Falun Gong: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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| l = Dharma Wheel Work

| p = Fǎlún Gōng

| w = FalunFa³-lun² Kung¹

| mi = {{IPAc-cmn|f|a|3|l|un|2|-|g|ong|1}}

| phfs = Fap-lùn-kûng

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| l2 = Great Dharma Wheel Practice

| p2 = Fǎlún Dàfǎ

| miw = {{IPAc-cmn|f|a|3|l|un|2|-|d|a|4|f|a|3}}▼

| iw = {{IPA-yue|faːt lɵn tàːi faːt|}}

| phfs2 = Fap-lùn Thai-fap

| poj2 = Hoat-lûn Tāi-hoat

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| Image size = 150px

| piccap2 = Falun, the emblem of Falun Dafa

| j = faat3 leon4 gung1

| j2 = faat3 leon4 daai6 faat3

| w2 = Fa³-lun² Ta⁴-fa³

▲| miwmi2 = {{IPAc-cmn|f|a|3|l|un|2|-|d|a|4|f|a|3}}

| ci2 = {{IPAc-yue|f|aat|3|-|l|eon|4|-|d|aai|1|-|f|aat|3}}

| ci = {{IPAc-yue|f|aat|3|-|l|eon|4|-|g|ung|1|}}

}}

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<ref>Clarke, Peter. 2004. ''Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements''. Taylor & Francis. {{ISBN|978-1134499694}}</ref>

<ref>Partridge, Christopher. 2004. ''Encyclopedia of New Religions: New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities'', 265–266. Lion. {{ISBN|978-0745950730}}.</ref>

<ref name="OWNBY-195-196">{{Cite book |last=Ownby, |first=David |title=Controversial New Religions |title-link=Controversial New Religions |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-19-515682-9 |editor-last=Lewis |editor-first=James R. 2005|editor-link=James R. "Lewis (scholar) |edition=1st |location=New York |language=en |chapter=The Falun Gong: A New Religious Movement in Post-Mao China" in Lewis, James R. &|editor-last2=Petersen |editor-first2=Jesper Aagaard. Editors. ''Controversial New Religions'', |pages=195–196. Oxford University Press.}}</ref> }} Falun Gong was founded by its leader [[Li Hongzhi]] in [[China]] in the early 1990s. Falun Gong has its global headquarters in [[Dragon Springs]], a {{convert|427|acre|ha|abbr=off|order=flip|adj=on}} compound in [[Deerpark, New York]], United States, near the residence of Li Hongzhi.<ref name="JUNKER-2019-33-101"/><ref name="COLLINS-2019">{{Cite web |last1=Zadrozny |first1=Brandy |last2=Collins |first2=Ben |date=20 August 2019 |title=Trump, QAnon and an impending judgment day: Behind the Facebook-fueled rise of The Epoch Times |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/trump-qanon-impending-judgment-day-behind-facebook-fueled-rise-epoch-n1044121 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190823004157/https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/trump-qanon-impending-judgment-day-behind-facebook-fueled-rise-epoch-n1044121 |archive-date=23 August 2019 |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref><ref name="VAN-DER-MADE-2019">Van der Made, Jaan. 2019. "Shen Yun: Fighting Communism – and making a stack on the side". ''[[Radio France Internationale]]'', May 13, 2019. Online. Last accessed July 6, 2020. ''Quote'': "Dragon Springs Buddhists, Inc. in the town of Cuddebackville functions as its informal headquarters"</ref><ref name="ABC-NEWS-FG-POWER">Campbell, Eric and Hagar Cohen. 2020. "The Power of Falun Gong". ABC News. [https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-21/inside-falun-gong-master-li-hongzhi-the-mountain-dragon-springs/12442518 Online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220908073144/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-21/inside-falun-gong-master-li-hongzhi-the-mountain-dragon-springs/12442518 |date=8 September 2022 }}.</ref>

