You probably don't know who he is.
But you should listen how his experience highlights the result of states using culture & sports for coercive soft power (THREAD) 👇#Blizzardboycott
![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EGYnmJoWwAAlxi_.jpg)
These Hearthstone tournaments can involve some serious money, and for many, is their livelihood.
He said [translated]: "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our age!" A protest slogan.
![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EGYnn2IXUAIrxoa.png)
After the statement was made, the stream promptly cut to an ad break.
But what happened after the interview might be revealing.
playhearthstone.com/en-us/blog/231…
![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EGYnpIQXUAAFjlk.png)
A tweet by Houston Rockets Manager supportive of #HongKongProtesters was suddenly deleted after pressure by top NBA higher-ups.
time.com/5694150/nba-ch…
Companies are having investment and the Chinese marketplace leveraged against them by state censors to control not only how that company acts within it's borders, but also internationally.
It's a new pattern of soft power coercive control.
At this stage, I might start sounding like a bit of a right-wing xenophobe. But ultimately, China is ranked 177 out of 180 for press freedom. rsf.org
![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EGYrUf-WoAAl1cG.jpg)
The 2018 Democracy Index ranked China as an Authoritarian Regime.
While Freedom of the house ranks Net censorship as Pervasive.