Agitprop

Beijing sends Olympic gold medalists to Hong Kong to inspire patriotic feelings before the elections, sends the first Chinese taikonaut to Hong Kong to inspire patriotic feelings before the elections, and surely many more.

Well - would this propaganda really be different in the USA?

Yes. Those respective national heroes would be sent around as well, but not on behalf of the central government, but supposedly rather on request of local high school heads, mayors etc.

So, according to AC:

It is a dictatorship when agitprop is done top-down,
it is democracy when agitprop happens bottom-up.