Led by Li Hongzhi, who is viewed by adherents as a deity-like figure, Falun Gong practitioners operate a variety of organizations in the United States and elsewhere, including the dance troupe [[Shen Yun]].<ref name="Carolyn Maloney">{{cite web |last=Maloney |first=Carolyn |title=In Recognition of Shen Yun; Congressional Record Vol. 168, No. 41 |url=https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/volume-168/issue-41/extensions-of-remarks-section/article/E231-4 |website=congress.gov |access-date=4 July 2023 |archive-date=20 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230620215847/https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/volume-168/issue-41/extensions-of-remarks-section/article/E231-4 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="The Observer">{{cite news |last=Knutsen |first=Elise |title=Shen Yun Performance Brings Out Stars And Awareness |url=https://observer.com/2011/07/shindigger-shen-yun-performance-brings-out-stars-and-awareness/ |access-date=4 July 2023 |agency=[[The Observer]] |date=July 5, 2011 |archive-date=17 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317210821/https://observer.com/2011/07/shindigger-shen-yun-performance-brings-out-stars-and-awareness/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They are known for their opposition to the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP), espousing [[objections to evolution|anti-evolutionary]] views, opposition to [[homosexuality]] and [[feminism]], and rejection of [[modern medicine]], among other views described as "[[Ultraconservatism|ultra-conservative]]".<ref name="The Right-Wing Cult Behind Shen Yun">{{Cite web |last=Dorrell |first=Taylor |date=5 March 2022 |title=The Right-Wing Cult Behind Shen Yun |url=https://columbusfreepress.com/article/right-wing-cult-behind-shen-yun |access-date=2024-05-18 |website=Columbus Free Press}}</ref>{{refn|name=Ultraconservative|<ref name="NBC-ZARDROZNY-2023">Zadrozny, Brandy. 2023. "How the conspiracy-fueled Epoch Times went mainstream and made millions". NBC News, October 13, 2023. [https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/epoch-times-falun-gong-growth-rcna111373 Online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014042433/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/epoch-times-falun-gong-growth-rcna111373 |date=14 October 2023 }}.</ref>

<ref name="NPR-2021-FG-ULTRASURF">Folkenflik, David. 2021. "Falun Gong, Steve Bannon And The Trump-Era Battle Over Internet Freedom". ''NPR''. [https://www.npr.org/2021/04/14/986982387/falun-gong-steve-bannon-and-the-trump-era-battle-over-internet-freedom Online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102140639/https://www.npr.org/2021/04/14/986982387/falun-gong-steve-bannon-and-the-trump-era-battle-over-internet-freedom |date=2 November 2023 }}.</ref>

<ref name="ATLANTIC-2021-MAGA-LAND">Zuylen-Wood, Simon van. 2021. "Maga-Land's Favorite Newspaper". ''The Atlantic''. [https://web.archive.org/web/20231115024927/https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/inside-the-epoch-times-a-mysterious-pro-trump-newspaper/617645/ Archive.org].</ref>

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<ref name="JUNKER-2020-B">{{cite book |author=Andrew Junker |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HYaEDwAAQBAJ |title=Becoming Activists in Global China: Social Movements in the Chinese Diaspora |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2019 |isbn=978-1108482998 |page=99 |access-date=23 May 2020 |archive-date=5 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405191340/https://books.google.com/books?id=HYaEDwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}</ref>

<ref name="NYT-2020-NYT-INFLUENCE-MACHINE">Roose, Kevin. 2020. "How The Epoch Times Created a Giant Influence Machine". ''The New York Times''. [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/24/technology/epoch-times-influence-falun-gong.html Online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211225013104/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/24/technology/epoch-times-influence-falun-gong.html |date=25 December 2021 }}.</ref>

}}

}}<ref name="The Right-Wing Cult Behind Shen Yun">{{Cite web |last=Dorrell |first=Taylor |date=5 March 2022 |title=The Right-Wing Cult Behind Shen Yun |url=https://columbusfreepress.com/article/right-wing-cult-behind-shen-yun |access-date=2024-05-18 |website=Columbus Free Press}}</ref>

