A federal spotlight on Chinese government-backed media drew a complaint from the Communist regime Wednesday.
“They need to facilitate rather than obstruct media’s normal work, still less politic[ci]zing the relevant issue,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said in his regular press briefing, per the official transcript.
Justice Department officials want Xinhua and CCTV, two state-run media outlets, to register as foreign agents. The designation would “require them to provide details of their operations,” as the Wall Street Journal explained in reporting the DOJ order. It could also jeopardize their Capitol Hill press credentials, as was the case when Kremlin-backed Russian outlets were forced to register.
“Media serve as an import bridge and bond to enhance communications and understandings between people of different countries,” Geng said. “Countries should perceive media’s role in promoting international exchange and cooperation in an open and inclusive spirit.”
Federal focus on the Chinese outlets comes on the heels of interference with Voice of America, a U.S. government-funded outlet. Chinese officials arrested a professor who was in the midst of a VOA phone interview in August; subsequently, they detained a VOA correspondent and a contractor who tried to follow up with the professor.
“It is outrageous that two journalists have been detained for nothing more than doing their jobs,” said VOA Director Amanda Bennett.
Geng demurred when asked if China would retaliate to the Justice Department order. “The Chinese side welcomes objective and unbiased coverage of China by foreign media and stands ready to support and facilitate their normal reporting in China,” he said. “This position is clear.”
