A clear pattern emerges when observing Google’s search platform in Việt Nam: there is a clear difference in visibility between celebrations of the U23 national football team and news regarding land protests in locations like Hà Nội, Nghệ An, and Hồ Chí Minh City. While U23 search results consistently dominate “hot search” lists, information concerning land petitions is largely absent from the mainstream information space.

One might ask if football simply occurs more frequently than land disputes. Quantitatively, a football tournament lasts only one to three months and happens once every few years. In contrast, administrative complaints and collective disputes over hundreds of hectares of land can drag on for several years.