Cultivating internet celebrities: rural governments answer Beijing’s call to use online personalities to boost tourism and local economies
- A Sichuan county government is using online sensation Dingzhen, a young Tibetan man who went viral online, to boost tourism to the rural region
- In September, China’s Ministry of Culture called on local governments to scout out new internet talent to promote rural tourism
Before going viral, Zhaxi Dingzhen was your average Tibetan herder living in China’s southwestern Sichuan province. His typical day was spent tending to his flock and helping out at home. But a 10-second video posted online would quickly change that routine, turning Dingzhen into an online sensation overnight.
Soon after the video appeared online on November 11, China’s internet users marvelled at Dingzhen’s rugged good looks and herdsman lifestyle in the highland. Millions tuned in to watch a live stream with him and his uncle. Dingzhen, whose Tibetan name is Tenzin, talked to fans through a translator.
Dingzhen is not the first resident of China’s rural hinterlands to catch the attention of the country’s netizens, but he is one of the first to be co-opted by his local government to promote local tourism to the area. More local government tourism offices are now looking to foster their own online celebrities, answering a call from the central government to help revitalise rural economies.
“It looks like a random incident, but it’s not,” said Han Li, an associate professor of Chinese at Rhodes College in the US, referring to Dingzhen’s online fame. Han, who published a study last year on the increasing popularity of rural internet celebrities in China, said that the Litang government appeared to have prepared for an opportunity like this to promote tourism to the county.
“Urbanisation [has been] met with major roadblocks. It’s getting harder and harder to find jobs, and the high living costs mean that it’s increasingly hard for migrant workers to survive and settle down in cities,” she said. “The government is sending the signal, telling people that you should go back to your rural hometowns, where there might be more economic opportunities.”
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Chinese authorities are hoping that the large online followings of internet celebrities can be used to economically benefit certain regions as Beijing prioritises the development of the country’s rural areas. In September, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism issued a notice to local governments, asking them to join an initiative to “cultivate rural internet celebrities”.
