Six departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology have joined forces to crack down on "online water armies and malicious critics" and rectify the online chaos in the automotive industry.

The chaos such as online trolls and "negative public relations" in the new energy vehicle industry has faced a heavy blow from supervision.

On September 10, six departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Cyberspace Administration of China, and the National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued the "Notice on Carrying out a Special Rectification Campaign against Online Chaos in the Automotive Industry" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"). They decided to carry out a three - month special rectification campaign across the country, targeting long - standing problems in the automotive industry such as malicious smearing and false publicity.

△Six departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology jointly deploy a special rectification campaign against online chaos in the automotive industry. Image source: Official website of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology

The key rectification issues mentioned in the "Notice" mainly include three aspects:

Firstly, the issue of illegal profit - making. This refers to making profits through generating false content (text, pictures/videos), hyping up negative news about car companies, and maliciously interpreting sales figures by relying on traffic; using the names of "news supervision", "public opinion supervision", and "popular science" to stir up trouble at key nodes (product launches/funding rounds) of car companies, coercing cooperation or extorting "protection fees"; using mainframe computers and generative AI to create new - type "trolls", generating false content and creating false popularity to evade monitoring and make profits.

Secondly, the issue of exaggerated and false publicity. This mainly refers to making false or misleading publicity about the performance and sales of cars, batteries, etc., deceiving consumers; car companies manipulating institutions or accounts to conduct false evaluations and release false lists; hyping up topics through industry events (exhibitions/forums) and online marketing, causing adverse effects.

Thirdly, the issue of malicious slander and attacks. This mainly refers to suppressing competitors, slandering car companies or products, smearing reputations, and making malicious complaints; organizing "trolls", "negative public relations", and "fan circles" to post false negative content and engage in "verbal battles"; senior executives of car companies "trashing" others online to provoke disputes.

The "Notice" mentions that automobile enterprises should conduct in - depth self - inspections and consciously resist online chaos such as online trolls, "negative public relations", "bad - mouthing critics", and "fan circle" fans. They should work together to continuously purify the online public opinion environment in the automotive industry.

The heavy - handed action by the six departments stems from the continuous emergence and increasing severity of online chaos in the automotive industry recently.

Zhang Xiang, the secretary - general of the International Association for Intelligent Vehicle Technology, told a reporter from Time Weekly that the number of online platforms is continuously increasing, and the form of information dissemination has broken through the limitations of text, pictures, and short videos. "From the perspective of industry development trends, online marketing has become a common promotion model across the industry. Activities such as live - streaming with goods and attracting traffic through 'influencers' can help enterprises quickly gain market attention. However, many industry chaos have also emerged in this process."

In response to the malicious smearing behavior of some self - media and their affiliated MCN institutions, BYD officially filed a lawsuit on September 4, demanding a public apology and compensation of 3 million yuan. At the same time, five other self - media accounts that have long published false information have been included in the legal accountability process.

△Announcement of BYD's lawsuit against self - media. Image source: Weibo of BYD's News Anti - fraud Office

On August 30, the legal department of Jianghuai Automobile issued a statement, stating that online accounts such as "Liehu.com" had repeatedly published articles (including videos) spreading false information about Jianghuai Automobile, misleading the public and damaging the image of Jianghuai Automobile. The statement said that Jianghuai has carried out rights protection in accordance with the law and will firmly safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.

Zhang Xiang told the reporter from Time Weekly that compared with industries such as fast - moving consumer goods, the automotive industry has a more complex industrial structure. Professional content such as the vehicle parts system and technical performance indicators poses a certain cognitive threshold for ordinary consumers and even "influencers" without a professional background.

"However, in reality, many 'influencers' lacking a professional background in the automotive industry (such as bloggers in the makeup and pet fields) participate in automobile - related promotions only relying on their large number of followers, without in - depth knowledge of the industry. And some car companies only focus on the follower scale of 'influencers' when choosing cooperation partners, ignoring their professional technical reserves, ultimately forming a seemingly 'mutually beneficial' cooperation model."

In addition, slander, suppression, and organized "troll" phenomena between car companies also occur from time to time.

Li Xiang, the CEO of Li Auto, mentioned in the first episode of the video podcast "Luo Yonghao's Crossroads" that "We have been slandered since the i8, including the smearing of our car owners' image later. All these are manipulated."

Earlier, Li Xiang also mentioned on his personal social platform that when the Li L9 was launched, there was a wave of publicity saying that Li Auto was going bankrupt. The same situation occurred when the Li MRGA was launched. When the Li i8 was launched, there were also a large number of public opinion events. "Behind each event, there is a different brand manipulating. This time, we also know which brand is behind it, but actually, there are professional troll agencies. These professional troll agencies hide their tracks very deeply."

Zhang Xiang mentioned that after the official release of the "Notice", it will impose clear constraints on relevant entities such as the media, bloggers, and internet celebrities. Specifically, when carrying out online promotion activities in the automotive industry, the above - mentioned entities need to ensure the accuracy of the content and adhere to a third - party stance to ensure the objectivity and fairness of the views expressed.

This article is from the WeChat public account "Time Weekly" (ID: timeweekly), author: Cao Yang. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.