The Chinese Communist Party has no rules against harassing innocent 90-year-olds. The latest indignity to which the Dalai Lama is being subjected: smears about alleged ties to con artist and sexual abuser Jeffrey Esptein.
All part of the CCP’s “systematic, institutionalized approach to global narrative management that transcends conventional propaganda,” says Tenzin Dalha (The Diplomat, February 10, 2026).
China’s disinformation machinery kicked into high gear to launch its latest attack against the Tibetan spiritual leader….
Bankrolled by enormous state investment, Beijing’s propaganda and online influence operations now extend far beyond its borders, seeking to normalize authoritarian governance and redefine reality itself, one algorithm, platform, and rewritten history at a time. And Tibetans—especially the Dalai Lama—are a prominent target. China’s information operations seek to erase Tibetan cultural identity while manufacturing consent for assimilationist rule.
The recent viral claim that the Dalai Lama’s name appears between 69 and 169 times in court documents related to notorious sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein offers a revealing case study in contemporary information warfare. Although the figures originated from social media posts rather than verified legal analysis, they circulated widely across global platforms despite repeated debunking by independent fact-checkers and legal analysts who reviewed the publicly released Epstein materials.
A detailed review of the documents shows Epstein strongly desired to forge connections with the Dalai Lama—but there’s no evidence that his wish was fulfilled. The references to the Dalai Lama are largely incidental, appearing in mass-distributed newsletters, administrative contact lists, or discussions with third parties about potential ways to connect, without evidence of personal contact, financial ties, or awareness of Epstein’s crimes on the Dalai Lama’s part. Many of the 169 references are actually duplicates upon closer examination.
End of story, you’d think, but “the allegation gained traction.” In “digital information ecosystems”—social media—“numerical specificity creates an illusion of credibility” and “repetition often substitutes for verification.”
Does this kind of attack really transcend conventional propaganda, though? Goebbels may not have had social media, algorithms, and AI generation on hand. But fake specificity, vilification of the enemy, and infinite repetition of the big lie were certainly among the techniques in his repertoire.
Also see:
BBC: “Beijing criticises Dalai Lama Grammy win as ‘manipulation’ ” (February 2, 2026)
