DIY Photography

Your one stop shop for everything photo-video

  • News
  • Inspiration
  • Reviews
  • Tutorials
  • DIY
  • Gear
Search

Submit A Story

This video made China ban the word “Leica” from social media

Apr 20, 2019 by Dunja Djudjic 5 Comments

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Earlier this week, a dramatic video titled Leica – The Hunt hit the web, praising all photojournalists and conflict photographers “who lend their eyes to make use see.” However, the video has caused a major backlash in China.

The story is set in Beijing in 1989, clearly referring to the Tiananmen Square protests, which are a sensitive topic in China. Now the whole case has gone so far that it made the word “Leica” banned from Weibo, a Chinese version of Twitter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAEUafI_lyI

Although there is no clear statement in the video, it clearly refers to Jeff Widener and his iconic photo Tank Man. According to South China Morning Post (SCMP), the ad was met with blanket censorship in China. It caused a fierce backlash among users who flooded Leica’s official Weibo page with angry comments. Consequently, any post on Weibo containing the word “Leica” got banned from the platform, due to “a violation of relevant laws and regulations of the Weibo Community Convention.”

The Hunt was created by Brazilian ad agency F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi. As Leica Rumors reports, it keeps being removed from YouTube, and I’ve also noticed that it’s unavailable on several links I tried to follow.

Emily Anderson, a spokesperson for Leica, told SCMP that the video wasn’t “officially sanctioned” by the camera company. “Leica Camera AG must, therefore, distance itself from the content shown in the video and regrets any misunderstandings or false conclusions that may have been drawn,” she added.

Chinese company Huawei has been collaborating with Leica on their smartphone camera lenses. So, the recent incident over Leica’s video put Huawei in the center of the scandal, too. Weibo users have called out Leica for putting Huawei into trouble by publishing The Hunt. As for Huawei, the company has reportedly declined to comment about the Leica’s ad.

Still, despite the ban, not all comments about Leica’s controversial ad are negative. According to SCMP, human rights activists in China have actually praised it. Either way, the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests is happening this June current year, which makes this topic probably even more sensitive in China. Therefore, as Gizmodo notes, it’s expected that the Chinese government will do their best to censor online content which tries to recognize the anniversary.

[via Gizmodo, South China Morning Post]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Related posts:

the social media fallacyThe Social Media Fallacy – Does Social Media Generate Business Income? Media companies can’t use your social media photos without permission, court rules 500px sold to Visual China Group, the “Getty of China” Photo of new medium format Leica S3 leaks on Leica China website

Filed Under: news Tagged With: Banned, china, Leica, social media, social network

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.net

About Dunja Djudjic

Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

« Bob Dylan stops his concert to call out fans for taking photos
How to create Facebook 3D photos in Photoshop »

Submit A Story

Get our FREE Lighting Book

DIYP lighting book cover

* download requires newsletter signup

Recent Comments

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Learn photography

Recent Posts

  • Adobe ordered to pay more than $33 million for patent infringement
  • Hands on with the Kelvin Epos 600 RGBLAC light
  • Hands on with the Godox MG2400Bi LED beast
  • Hands on with the Saramonic WiTalk
  • Another tourist falls off a cliff while taking a selfie

Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

Alex Baker: from diyphotography.netAlex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.netDunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

Copyright © DIYPhotography 2006 - 2023 | About | Contact | Advertise | Write for DIYP | Full Disclosure | Privacy Policy