The Falun Gong also operates the Epoch Media Group, which is known for its subsidiaries, [[New Tang Dynasty Television]] and ''[[The Epoch Times]]'' newspaper. The latter has been broadly noted as a politically [[Far-right politics|far-right]]{{refn|<ref name="Kaiser">{{cite book |last=Kaiser |first=Jonas |editor-last=Forchtner |editor-first=Bernard |title=The Far Right and the Environment: Politics, Discourse and Communication |year=2019 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1351104029 |page=265 |chapter=In the heartland of climate scepticism: A hyperlink network analysis of German climate sceptics and the US right wing}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Weisskircher |first=Manès |title=Neue Wahrheiten von rechts außen? Alternative Nachrichten und der 'Rechtspopulismus' in Deutschland |journal=[[Forschungsjournal Soziale Bewegungen]] |date=11 September 2020 |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=474–490 |doi=10.1515/fjsb-2020-0040 |trans-title=New truths from the far-right? Alternative news and 'right-wing populism' in Germany |publisher=[[De Gruyter]] |s2cid=222004415 |quote=In Deutschland existiert eine Vielzahl an alternativen Nachrichten-Plattformen von Rechtsaußen. Der Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2019 nennt Junge Freiheit, Compact online, PI News und Epoch Times als Plattformen mit der häufigsten Nutzung (Newman 2019: 86). |trans-quote=In Germany there is a large number of alternative news platforms from the far-right. The Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2019 names Junge Freiheit, Compact online, PI News and Epoch Times as the platforms with the most frequent use (Newman 2019: 86). |language=de |issn = 2192-4848 }}</ref><ref name="Allen-Ebrahimian"/><ref>{{cite web |last=Alba |first=Davey |author-link=Davey Alba |title=Virus Conspiracists Elevate a New Champion |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/09/technology/plandemic-judy-mikovitz-coronavirus-disinformation.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=6 November 2020 |date=9 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201065514/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/09/technology/plandemic-judy-mikovitz-coronavirus-disinformation.html |archive-date=1 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="HETTENA-2019"/><ref>{{cite web |last=Aspinwall |first=Nick |title=Guo Wengui and Steve Bannon Are Flooding the Zone With Hunter Biden Conspiracies |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/11/02/guo-wengui-steve-bannon-hunter-biden-conspiracies-disinformation/ |website=[[Foreign Policy]] |access-date=6 November 2020 |date=November 2, 2020 |archive-date=2 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302015319/https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/11/02/guo-wengui-steve-bannon-hunter-biden-conspiracies-disinformation/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Farhi |first=Paul |title=A 'loud mouth' writer says the White House broke its own briefing-room rules. So he did the same. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/a-loud-mouth-writer-says-the-white-house-broke-its-own-briefing-room-rules-so-he-did-the-same/2020/08/20/1d5441b8-e25c-11ea-8181-606e603bb1c4_story.html |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=6 November 2020 |date=August 20, 2020 |quote=Last week, McEnany admitted representatives from two far-right outfits, the Gateway Pundit and Epoch Times |archive-date=31 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201231073218/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/a-loud-mouth-writer-says-the-white-house-broke-its-own-briefing-room-rules-so-he-did-the-same/2020/08/20/1d5441b8-e25c-11ea-8181-606e603bb1c4_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Aspinwall |first=Nick |title=As Taiwan Watches US Election, It May Need Time to Trust a Biden Administration |url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/11/as-taiwan-watches-us-election-it-may-need-time-to-trust-a-biden-administration/ |website=[[The Diplomat]] |access-date=6 November 2020 |date=November 6, 2020 |quote=That's likely due in large part to the presence of influential Chinese-language far-right media on the island, such as the Falun Gong-backed Epoch Times |archive-date=12 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210212083210/https://thediplomat.com/2020/11/as-taiwan-watches-us-election-it-may-need-time-to-trust-a-biden-administration/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Newton |first=Casey |title=How the 'Plandemic' video hoax went viral |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/12/21254184/how-plandemic-went-viral-facebook-youtube |website=[[The Verge]] |access-date=6 November 2020 |language=en |date=12 May 2020 |quote=it won approving coverage from far-right outlets including the Epoch Times, Gateway Pundit, and Next News Network. |archive-date=8 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210408123306/https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/12/21254184/how-plandemic-went-viral-facebook-youtube |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Pressman |first1=Aaron |last2=Morris |first2=David Z. |title=This moon landing video is fake |url=https://fortune.com/2020/08/07/this-moon-landing-video-is-fake/ |website=[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]] |access-date=6 November 2020 |date=August 7, 2020 |archive-date=23 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210223051957/https://fortune.com/2020/08/07/this-moon-landing-video-is-fake/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Sommer |first=Will |title=Bannon Teams Up With Chinese Group That Thinks Trump Will Bring on End-Times |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/bannon-teams-up-with-chinese-group-that-thinks-trump-will-bring-on-end-times |website=[[The Daily Beast]] |access-date=6 November 2020 |language=en |date=19 October 2019 |quote=New Tang Dynasty is part of the Epoch Media Group, a collection of far-right media outlets linked to Falun Gong |archive-date=7 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107211756/https://www.thedailybeast.com/bannon-teams-up-with-chinese-group-that-thinks-trump-will-bring-on-end-times |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="TheTimes">{{Cite news |last1=Callery |first1=James |last2=Goddard |first2=Jacqui |date=August 23, 2021 |title=Most-clicked link on Facebook spread doubt about Covid vaccine |language=en |work=[[The Times]] |url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/most-clicked-link-on-facebook-spread-doubt-about-covid-vaccine-flknpp9n5 |access-date=2021-12-22 |issn=0140-0460 |quote=Facebook's data on the first quarter of this year shows that one of its most popular pages was an article by The Epoch Times, a far-right newspaper that has promoted QAnon conspiracy theories and misleading claims of voter fraud related to the 2020 US election. |archive-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929134947/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/most-clicked-link-on-facebook-spread-doubt-about-covid-vaccine-flknpp9n5 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="EENews">{{Cite web|last=Waldman|first=Scott|date=2021-08-27|title=Climate denial newspaper flourishes on Facebook|url=https://www.eenews.net/articles/climate-denial-newspaper-flourishes-on-facebook/|access-date=2022-01-08|website=[[E&E Daily|E&E News]]|language=en-US|archive-date=28 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928130328/https://www.eenews.net/articles/climate-denial-newspaper-flourishes-on-facebook/|url-status=live}}</ref>}} media entity, and it has received significant attention in the United States for promoting conspiracy theories, such as [[QAnon]] and [[anti-vaccine]] misinformation, and producing advertisements for former [[U.S. President]] [[Donald Trump]]. It has also drawn attention in Europe for promoting far-right politicians, primarily in [[France]] and [[Germany]].<ref name="COLLINS-2019"/><ref name="HETTENA-2019">{{Cite magazine|last=Hettena|first=Seth|date=2019-09-17|title=The Obscure Newspaper Fueling the Far-Right in Europe|magazine=The New Republic|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/155076/obscure-newspaper-fueling-far-right-europe|access-date=2023-02-10|issn=0028-6583|archive-date=2 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200702050513/https://newrepublic.com/article/155076/obscure-newspaper-fueling-far-right-europe|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ROOSE-2020">{{Cite news |last=Roose |first=Kevin |date=February 5, 2020 |title=Epoch Times, Punished by Facebook, Gets a New Megaphone on YouTube |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/05/technology/epoch-times-youtube.html |access-date=February 6, 2020 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=6 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200206140610/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/05/technology/epoch-times-youtube.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":212"/>

