> we are not so authoritarian to stop people from accessing things
It's not so clear cut. For a start, for those inclined, it's perfectly possible to access any web site outside mainland China from inside, including without a vpn. It could be impractical for most, but most really don't care because there are better domestic alternatives focused on them.
Secondly, there are examples of the USA preventing access to things. For example, they stopped Chinese cellphone service providers, cgtn on broadcast TV, and, soon, tiktok.
Then there are companies like Google and Cloudflare who make it difficult for people who go the vpn route (again, not required) to access sites/services outside mainland China, by targeting vpn servers in other countries but used in China. There are also geofenced media services which are a pita. Dvd region codes forced on us, requiring those of us who travel to circumvent or repurchase our movie collection.
Lots of examples.
Perhaps not what you meant, but still.