'Toxic' panda fans in China call for keeping the bears at home

As China resumes “panda diplomacy,” an online community of panda fans in China and elsewhere has embraced the bears with an enthusiasm that can verge on toxic.

HONG KONG — A pair of giant pandas will soon be on their way to the U.S. from China, as Beijing resumes the “panda diplomacy” that has sent the beloved bears around the world for decades to boost foreign relations and project Chinese soft power.

But not everyone is happy about it.

A particularly passionate online community of panda fans in China and elsewhere has embraced the black-and-white bears, which are native to China and seen as a national symbol, with a fervor usually reserved for pop singers and other celebrities — an enthusiasm that can verge on toxic.

They have reacted harshly to announcements that China will send a pair of pandas to the San Diego Zoo — they are expected to arrive in the city this week — and another pair to the National Zoo in Washington by the end of the year, going so far as to release personal information about their human caretakers online.

Some cite worries about the animals’ well-being, claiming without evidence that they are at risk of mistreatment.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/toxic-fans-china-panda-diplomacy-rcna158238

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