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=== Extraterrestrials ===

Li in the 1990s repeated claims that [[Extraterrestrial life|aliens]] were responsible for scientific inventions through the manipulation of scientists.<ref>Graeme Lang and Lu Yunfeng, "Assimilation of 'New Age' Beliefs into Cults and New Religions in East and Southest Asia", in ''New Age'', edited by Michaela Moravčíková, 306–22. Bratislava: Ústav pre vzťahy štátu a cirkví, 2005. P. 317.</ref> For example, in a 1999 interview with ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', Li attributed the invention of computers and airplanes to extraterrestrials, as well as war and violence.<ref name=":1">{{Cite magazine |last=DOWELL |first=WILLIAM |date=1999-05-10 |title=Interview with Li Hongzhi |language=en-US |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |url=https://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2053761,00.html |access-date=2023-12-12 |issn=0040-781X |archive-date=29 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230529183738/https://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2053761,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> However, his position on aliens seemed fairly inconsistent to observers Graeme Lang and Lu Yunfeng.<ref>Graeme Lang and Lu Yunfeng, "Assimilation of 'New Age' Beliefs into Cults and New Religions in East and Southest Asia", in ''New Age'', edited by Michaela Moravčíková, 306–22. Bratislava: Ústav pre vzťahy štátu a cirkví, 2005. P. 319.</ref> Li purported that in general extraterrestrials disguise themselves as human in order to corrupt and manipulate humanity,<ref>Helen{{Cite book |last=Farley, "Falun|first=Helen Gong:|title=Controversial ANew NarrativeReligions of Pending Apocalypse, Shape|title-Shiftinglink=Controversial Aliens,New andReligions Relentless|publisher=[[Oxford Persecution",University inPress]] ''Controversial|year=2014 New|isbn=978-0-19-515682-9 Religions'',|editor-last=Lewis edited|editor-first=James byR. |editor-link=James R. Lewis and(scholar) Jesper|edition=2nd Aa.|location=New Petersen,York 241–254.|language=en 2nd|chapter=Falun ed.Gong: OxfordA andNarrative Newof York:Pending OxfordApocalypse, UniversityShape-Shifting PressAliens, 2014.and P.Relentless 248–9Persecution |editor-last2=Petersen |editor-first2=Jesper Aa. |pages=248–249}}</ref> but some practitioners only believe that to be metaphorical.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Campbell |first1=Eric |last2=Cohen |first2=Hagar |date=2020-07-30 |title=When Anna was 14, her mother set up a 'special appointment' with The Master |language=en-AU |work=ABC News |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-21/inside-falun-gong-master-li-hongzhi-the-mountain-dragon-springs/12442518 |access-date=2023-12-12 |archive-date=8 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220908073144/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-21/inside-falun-gong-master-li-hongzhi-the-mountain-dragon-springs/12442518 |url-status=live }}</ref> In the ''Time'' interview, Li believed that aliens were attempting to replace humans through a [[cloning]] process, in which human bodies would be cloned with no soul, so that the aliens can replace the soul and inhabit human bodies (which to him are perfect).<ref name=":1" />

