In common parlance, the phrase “high-level black,” or gaojihei, refers to the act of using humorous language to criticize and satirize, or to offered exaggerated praise on the surface in what is actually an act of criticism. It is not unlike the proverbial “smile that hides a dagger” (笑里藏刀). The term, which originated on the internet, was elevated to a formal concern for the Chinese Communist Party in 2019, in a high-level document that warned against various forms of cloaked ...
