Last summer, I visited Beijing to work with the dissident artist Ai Weiwei on his guest-edit for an edition of the New Statesman. And it was through this connection I began to understand how the Chinese government persuades its people.

Since 1949, China has been controlled by the Communist party and though over the last 30 years the country has opened up considerably to foreign trade and tourists, the party still exerts considerable control over its citizens, particularly their consumption of media. Before the arrival of the internet (the first email in China was sent in 1987), the Chinese government found it relatively easy to control all the main outlets – newspapers, TV, radio and magazines were all sternly monitored by party officials. But as the internet multiplied the platforms to govern, while making them interactive, total control, so beloved by the party, was no longer an option. So, instead of simply blocking everything they disagree with – an impossibility – they decided to intervene in comment threads.

In an attempt to understand the workings of this secretive online army, Ai Weiwei interviewed a 50-center. The commentator wouldn’t reveal his real name, or any of the multiple online identities he adopts (he said the potential damage his exposure could do was “incalculable”). But he did illuminate the intricate workings of his job: “Everyday at 9am I receive an email from my superiors – the internet publicity office of the local government – telling me about the news we’re to comment on for the day,” instructing him in exactly which direction to guide the netizens’ thoughts. The skill of the job, he explains, is in adopting multiple personalities on the same thread – he will pretend to be either “the leader”, or “the follower”. As the leader, he will try and dominate the conversation, while the follower will simply distract users away from the main story by disrupting the conversation or moving it off-topic. “I feel like I have a split personality,” he said.

It’s not always easy work, though, as Isabel Hilton editor of bilingual website chinadialogue.net explains, while the 50-centers “fool some people, China’s web users are now pretty sharp when it comes to sniffing out the party line”. Well-known Chinese blogger Wen Yunchao recently disclosed that internet users can spot the propagandists a mile off: “We pretend we don’t hear or see them,” he said. “We never give any reaction.” So the commentators have to be even more manipulative to disguise their identity. And not too obvious: “The principle I observe,” revealed the 50-center, “is don’t directly praise the government.”

When I asked Ai Weiwei recently about the phenomenon, he sent me a document that has been circulating on the internet in China, entitled ‘The internet commentators’ working directory’. It outlines the key duties and methods of a 50-center. They are encouraged to manipulate in a variety of ways – creating “sensational false news” to distract users from their current line of thought, before revealing it is just rumour, and befriending netizens in private to win their trust, before persuading them out of their views in online forums.

As an example, the 50-center described what he’d do if oil prices went up and citizens were blaming the state: “I’d register an ID and post a comment: ‘Rise, rise however you want, I don’t care. Best if it rises to 50 yuan per litre: it serves you right if you’re too poor to drive. Only those with money should be allowed to drive on the roads…’ The aim is to anger netizens and divert the anger and attention on oil prices to me. I would then change my identity several times and start to condemn myself… Slowly, the content of the page then changes from oil price to what I’ve said. It is very effective.”

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