America. >> Just like Hollywood movies were used to project American soft power. Tik Tok is just as valuable for China’s goals of controlling the narrative. There are also subtle differences in algorithms between the east and the west. Chinese Tik Tok called Doí and also owned by >> goes through a content filter made by the CCP resulting in more videos about progress and harmony and severely limiting any criticism made towards the system.
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On the other side, Western Tik Tok is more open and varied, but less regulated and more polarizing. It’s still unclear whether this is by nature of free speech, or if the algorithm is tinkered to lean more into outrage and controversies. [music] By sheer comparison, Chinese society is better perceived abroad. As a result, China has also gotten another nice PR boost through other media avenues like video games, movies, cartoons, and [snorts] anime. [music] Yep, Chinese cartoons are real this time. China’s newfound openness to foreign tourists had also played a huge role with travel vlogs highlighting the sides of China that Westerners didn’t get to really see before.
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Some older folk might see the glitz and glamour as cherrypicked propaganda, but for younger folk, this is their first contact with Chinese culture and society. But that’s not to say that all of this was organic. The Chinese government has also actively tried to recruit many influencers to show off the country. If you’ve ever seen a video about Chongqing, the biggest city in the world you’ve never heard of, most likely it was um funded by the CCP. A lot of these videos have the same talking points. >> You’d be forgiven for thinking that we were on Terrairma. However, we are in fact many, many stories high.
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We’re walking on ground level from my hotel the whole way to get here, [music] but you actually realize that you’re on the 22nd floor of a building. >> You might think that you’re on the ground. You have no clue. >> Right now, I’m actually on the 22nd floor. >> It is extremely trippy. But even though it appears I’m on the ground floor, let me show you what floor we’re actually on and turn my camera around. Show you down here. We’re actually on the 22nd floor. It may seem and feel like you’re on a ground level while actually you’re on the 20th floor. [laughter] >> We are 22 floors up. How crazy is that? And it looks like we’re completely on ground level.
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Pretty mind-blowing. and it’s messing up your internal GPS like am I on the 20th floor? I’m on the ground. >> And this is pretty much an open secret, you know. Like a couple of months ago, I had a Chinese agency reach out to me offering to fly me out to film China’s progress and technological advancements and uh make a couple of vlogs out of it, which just shows how effective modern media is at shaping Gen Z’s perception of the country. And finally, we have and then [ __ ] technology pops up. >> Technology So, in the last two to three decades, China has begun leading the way in research and technology.
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Long gone are the days when the label made in China was synonymous with fragility and shitty quality. Now, it’s worn like a badge of honor that stands for high-end, high reliability, and high performance. I mean, just look at their smartphones, their EVs. China doesn’t shy away from massive mega projects either. Each one a spectacle of its own. The three gorgeous dam high-speed trains, the giant bridges over mountains, the army of kung fu fighting robots, all are very flashy and very impressive and leave a strong impression. In the eyes of many, China has already dethroned Japan as the capital of innovation and technology.
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China has like six or seven different cyberpunk mega cities you can choose from. Skyscrapers, highways, metros, I mean, you name it, they have it. Look at the shiny building. Wow. Neon lights. Look at the neon lights. The neon lights mean development. Wow. Shiny new building. Neon lights. But above all else, it sparks envy amongst the younger generation whose politicians aren’t doing well any of this. On one hand, China really does have a lot of cool stuff and reasons to brag. The problem, however, is its state censorship apparatus. Their image gets way too polished. No nuance, no feedback, leading to a one-way content stream.
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For the full picture, we can only really rely on what little info leaks through the great firewall. Chinese Gen Z might have something to say to that as well. They’re dealing pretty much with the same problems as we are in the West. Soaring unemployment rates, soaring real estate prices, wealth inequality, and general distrust in the future of their country. All manifested in a movement called Tankping. A rejection of societal standards of overworking yourself to death. Sounds familiar. It should. Ultimately, I guess the grass is always greener on the side with neon lights, like how Western urbanists praise Japan’s car-free cities.
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While Japanese urbanists love the American grid-like suburbia. Ultimately, this isn’t about whether or not China is objectively better. It’s about who decides what better looks like. It’s all a game of perception, optics, and really confidence. Or in one word, aura. And Gen Z seems to believe that China is aura farming, progress smogging, and no diffing everyone. [music] But let me know what you think. Is China really as technologically advanced as they lead us on to believe? Or is it all just a paper tiger? Let me know in the comment section down below. And as always, if you like the video, leave a like.
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And if you really liked it, press the subscribe button if you already haven’t. My name is Yiannis and you’ve watched Living Around the Clean Europe. [music] >> [music]