Photo: People's Daily Headquarters Building

Chapter 0 Introduction

This week, People's Daily published another article commenting on Bitcoin, which attracted heated discussions. This article will go to People's Daily to search and see what People's Daily thinks about Bitcoin from its birth to now.

Chapter 1 Search

This is the website address of People's Daily Online: http://www.people.com.cn/. Open it and there is "Site Search" in the middle of the top. Try using the keyword "Bitcoin" first and select "Full News" in the search option.

A total of 4687 articles were found. The sorting is based on the publication date.

The latest news is from October 15th - "Greek computer virus spreads, Bitcoin required to unlock files". Scroll to the end of the page, the earliest news appeared on June 24, 2011 - "Miscellaneous: Hackers are spying on you". Wow, it's quite early. Coincidentally, the earliest and latest articles here are about hackers.

From June 24, 2011 to October 15, 2015, about 1,600 days, People's Daily published (including reprints) 2.93 articles related to Bitcoin on average every day. This frequency is really too high. It is almost at the level of professional forums in the industry. But after reading carefully, I found that many of them were reprinted repeatedly, such as the article "Bitcoin is defined as a commodity in the United States and subject to US CFTC supervision" was reprinted once in the "Current Affairs" and "International" columns respectively. So this frequency cannot actually reflect the People's Daily's attention to Bitcoin, reaching an average of 3 articles per day.

Use the keyword "Bitcoin" and select "News Headlines" in the search option. The results are as follows.

A total of 2947 articles were found. The latest news was published on October 15, 2015, and the oldest news was published on January 31, 2013, with a gap of about 1000 days. The average daily publication time is 2947 articles.   2. 95 articles. This frequency is also super high. But there is also转载问题mentioned above.

I changed the keywords and search options respectively, and the search results are as follows:

Judging from the above search records, People's Daily pays quite a lot of attention to Bitcoin.

So what is the attitude of People’s Daily towards Bitcoin? Below I will focus on analyzing several articles published in People’s Daily.

Chapter 2 People’s Daily’s Description of Bitcoin

On October 13, 2015, "Electronic Currency Regulation is on the Agenda" was published in the People's Daily. The main point was that the United States' attitude towards Bitcoin has entered the substantive regulatory stage and stated that it is necessary to regulate Bitcoin.

On August 10, 2015, the People's Daily published "Bitcoin is difficult to enter the mainstream". The main point is to emphasize the operational risks and moral risks of Bitcoin. What is particularly interesting is that the article clearly affirms the currency attributes and financial asset attributes of Bitcoin. In addition, it stated that the future of Bitcoin depends on government supervision, which is also a side call for the necessity of supervision.

On April 7, 2015, the People's Daily published "Keeping Up with the Tide of Internet Financial Reform", which mentioned the innovative attributes of Bitcoin and warned that Bitcoin could challenge the operations of the central bank.

On January 26, 2015, the People's Daily published "Bitcoin Development Enters a "Period of Confusion"". It described the low price of Bitcoin and the decline in investor confidence. It also described that Bitcoin did not shrink in the international market due to its price, but instead conquered cities and cities, and major companies announced that they would accept Bitcoin. It also emphasized the high-risk and high-return attributes of Bitcoin as an investment product. Finally, it ended by denying the monetary attributes of Bitcoin.

On October 22, 2014, People's Daily published "Why Bitcoin is in an awkward situation". It described the decline in the market popularity of Bitcoin. Then it analyzed the four major monetary attributes of Bitcoin and emphasized that Bitcoin only has the function of storing value.

On July 25, 2014, People's Daily published "Virtual Currency Investment: A Heart-pounding Journey". It described the chaos of numerous virtual currencies and the sharp fluctuations in prices. It then analyzed the characteristics of the most famous coins in the market, such as Dogecoin, Darkcoin and Dogecoin. Finally, it warned investors to conduct rigorous analysis and understanding.

On April 8, 2014, People's Daily published "Bitcoin ATMs Can't Take Out "Safe Money"". It described the story of an Australian company promoting Bitcoin ATMs. It analyzed the technical characteristics of Bitcoin and claimed that it had "congenital defects", denying its currency attributes and that it could only be used as an investment tool. In the end, it concluded that Bitcoin was difficult for ordinary people to get into their homes.