==Categorization==

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<blockquote>The Epoch Media Group, along with Shen Yun, a dance troupe known for its ubiquitous advertising and unsettling performances, make up the outreach effort of Falun Gong, a relatively new spiritual practice that combines ancient Chinese meditative exercises, mysticism and often ultraconservative cultural worldviews. Falun Gong's founder has referred to Epoch Media Group as "our media", and the group's practice heavily informs ''The Epoch Times''{{'}} coverage, according to former employees who spoke with NBC News.

''The Epoch Times'', digital production company NTD and the heavily advertised dance troupe Shen Yun make up the nonprofit network that Li calls "our media.". Financial documents paint a complicated picture of more than a dozen technically separate organizations that appear to share missions, money and executives. Though the source of their revenue is unclear, the most recent financial records from each organization paint a picture of an overall business thriving in the Trump era.<ref name="COLLINS-2019"/></blockquote>

According to scholar [[James R. Lewis (scholar)|James R. Lewis]] writing in 2018, Falun Gong adherents have attempted to control [[English Wikipedia]] articles covering the group and articles related to it. Lewis highlights Falun Gong's extensive internet presence, and how editors who have to date contributed to English Wikipedia entries associated with Falun Gong to the point where "Falun Gong followers and/or sympathizers de facto control the relevant pages on Wikipedia", and how this is particularly important for Falun Gong as an organization due to the [[search engine optimization]] results of these entries, and how the entries can influence other media entities. Lewis notes also how this fits in as part of Falun Gong's general media strategy, such as Falun Gong media like ''The Epoch Times'', New Tang Dynasty, Sound of Hope Radio, and, as Lewis discusses, the Rachlin media group. Lewis reports that the Rachlin media group is the Falun Gong's de facto PR firm operated by Gail Rachlin, spokesperson for the Falun Dafa Information Centre. Lewis says that Amnesty International does not independently verify its reports from Falun Gong groups, accepting material directly from Falun Gong organizations as fact. According to Lewis, "[Falun Gong] has thus been able to influence other media via its presence on the web, through its direct press releases, and through its own media."<ref name="FG-WIKIPEDIA">Lewis, James R. 2018. ''Falun Gong: Spiritual Warfare and Martyrdom'', pp. 80–81. Cambridge University Press. "Falun Gong followers and/or sympathizers de facto control the relevant pages on Wikipedia"</ref>

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:Adherents of Falun Gong first developed Ultrasurf nearly two decades ago to get around censors in China and elsewhere. Early on, Ultrasurf seemed a highly promising tool in aiding activists and journalists to talk securely online. It earlier received development money from the State Department and the predecessor agency to USAGM.<ref name="NPR-ULTRASURF-2021">Folkenflik, David. 2021. [https://www.npr.org/2021/04/14/986982387/falun-gong-steve-bannon-and-the-trump-era-battle-over-internet-freedom "Falun Gong, Steve Bannon And The Trump-Era Battle Over Internet Freedom"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102140639/https://www.npr.org/2021/04/14/986982387/falun-gong-steve-bannon-and-the-trump-era-battle-over-internet-freedom |date=2 November 2023 }}. ''NPR''. Online.</ref>

