Experts say Chinese Communist infiltration is present in almost every area of the world.
A new report from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) reveals how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has infiltrated and manipulated the media in countries around the world through various means. The report warns that the growing global influence of the Chinese Communist Party poses a serious threat and that countries should remain vigilant about it.
The report, titled China’s Global Media Footprint: Democratic Responses to Expanding Authoritarian Influence, details how the Chinese Communist Party has been able to infiltrate and manipulate media around the world through a variety of means. Influence, details how the CCP has been “exploiting propaganda, disinformation, censorship, and influence at key points in the information flow” as it expands its global efforts to get positive media coverage of Beijing.
There is a gray area between the conventions of diplomatic maneuvering and coercive activities. The report calls it “Sharp Power,” which exploits the openness of Western societies to manipulate foreign media content. And Beijing has used it to its advantage.
Their sharper edge tends to undermine democratic norms, erode state sovereignty, weaken the financial sustainability of independent media and violate local laws,” said Sarah Cook, author of the report and senior researcher at the human rights group Freedom House. “
“No country is immune: targets include poor countries with weak institutions as well as large, rich democracies,” she said. She said.
Around 2013, the Communist Party began talking about the importance of “telling China’s story,” and in September 2013, Communist Party leader Xi Jinping told a national conference on propaganda and ideology that it was important to do a good job of propaganda overseas by spreading the “voice of China.
Now, in the midst of a pandemic of CCP viruses (Wuhan virus and New Guinea virus), Beijing has again said it is important to tell the “Chinese story” of its “successful” fight against the Epidemic.
According to an article published on the CCP’s official website last July, the core of the “China story” is the “story of the Chinese Communist Party.
According to the report, Beijing’s strategy to rewrite the global narrative about the CCP has expanded significantly over the past decade, “to the point where hundreds of millions of news consumers around the world often watch, read or listen to information produced by or influenced by the CCP, often without knowing the source of the information.”
Exploiting the West’s Weaknesses
The report notes that existing weaknesses in the West have played a role in fueling Beijing’s efforts to expand its media’s global reach.
Local media may find it difficult to resist partnership offers or advertising deals from Chinese Communist Party state-owned enterprises due to a lack of funding; local officials, think tanks and civil society often lack a deep understanding of the CCP; and CCP diplomats have waged a long campaign to control overseas Chinese media and censor negative media coverage, the report said. The increasing use of Chinese apps such as WeChat among overseas Chinese, growing political polarization and anti-Western sentiment in some countries have also been exploited by Beijing.
“Hundreds of incidents around the world over the past decade show that once the CCP (or a company, media outlet or owner with close ties to the party) gains a foothold within information distribution channels, manipulation efforts inevitably follow.” The report said.
For example, in the worsening Communist Party virus epidemic, the Communist Party has used accusations of racism to shift blame, blasting U.S. officials for using the term “Wuhan virus” even though the term had previously appeared in articles in the Communist Party’s official media.
The report also cites thousands of trips by foreign journalists sponsored by Beijing as key to the Communist Party’s influence on Western media coverage. During such trips, journalists are often heavily monitored and allowed to see issues only from the perspective the CCP wants them to see.
At the same Time, the CCP’s takeover of local media outlets has succeeded in changing editorial guidelines in reporting on Taiwan, South Africa and the Czech Republic.
A survey released last June by the International Federation of Journalists found that two-thirds of its members believe the CCP is establishing a “visible presence” in their national media. Journalism unions from at least eight countries say they have signed agreements with Chinese entities, often including content-sharing agreements, journalist exchange programs or participation in Communist government events.
Global social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter, which remain banned in China, have removed a large number of accounts traced back to China. These accounts had run coordinated campaigns to promote pro-Beijing views and sow discord.
Cook said in the report that a tough Western response is necessary as the Chinese Communist regime adopts “a society-wide, authoritarian approach to control.
Some of her recommendations include increased scrutiny of pre-election media coverage and Chinese language media; a review of censorship and a security audit of Chinese applications; a study to determine media ownership and financial ties to the Communist Party; and a major effort by press freedom watchdogs to warn the public and lawmakers about Communist influence.
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