TikTok returned quickly from its ban — but with a new rule on discussing Palestinian rights that sent users to RedNote. Illustration by Mira Fox

By Mira Fox January 23, 2025

TikTok went dark briefly over the weekend before Trump, delighting its users, reinstated the platform. Logging back on, however, users found something had changed: They could no longer post “Free Palestine.” Comments supporting Palestinians or Gaza were automatically flagged and deleted.

Widespread support for Palestinians on TikTok was among the driving forces behind congressional efforts to ban the platform, even though the engagement with pro-Palestinian hashtags was approximately equivalent to that on other social media platforms in the wake of Oct. 7. Evidently, the platform took action when it came back online to prevent the complaint from recurring.

Even before the ban briefly went into effect, however, users began to download a Chinese platform called RedNote — the most popular app in the country — to replace the Chinese-owned TikTok; many said they were doing so out of fear that the app’s loss would result in an inability to get true information about Gaza. Theories circulated that Israel was behind the ban, and an uncensored app was the only way to get the truth.

On RedNote, Americans were welcomed by Chinese users usually unable to have much contact with the Western world due to their government’s internet firewall. People began to exchange recipes, compare housing and help each other with their language homework.

But RedNote was not made for use outside of China; options for location are limited to Chinese territories and one bucket for “other regions.” Unlike many other apps, including TikTok, it does not maintain separate versions — one in China and one for the rest of the world — and most of its content and moderation efforts are in Mandarin. This means its moderation focuses on issues of importance to China — censorship is common on topics like autocratic Chinese president Xi Jinping, independence for Taiwan and the phrase “Free Hong Kong,” which brings up no hits. “Free Palestine,” however, appears untouched.

When TikTok returned after its approximately 36-hour hiatus, and users discovered their inability to make that same comment on their old favorite app, many said they would simply have to keep using RedNote to continue to access information they believe the U.S. government wants hidden.

But RedNote doesn’t just allow users to post “Free Palestine.” It also is filled with vitriolic hate speech against Jews.

Like many other “TikTok refugees,” as they’re called on RedNote, Jewish creators posted excitedly to RedNote, introducing themselves and their content to a new audience. “Chinese don’t like the Jewish, you should know,” read one typical comment, replying to a rabbi. “You Jewish sow should leave here. We Chinese don’t like you,” read another, on a video made by a child who appeared to be around age 10.

If you search for Jewish topics on RedNote, some of the top posts encourage users to discuss their “most offensive topics” because “unlike the United States, China has the advantage in free speech for the Jewish Question.” Images of Hitler in traditional Chinese robes pop up. Conspiracy theories about Jewish control of the internet circulate freely. In one post, a user asserted falsely that Jews, in a search for cultural dominance, feared the proliferation of “Eastern values.” Nazi propaganda made similar claims about Jews seeking to eradicate Western Christian and German values.

TikTok also struggled to police antisemitism before its ban, and there were a plethora of posts endorsing antisemitic conspiracy theories, threatening Jewish users and praising Hitler. But TikTok was beholden to international standards and at least made attempts to moderate hate speech. RedNote, at least as it operates currently, wasn’t designed to moderate issues important outside of Chinese discourse.

While some Jewish leaders concerned about antisemitism on TikTok might applaud the new censorship of “Free Palestine,” skeptical users see it as confirmation of what they already believed: Israel, and Jews, control the media, the government and much of the Western world. Apparently, Chinese censorship is the only way out.

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