A [[Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society|Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society]] report on the circumvention landscape in 2007 found Ultrasurf’sUltrasurf's performance to be “the"the best of any tool tested in filtering countries, the only tool to display okay speed for both image heavy and simple, text oriented sites."<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Roberts |first1=Hal |last2=Zuckerman |first2=Ethan |last3=Palfrey |first3=John |date=March 2009 |title=2007 Circumvention Landscape Report: Methods, Uses, and Tools |url=https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/2794933/2007_Circumvention_Landscape.pdf |access-date=December 30, 2023 |website=dash.harvard.edu |archive-date=31 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231231035126/https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/2794933/2007_Circumvention_Landscape.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> A [[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] article described Ultrasurf as "one of the most important free-speech tools on the Internet, used by millions from China to Saudi Arabia."<ref name=":2">{{Cite magazine |last=Beiser |first=Vince |date=November 1, 2010 |title=Digital Weapons Help Dissidents Punch Holes in China's Great Firewall |language=en-US |volume=18 |magazine=Wired |issue=11 |url=https://www.wired.com/2010/11/ff-firewallfighters/ |access-date=2023-12-31 |issn=1059-1028 |archive-date=29 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110329093936/http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/11/ff_firewallfighters/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Beyond China, Freegate gained popularity among Iranian protesters soon after its [[Persian language|Farsi]] version was introduced in July 2008.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2009-07-02 |title=Falun Gong helps crack Iran's web filter |language=en-AU |work=ABC News |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-07-02/falun-gong-helps-crack-irans-web-filter/1339448 |access-date=2023-12-31 |archive-date=31 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231231041800/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-07-02/falun-gong-helps-crack-irans-web-filter/1339448 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ramirez |first=Jessica |date=2010-01-25 |title=Internet Freedom Group Helps Dissidents Abroad |url=https://www.newsweek.com/internet-freedom-group-helps-dissidents-abroad-71155 |access-date=2023-12-31 |website=Newsweek |language=en |archive-date=31 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231231041800/https://www.newsweek.com/internet-freedom-group-helps-dissidents-abroad-71155 |url-status=live }}</ref> During the [[Iranian Green Movement|Green Movement]] protests surrounding the 2009 election, its servers were overwhelmed by Iranian Internet users.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-12-16 |title=Iranians and Others Outwit Net Censors |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/technology/01filter.html |access-date=2024-01-03 |archive-date=16 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231216092535/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/technology/01filter.html |url-status=live |last1=Markoff |first1=John }}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Lake |first=Eli |date=2009-09-02 |title=Hacking the Regime |magazine=The New Republic |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/68899/hacking-the-regime |access-date=2024-01-03 |issn=0028-6583 |archive-date=9 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231209103840/https://newrepublic.com/article/68899/hacking-the-regime |url-status=live }}</ref>

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In June 2019, the China Tribunal—an independent tribunal set up by the International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China—concluded that detainees including imprisoned followers of the Falun Gong movement are still being killed for organ harvesting. The Tribunal, chaired by Sir [[Geoffrey Nice]] QC, said it was "certain that Falun Gong as a source—probably the principal source—of organs for forced organ harvesting".<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/17/china-is-harvesting-organs-from-detainees-uk-tribunal-concludes |title=China is harvesting organs from detainees, tribunal concludes |work=The Guardian |access-date=17 June 2019 |archive-date=16 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200316220515/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/17/china-is-harvesting-organs-from-detainees-uk-tribunal-concludes |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-china-rights/china-is-harvesting-organs-from-falun-gong-members-finds-expert-panel-idUSKCN1TI236 |title=China is harvesting organs from Falun Gong members, finds expert panel |work=Reuters |access-date=17 June 2019 |archive-date=18 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618062441/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-china-rights/china-is-harvesting-organs-from-falun-gong-members-finds-expert-panel-idUSKCN1TI236 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In June 2021, the Special Procedures of the [[United Nations Human Rights Council]] voiced concerns over having “received"received credible information that detainees from ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities may be forcibly subjected to blood tests and organ examinations such as ultrasound and x-rays, without their informed consent; while other prisoners are not required to undergo such examinations.”" The press release stated that UN’sUN's human rights experts “were"were extremely alarmed by reports of alleged ‘organ'organ harvesting’harvesting' targeting minorities, including Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, Tibetans, Muslims and Christians, in detention in China.”"<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 June 2021 |title=China: UN human rights experts alarmed by 'organ harvesting' allegations |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2021/06/china-un-human-rights-experts-alarmed-organ-harvesting-allegations?LangID=E&NewsID=27167 |website=[[Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights]]}}</ref>

===Media campaign===

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Despite Party efforts, initial charges leveled against Falun Gong failed to elicit widespread popular support for the persecution of the group. In the months following July 1999, the rhetoric in the state-run press escalated to include charges that Falun Gong was colluding with foreign, "anti-China" forces. In October 1999, three months after the persecution began, the ''[[People's Daily]]'' newspaper claimed Falun Gong as a ''xiejiao'' ({{lang|zh|邪教}}).<ref name=chan2004/><ref name="irons2003">{{Cite journal |last=Irons |first=Edward |date=2003 |title=Falun Gong and the Sectarian Religion Paradigm |journal=Nova Religio |volume=6 |issue=2 |pages=244–262 |df=dmy-all|doi=10.1525/nr.2003.6.2.244 }}</ref> A direct translation of that term is "heretical teaching", but during the anti-Falun Gong propaganda campaign was rendered as "evil cult" in English.<ref name="Amnesty">{{Cite web

