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Archives: Dispatches

All Lingua Sinica Dispatches

China-Africa Press Exchange Center

Established in 2014 by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the China-Africa Press Center (CAPC) functions as a key component of Beijing’s media diplomacy in Africa. The center invites selected African journalists for 10-month stays in China, combining academic study at prestigious institutions with guided reporting tours of Chinese cities, factories, and government events. While officially described as helping African media “accurately report on China,” the program strategically shapes perceptions by exposing journalists to carefully curated positive aspects of Chinese development. Nigerian journalist Solomon Elusoji, who participated in 2018, noted his initial skepticism transformed after seeing China’s infrastructure, though he maintained that African countries must “make full use” of China-Africa relations. The program shows Beijing’s systematic approach to cultivating favorable media coverage in African countries through direct engagement with journalists.

National Сouncil of Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine

The National Council of Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine is a constitutional, permanently operating regulatory authority that supervises Ukraine’s television and radio broadcasting sector. The Council operates under the framework established by Ukraine’s Law on Television and Radio Broadcasting of December 21, 1993. The Council consists of eight members—four appointed by the Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) and four by the President—serving five-year terms. Its responsibilities include broadcasting licensing, monitoring compliance with Ukrainian media legislation, managing radio frequency resources, and implementing public policy in the television and radio information sphere. Following the 2014 conflict, the Council has actively regulated both domestic and foreign media content, particularly ordering measures against Russian channels “accused of broadcasting misleading information about Ukraine” in March 2014. The Council has also overseen Ukraine’s transition to digital broadcasting and public television reforms, including the establishment of the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine in 2017.

China Journalists Association Engages with Iranian Media at Beijing Press Event

On March 9, 2025, the Tehran Times reported on Iranian journalists participating in a group interview with Guangdong delegates to China’s National People’s Congress, organized by the All-China Journalists Association (中華全國新聞工作者協會). ACJA representatives acknowledged that “exchange and cooperation between ACJA and Iranian journalists organization is not much, which is not matched with our bilateral political relations as well as the economic cooperation.” The organization expressed interest in “media delegation visits, joint interviews or coverage of some projects, media professional training” and specifically invited Iranian media counterparts to attend “the coming 2025 Belt & Road Journalists Network Forum in July.” The press event showcased developments in renewable energy, electric vehicles, battery recycling, artificial intelligence, and robotics through interactions with three Guangdong entrepreneurs serving as NPC delegates.

China Signs Media Cooperation Deals with Ukraine

From February 8-17, 2017, Tian Jin (田進), Deputy Director of China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (國家新聞出版廣電總局), led a Chinese broadcasting delegation to Ukraine, the UK, and Romania to strengthen bilateral media cooperation. The delegation signed a cooperation memorandum with Ukraine’s National Council of Television and Radio Broadcasting and a letter of intent with Ukraine’s National Broadcasting and Television Committee. The visit resulted in nine specific agreements covering joint productions, journalist exchanges, program broadcasting, content support, training, technical cooperation, and establishing permanent contact mechanisms. The delegation also donated Chinese films and TV programs to Ukrainian and Romanian broadcasters, and witnessed the strategic cooperation agreement between Zhejiang Huace Film & TV Group and Britain’s ITV.

Chinese Media Group Signs Deal with Spanish Broadcaster

On July 27, 2024, China Media Group (中央廣播電視總台), or CMG, and Spain’s Mediapro Group (梅迪播集團) signed a cooperation memorandum in Barcelona covering media resource sharing, audiovisual program production, and innovative technology applications. CMG Director Shen Haixiong (慎海雄), who also serves as deputy head of the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party, and Mediapro Chairman Tatxo Benet signed the document. The agreement was positioned alongside the Paris Olympics, where CMG had secured production responsibilities for four sports and was described as “the main broadcasting agency” by Chinese state media. Mediapro, established in 1994 and headquartered in Barcelona, operates across five continents with specialties in sports broadcasting, television, and film production. The Barcelona-based company was described as having “unique advantages” in artificial intelligence and virtual reality technology and as “one of Europe’s most influential media groups” in the CCTV report.

Xinhua Donates News Production Equipment to Lao Chinese Chamber of Commerce

Xinhua News Agency (新華通訊社) and the Lao Chinese Chamber of Commerce (老撾中華總商會) held a media equipment donation ceremony at the Lao Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism on October 10, 2024. According to the original Chinese source, officials stated the donation was part of implementing outcomes from the second “Belt and Road Laos-China Cooperation Forum” (一帶一路老中合作論壇), which was held in December 2023. Xinhua Asia-Pacific Deputy Director Zhang Chongfang (張崇防) and Laos’ Deputy Minister of Information Phosy Chommaly attended the October ceremony. The deputy minister said the equipment would be “properly allocated” and noted that some equipment had already been deployed to support ASEAN summit coverage, claiming it would “promote media exchanges and cooperation” between the two countries. The forum framework was jointly organized by Laos’ Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Xinhua News Agency, and the Lao Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

China Media Group and Myanmar Radio and Television Unveil Documentary Series “China Walk”

On December 7, 2024, the state-owned China Media Group (中央廣播電視總台) unveiled its new series China Walk (漫步中國). A co-production between CMG and the official Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV), the show is scheduled to air on Myanmar’s major TV networks. People’s Daily reported that the program would provide “people of both countries to learn about the cultures and customs and have a better understanding of each other” by taking viewers to tea villages in Yunnan. The series explicitly promotes the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Xi Jinping’s signature infrastructure development strategy. CMG was established in 2018 as China’s predominant state broadcaster under direct control of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Propaganda Department, while MRTV serves as Myanmar’s state-run television and radio network under the Ministry of Information.

CCTV and Laos Ministry of Communication Celebrate Airing of TV Program in Laos

On November 21, 2023, China Media Group (中央廣播電視總台) held an event with Laos’s Ministry of Technology and Communications to celebrate the launch of its multimedia cultural program “Chinese Style” (中國風) in Luang Prabang, the UNESCO World Heritage city in northern Laos. Hu Jinjun (胡勁軍), deputy director of China Media Group, and a deputy governor of Luang Prabang Province attended the ceremony and delivered speeches. China Media Group, which encompasses China Central Television (CCTV), was established in 2018 under the direct control of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Propaganda Department. During the event, Hu emphasized that the program would serve as “a window for Laotian friends to understand China,” according to the Chinese consulate. The Lao-language program airs daily during prime morning hours on Luang Prabang Radio and is simultaneously distributed through local websites and social media platforms, marking an expansion of Chinese state media’s presence in Southeast Asia.

Argentina Chinese Network Joins PRC-led Media Union

The Argentina Chinese Network (阿根廷華人網), founded by Liu Fangyong (劉芳勇) and others in 2011, received a membership certificate from the Global Chinese Media Cooperation Union (世界華文媒體合作聯盟) in October 2023 during the 11th World Chinese Media Forum in Chengdu, Sichuan, officially becoming an institutional member with certificate number MSA010. The Global Chinese Media Cooperation Union is operated by the Chinese Communist Party’s United Front Work Department (UFWD) through China News Service (CNS), one of the country’s two official wire services. China News Service became part of the United Front Work Department in 2018 when the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office was absorbed into the UFWD, as documented by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.