linguistic:voice_change
Comparison to Xi Jinping

In China, images of Pooh were censored from social media websites in mid-2017, when Internet memes comparing Chinese Paramount Leader and General Secretary of the Communist Party Xi Jinping to (Disney's version of) Pooh became popular. The 2018 film Christopher Robin was also denied a Chinese release.

When Xi visited the Philippines, protestors posted images of Pooh on social media. Other politicians have been compared to Winnie-the-Pooh characters alongside Xi, including Barack Obama as Tigger, Carrie Lam, Rodrigo Duterte, and Peng Liyuan as Piglet, and Fernando Chui and Shinzo Abe as Eeyore.

Pooh's Chinese name (Chinese: 小熊维尼; lit. ' little bear Winnie ') has been censored from video games such as World of Warcraft, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Arena of Valor, and Devotion. Images of Pooh in Kingdom Hearts III were also blurred out on the gaming site A9VG.

Despite the ban, two Pooh-themed rides still operate in Disneyland Shanghai, and it is also legal to purchase Pooh-bear merchandise and books about Winnie the Pooh in China. In May 2021, a performer dressed up as Winnie-the-Pooh in Shanghai Disneyland was beaten by a child tourist. Mass media in China used the term "Pooh Pooh Bear" (Chinese: 噗噗熊) in reports about this incident because the word "Winnie" has been censored. However, search results of "Pooh Pooh Bear hurt in Shanghai Disneyland" were censored on Weibo after this incident happened.

In October 2019, Pooh was featured in the South Park episode " Band in China " as a prisoner in China because of his alleged resemblance with Xi. In the episode, Pooh is brutally killed by Randy Marsh. South Park was banned in China as a result of the episode.

Taiwanese pilots have worn morale patches which feature a Formosan black bear punching Winnie-the-Pooh in the face. The patches are produced by a private company and demand for them surged greatly after pictures of active duty personal wearing them began circulating.