| date=23 March 2000

|title=China: The crackdown on Falun Gong and other so-called 'heretical organizations'|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa17/011/2000/en/|access-date=2023-02-10|website=Amnesty International|language=en|archive-date=29 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729225340/https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/ASA17/011/2000/en/|url-status=live}}</ref> According to a ''Washington Post'' report, it was Jiang Zemin who issued the order to label Falun Gong a "cult.".<ref name=":4" /> In Mainland China, the term ''xiejiao'' has been used to target religious organizations that do not submit to Communist Party authority.<ref>Chang, Maria Hsia (2004). ''Falun Gong: The End of Days'', Yale University Press, {{ISBN|978-0300102277}}.</ref><ref>Freedom House, [http://www.hudson.org/files/publications/Analysis_of_China_Docs_1_to_7.pdf "Report Analyzing Seven Secret Chinese Government Documents"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402165033/http://www.hudson.org/files/publications/Analysis_of_China_Docs_1_to_7.pdf |date=2 April 2012 }}, 11 February 2002.</ref>

[[Ian Johnson (writer)|Ian Johnson]] argued that applying the 'cult' label to Falun Gong effectively "cloaked the government's crackdown with the legitimacy of the West's anticult movement." He wrote that Falun Gong does not satisfy common definitions of a cult: "its members marry outside the group, have outside friends, hold normal jobs, do not live isolated from society, do not believe that the world's end is imminent and do not give significant amounts of money to the organisation{{nbsp}}... it does not advocate violence and is at heart an apolitical, inward-oriented discipline, one aimed at cleansing oneself spiritually and improving one's health."<ref name="wildgrass"/>{{rp|224}} David Ownby similarly wrote that "the entire issue of the supposed cultic nature of Falun Gong was a red herring from the beginning, cleverly exploited by the Chinese state to blunt the appeal of Falun Gong".<ref name=Ownbyfuture/> According to John Powers and Meg Y. M. Lee, because the Falun Gong was categorized in the popular perception as an "apolitical, qigong exercise club", it was not seen as a threat to the government. The most critical strategy in the Falun Gong suppression campaign, therefore, was to convince people to reclassify the Falun Gong into a number of "negatively charged religious labels",<ref name="powerslee">Powers, John and Meg Y. M. Lee. "Dueling Media: Symbolic Conflict in China's Falun Gong Suppression Campaign" in Chinese Conflict Management and Resolution, by Guo-Ming Chen and Ringo Ma (2001), Greenwood Publishing Group</ref> like "evil cult", "sect", or "superstition". The group's silent protests were reclassified as creating "social disturbances". In this process of relabelling, the government was attempting to tap into a "deep reservoir of negative feelings related to the historical role of quasi-religious cults as a destabilising force in Chinese political history."<ref name=powerslee/>

