Ugh, As If! - contemporary art and culture podcast · Lisa Fevral

American Xiaohongshu migration, propaganda posters and scary rich ppl parties - 3x10

·52 min·4 clips

Americans fleeing TikTok bans are signing up to Xiaohongshu without understanding Chinese, sparking unexpected cross-cultural exchanges.

This episode of "Ugh, As If!" explores the migration of American users to the Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu following TikTok's ban. The host, who is currently without social media, recounts learning about this trend from a friend named Lisa. She initially misunderstood the term "TikTok refugees" as a historical reference rather than a contemporary online movement. The host describes creating a Xiaohongshu account and finding the app entirely in Chinese, with no English translation available. American users, primarily millennials and Gen Z, began posting in both English and Mandarin to communicate with Chinese users. This interaction led to an exchange of memes, with Chinese users jokingly calling themselves "Chinese spies." The cultural exchange revealed stark differences in lived experiences, such as education costs and work hours. Chinese users were reportedly shocked to learn Americans often work multiple jobs or carry massive student debt. Conversely, American users were surprised by the affordability of education in China, with one example citing law school costing only seven hundred dollars a year. The host notes that some older Americans, like white truckers, also joined the platform and expressed disillusionment with their government. The app became the number one download on the Apple App Store in America following the migration. A memorable moment involved Chinese users instituting a "cat tax," asking Americans to post pictures of their pets. The host found it ironic that losing a social media app prompted Americans to respectfully engage with another language and culture. She criticizes the American focus on censorship while overlooking systemic issues like healthcare costs, citing ambulance fees of two thousand dollars. The host shares a personal story about her dog's medical bills to illustrate the stress of healthcare affordability. She recounts her mother's experience with free university education and a stipend in their home country, which a Canadian acquaintance refused to believe. The host argues that every country employs propaganda, but Western academic lectures often misrepresent socialist propaganda posters without translating them or engaging with their messages. She recalls a university lecture that presented a poster promoting racial unity as a negative example. The tone is highly conversational, candid, and opinionated, filled with personal anecdotes and profanity. The host frequently digresses into tangents about her life, capitalism, and oligarchs before circling back to the main topics. Listeners interested in unfiltered cultural commentary and critiques of American society from an international perspective would enjoy this episode. Those who prefer structured, objective analysis or are uncomfortable with strong political opinions and profanity might want to skip it.

As heard by us

A chaotic, sharply judged riff on Xiaohongshu, Nara Smith, and the rot of too much money.

It starts with a self-aware apology for inconsistency, then moves into a comic pass at Xiaohongshu, the Little Red Book, and the American drift toward the app.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

For when app drama turns into a hilarious, filthy-talking take on the little red book migration.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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