Fifty years ago, I enjoyed an overnight stay in Hong Kong while on my way from Melbourne to visit the United Kingdom for the first time. Hong Kong was already established as a “tourist and shopping paradise” by then. I remember being somewhat bewildered by the crowds of people everywhere I went. But it was still a marvelous experience, and I came away with an excellent new Japanese camera and portable cassette recorder, which cost half what they did in Australia.

More recently, Washington, London and Canberra, among others, have warned their citizens that it is dangerous to visit Hong Kong, emphasizing the new national security laws that had been applied in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Similar dark warnings about the Chinese mainland have also been issued.

Never mind that these new Hong Kong laws are entirely comparable to those in these finger-wagging jurisdictions and are less drastic than a range of similar laws worldwide. And never mind how weird it is to listen to the United States warning about such travel hazards, when America is home to many of the most dangerous urban areas in the developed world. These particular Western travel advisories are, after all, a clumsy, ill-tempered component in the US-led project to contain the rise of China. Often, their message is subsequently amplified by mainstream Western media outlets that are largely tuned in to this huge Sino-containment mission.

Over the last year, however, we have seen a remarkable surge in positive social media, video coverage, mainly in English, on how splendidly efficient and captivating traveling in the Chinese mainland can be. And now we are seeing similar Western coverage emerging about Hong Kong.

The widely accessible smartphone and today’s much-enhanced social-media bandwidth have together made it more difficult for official misinformation campaigns to maintain comprehensive, mendacious narrative management in the way they once did

Regular individual travelers often have first-rate smartphones, which enable them to produce articulate, engaging short videos that can be uploaded inside 24 hours. Many are likely motivated to film and talk because what they see with their own eyes contrasts starkly with those brooding, official travel warnings. It turns out that the Chinese mainland is, more than ever, a marvelous place to visit, and Hong Kong is just as exciting as it was 50 years ago: more modern but still fabulous. And if you would like to know why, they say: “Just click on this online video.”

In the case of Hong Kong, eating, shopping, and sightseeing opportunities are all stressed by these traveler-commentators. And the wonders of Hong Kong’s superbly integrated, safe, frequent, low-cost public transport system are also highlighted. One bright family noted how they could enjoy outstanding harbor views, comparable to those in Hong Kong’s most expensive rooms, by booking into an excellent, lower-priced next-door hotel. Another video reporter recently emphasized how much safer, more enjoyable and less stressful it was staying in Hong Kong compared to London, their hometown.

One thing these reports could have discussed was the Hong Kong pedestrian experience. In many respects, given the exceptionally high people and vehicle density, this is very good. The widespread installation of outdoor lifts that give access to the city’s extensive elevated-walkway network has been a major help.

But most visitors still surely notice one unique hazard faced by Hong Kong pedestrians: The extraordinary, regular failure of drivers, professional and private, to use vehicle indicators to signal when they are turning left or right. In the worst cases, turning drivers first use no signal and then, when a pedestrian thinks it is safe to step off the footpath, they give an angry blast on the car horn.

It may be deliberate in some cases. But even when it is just the product of bad habits or carelessness, it is inexcusable. An extended police publicity campaign and blitz to stamp out this dangerous habit would surely be welcomed by all visitors. And by several million Hong Kong residents.

On a darker note, there is a resonance between the collective positive impact of individual reporting explained above and the way that the grotesque Israeli-American propaganda blitz, aimed at excusing the unforgivable hellscape in Gaza, has been continually exposed through the courage of individual, professional and citizen reporters. The widely accessible smartphone and today’s much-enhanced social-media bandwidth have together made it more difficult for official misinformation campaigns to maintain comprehensive, mendacious narrative management in the way they once did.

The author is an adjunct professor in the faculty of law, Hong Kong University.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.