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By late 2001, demonstrations in Tiananmen Square had become less frequent, and the practice was driven deeper underground. As public protest fell out of favor, practitioners established underground "material sites", which would produce literature and DVDs to counter the portrayal of Falun Gong in the official media. Practitioners then distribute these materials, often door-to-door.<ref>Liao Yiwu. "The Corpse Walker: Real Life Stories: China from the Bottom Up." p. 230.</ref> Falun Gong sources estimated in 2009 that over 200,000 such sites exist across China today.<ref name=":6" /> The production, possession, or distribution of these materials is frequently grounds for security agents to incarcerate or [[sentence (law)|sentence]] Falun Gong practitioners.<ref>{{Cite web|title=2009 Annual Report |author=Congressional-Executive Commission on China|url=https://www.cecc.gov/publications/annual-reports/2009-annual-report|access-date=2023-02-10|website=cecc.gov|date=10 October 2009 |archive-date=10 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230210134452/https://www.cecc.gov/publications/annual-reports/2009-annual-report|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2002, Falun Gong activists in China tapped into television broadcasts, replacing regular state-run programming with their own content. One of the more notable instances occurred in March 2002, when Falun Gong practitioners in [[Changchun]] intercepted eight cable television networks in Jilin Province, and for nearly an hour, televised a program titled "Self-Immolation or a Staged Act?". All six of the Falun Gong practitioners involved were captured over the next few months. Two were killed immediately, while the other four were all dead by 2010 as a result of injuries sustained while imprisoned.<ref name="mediacontrol">{{Cite book |url=http://hrichina.org/sites/default/files/oldsite/PDFs/Reports/HRIC-Fog-of-Censorship.pdf |title=The Fog of Censorship: Media Control in China |last=He Qinglian |publisher=Human Rights in China |year=2008 |isbn=978-0971735620 |pages=xii |author-link=He Qinglian |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229083633/http://hrichina.org/sites/default/files/oldsite/PDFs/Reports/HRIC-Fog-of-Censorship.pdf |archive-date=29 February 2012 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="ws-20101206">{{Cite news |url=http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/thin-airwaves_519589.html?nopager=1 |title=Into Thin Airwaves |last=Gutmann |first=Ethan |date=6 December 2010 |work=The Weekly Standard |access-date=1 January 2012 |url-status=livedead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120105190542/http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/thin-airwaves_519589.html?nopager=1 |archive-date=5 January 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Outside China, Falun Gong practitioners established international media organizations to gain wider exposure for their cause and challenge narratives of the Chinese state-run media. These include ''[[The Epoch Times]]'' newspaper, [[New Tang Dynasty Television]], and [[Sound of Hope]] radio station.<ref name=Ownbyfuture/> According to Zhao, through ''The Epoch Times'' it can be discerned how Falun Gong is building a "de facto media alliance" with China's democracy movements in exile, as demonstrated by its frequent printing of articles by prominent overseas Chinese critics of the PRC government.<ref name="zhao"/> In 2004, ''The Epoch Times'' published a collection of nine editorials that presented a critical history of the Chinese Communist Party.<ref name=Ping/><ref>Steel, Kevin. 'Revolution number nine', ''The Western Standard'', 11 July 2005.</ref> This catalyzed the Tuidang movement, which encourages Chinese citizens to renounce their affiliations to the Chinese Communist Party, including ex post facto renunciations of the [[Communist Youth League of China|Communist Youth League]] and [[Young Pioneers of China|Young Pioneers]]. ''The Epoch Times'' claims that tens of millions have renounced the Chinese Communist Party as part of the movement, though these numbers have not been independently verified.<ref>Gutmann, Ethan. ''The Chinese Internet: A dream deferred?''. Testimony given at the National Endowment for Democracy panel discussion "Tiananmen 20 years on", 2 June 2009.</ref>

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[[Ethan Gutmann]], a journalist reporting on China since the early 1990s, has attempted to explain this apparent dearth of public sympathy for Falun Gong as stemming, in part, from the group's shortcomings in public relations. Unlike the democracy activists or Tibetans, who have found a comfortable place in Western perceptions, "Falun Gong marched to a distinctly Chinese drum", Gutmann writes. Moreover, practitioners' attempts at getting their message across carried some of the uncouthness of Communist Party culture, including a perception that practitioners tended to exaggerate, create "torture tableaux straight out of a Cultural Revolution opera", or "spout slogans rather than facts". This is coupled with a general doubtfulness in the West of persecuted refugees.<ref name="gutmann">{{Cite web |url=http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/824qbcjr.asp |title=China's Gruesome Organ Harvest. The whole world isn't watching. Why not? |last=Gutmann |first=Ethan |date=24 November 2008 |website=[[Weekly Standard]] |url-status=livedead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120524133009/http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/824qbcjr.asp |archive-date=24 May 2012 |access-date=26 May 2012 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Gutmann also says that media organizations and human rights groups also self-censor on the topic, given the PRC governments vehement attitude toward the practice, and the potential repercussions that may follow for making overt representations on Falun Gong's behalf.<ref name="gutmann_carrytorch">{{cite news|author-link=Ethan Gutmann |url=http://www.weeklystandard.com/print/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/014/986himak.asp |title=Carrying a Torch for China |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130105205655/http://www.weeklystandard.com/print/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/014/986himak.asp |archive-date=5 January 2013 |newspaper=[[Weekly Standard]]|date=21 April 2008}}</ref>

Richard Madsen writes that Falun Gong lacks robust backing from the American constituencies that usually support religious freedom. For instance, Falun Gong's conservative moral beliefs have alienated some liberal constituencies in the West (e.g. its teachings against promiscuity and homosexual behavior).<ref name=wildgrass/>{{rp|211}} He also states that Christian conservatives do not support Falun Gong while they do Chinese Christians.<ref name="Madsen247">{{Cite journal |last=Madsen |first=Richard |date=2000 |title=Understanding Falun Gong |journal=[[Current History]] |volume=99 |issue=638 |pages=247 |doi=10.1525/curh.2000.99.638.243 |jstor=45318453 |issn=0011-3530 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Madsen charges that the American political center does not want to push the human rights issue so hard that it would disrupt commercial and political relations with China. Thus, Falun Gong practitioners have largely had to rely on their own resources in responding to suppression.<ref name=Madsen247/>