On March 27, 2014, People's Daily published "Bitcoin is not legal tender". It described the news that the US Internal Revenue Service classified Bitcoin as "property" rather than "currency status". It then described the investment attributes and risks of Bitcoin, and concluded whether various scenarios of using Bitcoin should be "taxed". Finally, it affirmed Bitcoin as a financial asset.

On March 20, 2014, People's Daily published "Bitcoin in the Eyes of an Investor". It describes a Bitcoin enthusiast's analysis of Bitcoin and his investment experience. The article describes the investment attributes and risks of Bitcoin. Finally, it calls for government supervision and industry self-discipline on Bitcoin.

On February 27, 2014, People's Daily published "Japanese Government Begins Investigation into Bitcoin Trading Platform", which relayed the Japanese government's attitude towards Mt.Gox, claimed that Bitcoin is not protected by the government, and warned of investment risks.

On February 26, 2014, People's Daily published "Bitcoin Trading Platform Mt. Gox Stops Trading". It described the Mt. Gox exchange's cessation of services and relayed the attitude of the Japanese government, saying that the Japanese Financial Services Agency had no obligation to protect investors.

On December 25, 2013, the People's Daily published "Unveiling the Mystery of Bitcoin". It described the rapid rise in the price of Bitcoin. It then analyzed the characteristics of electronic currency and the scarcity of Bitcoin. It then analyzed the Chinese people's speculative mentality towards Bitcoin, especially suggesting that Bitcoin is a game of "pass the parcel". It then expressed that Bitcoin could not become a real currency, but was just a speculative game. Finally, it described the ban on Bitcoin by central banks in many countries and expressed a bearish view on its future.

On December 23, 2013, the People's Daily published "Bitcoin speculation is not advisable". It first described the principle of Bitcoin generation and how to obtain it. Then it quoted the famous five-department joint document "Notice on Preventing Bitcoin Risks". Then it described the sharp fluctuations in Bitcoin prices and the speculative mentality of investors. Finally, it denied Bitcoin from both technical and social attributes, and bluntly stated that Bitcoin is a game of passing the parcel.

On December 6, 2013, the People's Daily published "Bitcoin cannot be used as currency". It mainly described the joint document of five ministries and commissions, "Notice on Preventing Bitcoin Risks", which denied Bitcoin from a judicial perspective and emphasized investment risks.

On November 30, 2013, the People's Daily Overseas Edition published "Beware of Bitcoin Fuzzing". It first described the soaring price of Bitcoin, then analyzed the speculation of Bitcoin, and then emphasized the risks. Finally, it stated that the official attitude denied its legal status and called on the government to regulate virtual currency.

On November 29, 2013, the People's Daily Overseas Edition published "Chinese Investors Fuel Bitcoin." It described the popularity of Bitcoin in China. It then described the sharp fluctuations in Bitcoin prices. Finally, it warned of the uncertain prospects and investment risks.

On November 25, 2013, People's Daily published "Where Does the Bitcoin Madness Come From?" It described the principles of Bitcoin and the reasons for the price increase. Finally, it warned of risks.

On November 19, 2013, the People's Daily published "Bitcoin is hot but its impact is limited". It described the new high price of Bitcoin and the attitude of the US government. It then denied the currency attribute of Bitcoin. Then it described the lack of government endorsement of Bitcoin. Finally, it warned the official that Bitcoin would pose a challenge to the financial system and called for official supervision.

On June 17, 2013, the People's Daily published "What are the models of Internet finance?" In a short paragraph, it mentioned that Bitcoin can be used as a means of payment.

On May 22, 2013, People's Daily published "Bitcoin is still difficult to become a big thing". It described the freezing of two Mt.Gox accounts by the United States. It then described the principle of Bitcoin and the sharp fluctuations in its price. It then described the essence of Bitcoin as a string of digital symbols, which has no value and no guarantee. It then proposed the dangers of deflation. Finally, it concluded that Bitcoin is still difficult to become a big thing.

