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Activity Category: Media Engagement Activity

Xinhua Hosts Reuters, AP, and AFP in Beijing

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On December 1, 2023, Xinhua News Agency hosted leaders from the global newswires Reuters, AFP, and the Associated Press in Beijing, with Xinhua President Fu Hua (傅華) proposing a “high-level dialogue and cooperation mechanism” among the agencies. The meeting preceded the fifth World Media Summit in Guangzhou and Kunming. The World Media Summit (WMS), is a forum conceived by China in the midst of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and first held in October 2009, with the explicit idea on China’s part to expand its global influence and “discourse power” (話語權) through a semi-formal international mechanism under its leadership. Eight months ahead of the first meeting, Xinhua News Agency chief Li Congjun (李从军) wrote in the official periodical China Journalist that the event of conceived “[according] to the Central Committee’s strategic demand for ‘strengthening external propaganda’” (大外宣). At the 2023 event, participants discussed artificial intelligence, misinformation, and journalists’ safety. Fu Hua proposed expanded partnerships for video distribution and mutual humanitarian assistance in conflict zones. The gathering represented Xinhua’s effort to position itself alongside Western wire services, though the meeting’s outcomes and substantive commitments from participating agencies remained unclear from available reporting.

6th World Media Summit Held in Xinjiang

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On October 14, 2024, Xinhua News Agency and the Xinjiang regional government co-hosted the 6th World Media Summit in Urumqi, China, with over 500 participants from 106 countries and regions attending, according to Xinhua. The summit focused on “Artificial Intelligence and Media Transformation.” Organizers arranged a tour of Xinjiang for attendees, which Xinhua documented in vlogs featuring media representatives from Thailand, Pakistan, and Myanmar describing their positive impressions of the region. China faces widespread allegations of human rights violations against Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang, including mass detention and forced labor, which the U.S. has characterized as genocide. China rejects these accusations, claiming the facilities are vocational training centers. The World Media Summit (WMS), is a forum conceived by China in the midst of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and first held in October 2009, with the explicit idea on China’s part to expand its global influence and “discourse power” (話語權) through a semi-formal international mechanism under its leadership. Eight months ahead of the first meeting, Xinhua News Agency chief Li Congjun (李从军) wrote in the official periodical China Journalist that the event of conceived “[according] to the Central Committee’s strategic demand for ‘strengthening external propaganda’” (大外宣).

Xinhua Hosts Dialogue with Reuters, AP and AFP

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On October 12, 2024, representatives from Xinhua News Agency, Reuters, the Associated Press, and Agence France-Presse convened in Beijing for a high-level meeting among the four agencies. This was the second dialogue event hosted by Xinhua since the December 2023 inaugural meeting. Unlike the first meeting, which included top executives, the October gathering featured senior officials rather than agency leaders. According to Xinhua, the agencies discussed AI’s impact on journalism, with Xinhua’s president Fu Hua (傅華)  saying that AI poses many challenges to news reporting, including the risk of spreading false information through AI-generated images and videos. Fu suggested the agencies “embrace technological change” while combating misinformation, claiming “major global wire services should jointly shoulder the responsibility of upholding journalistic ethics.” Representatives from Reuters, AP, and AFP reportedly stated news agencies should redefine AI use while building safeguards, and all four agencies agreed to continue strengthening communication on AI-related topics. Xinhua has been keen to establish dialogue with the major international news wires in order to be seen as a key player in global information dissemination, but global news agencies have distanced themselves from the idea that cooperation with Xinhua relates to their professional journalism work — AP’s CEO emphasizing to US lawmakers in 2019 that cooperation is “purely commercial in nature.” 

CMG Signs Cooperation Agreement with Venezuelan Communication Ministry

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On September 13, 2023, the China Media Group ( 中央廣播電視總台), or CMG, and Venezuela’s Ministry of Popular Power for Communication and Information (Minci) signed a memorandum of understanding in Beijing. The signing took place during Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s state visit to China and was witnessed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Maduro. The president of China Media Group and  Venezuela’s communication minister signed the agreement. According to Chinese state media, the agreement established mechanisms for cooperation in content exchange, program co-production, technical innovation, market development, and personnel exchanges, which related reports characterized as strengthening the China-Venezuela “all-weather strategic partnership” through media collaboration.

