To help rural economies stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, officials have taken to livestreaming platforms in droves to promote and sell their constituents’ local specialties, from produce to handicrafts, all over China. Unfortunately, some seem to have gotten carried away, inflating sales figures as well as viewership data, according to a commentary published Sunday by the state-run Xinhua News Agency.

The two authors criticized the trend as yet another manifestation of excessive formalism and bureaucracy. Previously, a government notice revealed that local cadres in a county in the northwestern Shaanxi Province had been required to buy at least 50 yuan ($7) worth of goods from a livestreamed sales event hosted by their superior, the deputy county chief. On May 9, the county government responded, saying the purchases had not been compulsory and apologizing for “using the wrong words.”

Rural officials’ forays into commercial livestreaming to help alleviate poverty in their communities have been largely well-received by the Chinese public. There were more than 4 million commercial livestreams in the first quarter of this year, with over 100 local leaders promoting their regional specialties by broadcasting, according to the Ministry of Commerce. (Image: From Weibo)