On May 18, 2013, the People's Daily Overseas Edition published "Do you dare to buy Bitcoin after its price skyrocketed 5,000 times?" It described the rise in the price of Bitcoin. It then explained the principles of mining and Bitcoin. It then analyzed the current status of Bitcoin payments. It then stated that Bitcoin had little impact on the financial order and the reasons why. Finally, it expressed the government's potential aversion to Bitcoin.

On May 7, 2013, People's Daily published "Bitcoin Gold Mine or Trap?" It described the principle of Bitcoin, then talked about its price, and finally denied its currency attributes and expressed concerns about bubbles.

On April 18, 2013, People's Daily published "Bitcoin's popularity attracts hackers, and it is basically impossible to recover the stolen bitcoins." It described the risk of bitcoin theft, then described the rampant network viruses, and finally reminded bitcoin holders to pay attention to computer system security.

Wow!!! I finally finished reading the Bitcoin-related articles published in the People's Daily that can be found on the People's Daily Online. I'm going to cry for a while! I read for a full 6 hours, from last night to 4 pm this afternoon.

Chapter 3 People's Daily's Attitude towards Bitcoin

As an official media, People's Daily describes Bitcoin in roughly the following manner.

In the first half of 2013, some people either hinted or stated directly that Bitcoin was a game of passing the parcel, and there was a strong negative and contemptuous attitude towards it.

In the second half of 2013, as the price of Bitcoin skyrocketed, the People's Daily began to strongly warn against the risks of Bitcoin investment, emphasizing that Bitcoin has not been endorsed by the government and strongly resisting it.

Throughout 2014, following the Mt. Gox incident, the price risk of Bitcoin was emphasized, and its technical characteristics were denied, with a strong attitude of contempt.

In the first half of 2015, when Bitcoin entered a downturn, the People's Daily took a sarcastic stance.

Recently, the United States has begun to promote Bitcoin in a high-profile manner and has entered into substantial regulatory arrangements. The People's Daily has begun to call for official regulation. People have begun to be wary of Bitcoin and frequently warn officials of financial risks.

It only took the People's Daily two years to go from ignoring you at the beginning, to mocking you, and then to being wary of you. That's quite a lot of progress.

Chapter 4 Bitcoin and Chinese Official Speculations on the Future

The most friendly attitude towards capital is to leave it alone. The Chinese government is quite friendly towards Bitcoin. Judging from the article published in the People's Daily, the Chinese government's friendly attitude towards Bitcoin is mainly caused by the official disdain for Bitcoin.

But as governments around the world, especially the United States, take Bitcoin seriously, the Chinese government will surely follow suit. I make the following guess.

1. There is no chance that China will completely ban Bitcoin. This is mainly because the United States does not do so.

2. It is impossible for the Chinese government to recognize Bitcoin as a currency because they believe that the RMB is the only legal unit of account in China.

3. The Chinese government will most likely promote the innovation of Bitcoin, especially the innovation of blockchain, because they have seen the irreversible influence of Bitcoin on the world.

4. The first wave of Chinese government regulation of Bitcoin will focus on taxation, and tax collectors will rack their brains to extend their claws into major Bitcoin-related companies. This can be seen from the official regulation of e-commerce platforms such as Taobao. They have little interest in fighting counterfeiting and protecting consumers, but only in collecting taxes.

5. The first Chinese official institutions to challenge Bitcoin will be banks and securities institutions. Just like the Ministry of Transport's attack on Uber, etc., you can also refer to China Mobile's questioning of WeChat. If you steal my business, I will fight you to the death.

Chapter 5 Conclusion

From the perspective of benefits, the overall social benefits of Bitcoin are positive, and the general direction is consistent with the current Internet+ policy orientation proposed by the authorities. Just as it takes a process for e-commerce and Internet finance to emerge and establish a reasonable management system, the government should be tolerant and give Bitcoin time.

As a member of the ordinary people, if you don’t understand, I will give you three words: “Take a look.” This is probably the calmest way to deal with new things.

Thanks to @力国潘, @老刘, @melaz and @麻将 for rewarding me on Coin Trends last week. Thank you.

Finally, if you find the article useful, please give me some Bitcoin to encourage me to continue writing.

Author: tan90d (Weibo @LightningHSL)
My BTC address: 14mhzjkJ71oMAMkKu3dy98dnUpkyQBHL1r
Source: Babbitt Information