Michigan State University partnerships with Chinese institutions raise security concerns

A report by the business intelligence firm Strategy Risks has raised concerns regarding Michigan State University’s (MSU) partnerships with Chinese academic institutions. The report suggests that collaborations with the Communication University of China (CUC) and Shanghai Normal University (SNU) may pose national security risks due to the involvement of institutions tied to Chinese Communist Party propaganda and the People’s Liberation Army.

One specific program involves an international digital advertising track where students spend their first year at CUC’s Hainan province campus before completing their studies at MSU. While the report does not allege that MSU knowingly supports military or propaganda objectives, it warns that expertise in strategic communications, artificial intelligence, and public-opinion analysis can be utilized for psychological warfare and information operations.

Strategy Risks CEO Isaac Stone Fish noted that while academic collaboration is not inherently problematic, the U.S. research-security system often focuses on hard technologies like semiconductors while overlooking influence-based disciplines that support state-led propaganda apparatuses.