Some hosts on a site organized fake charity activities in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Southwest China's Sichuan Province and streamed them live, in an attempt to defraud their followers to send gifts on the live-streaming site, local police confirmed Monday.
The local police have expelled hosts of the live-streaming platform from Liangshan and urged netizens who have been cheated for money to report to the police, the police security bureau said in an announcement on its official Sina Weibo account.
A video that went viral on social media revealed that a host surnamed Huang, using the online name of "kuaishoujiege," handed money to poor villagers in Liangshan during his "charity" show broadcast live on Kuaishou, a live-streaming site, the Chengdu Business Daily reported. He took the money back from the villagers after the live streaming was finished, the report said.
Subscribers could send virtual presents while watching the live show, which is a way for the hosts to earn money. A netizen called "Caicaicaiiii," who was a follower of "kuaishoujiege," told the Global Times that she was touched by the videos, but now feels depressed after finding "the disgusting truth."
Huang admitted that he organized fake charity activities to earn sympathy from subscribers and said that "more fans means I could get more gifts," the Chengdu Business Daily reported.
Facing public condemnation, he drunk a bottle of disinfectant to show his remorse, the report said.
Governmental officials from Liangshan confirmed with the Chengdu Business Daily that some hosts had been organizing similar fake charity activities in Shaojue and Butuo counties in Liangshan recently, and they would give villagers some food for participating in the charity show.
Zhang Gaorong, a research fellow with the China Philanthropy Research Institute, told the Global Times that these activities are more like stunts for profit since the hosts' objective is not to help local residents.
A new law regulating the fast-growing live-streaming industry in China will come into effect on December 1, the Chinese Cyberspace Administration announced on its website on Friday.
The administration said the law aimed at restricting the spread of violence, fraud, sex and rumor.
