Free Speech

Free Speech Isn’t Welcome on RedNote App

Last week, in anticipation of a ban on the popular video sharing app TikTok in the United States, American TikTok users have began looking for a new app to replace it. This led to  小红书 (Xiaohongshu), also known as “RedNote,” skyrocketing to the number one free app downloaded on the Apple app store.

Many American RedNote users have downloaded the app out of protest of the TikTok ban since like TikTok, RedNote is owned by a Chinese company, Xingyin Information Technology.

While many American users have enjoyed talking to Chinese users on RedNote, sharing memes, and teaching each other their languages, many have noticed that RedNote heavily censors content posted on the app.

RedNote users have reported that their accounts have been suspended for posting pro-Taiwan content or discussing China’s treatment of the Uyghurs and the Tiananmen Square Massacre.

This unfortunately should not come as a surprise. The Chinese government has strict internet regulations, and because RedNote is a Chinese company, it must abide by the Chinese government’s regulations. Many Western social media applications are blocked in China since it is more difficult for the government to censor content.

Even TikTok is forbidden from operating in China, despite ByteDance, its parent company, being a Chinese company, because TikTok does not abide by China’s censorship laws. In fact, ByteDance owns and operates a separate version of TikTok, Douyin, so it can operate in both China and Western markets without having to worry about following China’s strict regulations outside China that could stifle business elsewhere.

Chinese social media companies like RedNote or Douyin must hold a license and are held liable for any information posted on their site; therefore, they must censor content the Chinese government disapproves of. This includes most political discourse, speech critical of Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and much more.

American social media users looking for a new platform that respects their freedom of speech should not look to RedNote as a solution.

Luckily, American social media companies, such as X (formerly Twitter) and Meta, have made commitments to improve free expression on their platforms.

Recently, Meta made the decision to change their content moderation strategy from the use of third-party fact checking programs, which are more susceptible to bias, to a Community Notes program similar to X’s where users create and vote on notes shown on posts to add additional context without censoring the original post. Meta also committed to removing less content to allow for more legitimate political debate.

ALEC supports free speech and opposes government regulations that limit free speech online. Our model policies on online speech, such as our Statement of Principles on Online Free Speech, can be found in our latest publication, Essential Policy Solutions for 2025.


In Depth: Free Speech

Freedom of speech is paramount for the American system of government and American culture. Born from revolution, American society has been created, evolved and progressed based in part, on the First Amendment. More specifically, free speech allows individual’s to use their own voice to ensure “We the People” would control…

+ Free Speech In Depth