China’s NDA and Chongqing Government Sign Deal with Singapore Media Development Authority

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China’s National Data Administration (国家数据局), the Chongqing Municipal Government (重庆市人民政府) and Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (资讯通信媒体发展局) signed a memorandum of understanding on December 15, 2025, to jointly build a digital Land and Sea Corridor (数字陆海新通道), deepening cooperation under the China-Singapore Strategic Connectivity Initiative. The agreement establishes collaboration in three key areas: digital connectivity and cross-border data flows within agreed regulatory frameworks; joint research and application of artificial intelligence, blockchain and big data technologies; and digital talent exchange through workshops, skills certification and training programs. The MOU marks an expansion of the Land and Sea Corridor from physical infrastructure to a dual-track model incorporating digital channels, with parties agreeing to establish regular cooperation mechanisms to advance implementation and inject digital momentum into regional trade, industrial upgrading and economic growth.

CMG launches Co-Productions with TV5MONDE

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On October 24, 2024, the Chinese Communist Party-run China Media Group (CMG) signed several co-production deals for film and television projects with France. According to Chinese state media coverage, the deals marked the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. CMG President Shen Haixiong (沈海雄) emphasized in related remarks that the projects would “provide a stronger bridge” for the two nations’ peoples. During the ceremony, CMG signed a cooperation memorandum with French TV network TV5MONDE for a series of short films depicting historical relations between the two countries, titled “The Witnesses of 60 Years of History.” Attendees included the President of TV5MONDE, French documentary director Jacques Malaterre, who also collaborated with CCTV9 in 2024, and personnel from the Chinese Embassy in France.

AFP and Xinhua Sign Exchange MOU

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On January 18, 2024, the Paris-based global news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) and China’s official Xinhua News Agency signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Beijing. According to Xinhua, the two agencies agreed to jointly hold photo exhibitions in Beijing and Paris in 2024 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of China-France diplomatic relations. They also discussed coverage of the Paris 2024 Olympics. Xinhua characterized AFP as “one of the first Western news agencies to establish a friendly and cooperative relationship with Xinhua,” noting their first news exchange protocol in 1957. The agreement was signed at the sidelines of the 5th World Media Summit (第五屆世界媒體峰會) held in China’s southern Guangdong province, and was signed by Xinhua President Fu Hua (傅華) along with AFP CEO Fabrice Fries, a long-time corporate executive with no journalism and media background who has also served as the president of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA).  

Chinese Ambassador Pens Article for French Paper After China-EU Summit

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On July 25, 2018, Les Échos published an article by Chinese Ambassador to France Zhai Jun (翟隽) titled “China’s Position on Avoiding a Global Trade War,” following the 20th China-EU Leaders’ Meeting held on July 16, 2018 in Beijing. In the article, Zhai accused the United States of “implementing protectionism under the banner of its own priorities” and characterized US actions as “wielding the tariff bludgeon,” claiming these measures “forced China to retaliate.” The ambassador’s commentary addressed the trade disputes triggered when President Trump signed a memorandum on March 22, 2018, directing tariffs on Chinese goods following a Section 301 investigation into China’s technology transfer and intellectual property practices. The US implemented 34 billion dollars in tariffs on Chinese goods on July 6, 2018, with China retaliating the same day. The ambassador also advocated for closer China-Europe cooperation and called for alignment between China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and European infrastructure plans to achieve what he called “mutual benefits.”

China Media Group Signs Cooperation With AFP

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On October 25, 2023, China Media Group (中央廣播電視總台) and Agence France-Presse (AFP) signed a cooperation agreement in Paris. The agreement aimed to “strengthen cooperation in new media, artificial intelligence and other aspects” by leveraging the 2024 Paris Olympics broadcast. Shen Haixiong (慎海雄), CMG’s President, said that this cooperation was among CMG’s priorities in 2023. During Shen’s trip to Europe, he also signed Olympic broadcasting agreements with the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee on October 23 and with the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland, on October 27.