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Archives: Dispatches

All Lingua Sinica Dispatches

Western International Communication Center

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Established in 2018 as the Chongqing International Communication Center (重慶國際傳播中心) to serve as the “main force” for the city’s overseas promotion, the center was upgraded in 2023 as the Western International Communication Center (西部国际传播中心), or WICC. It is operated by the Chongqing Daily News Group (重庆日报报业集团) under the guidance of the municipality’s provincial-level propaganda office. The center manages iChongqing — a multi-platform media network targeting international audiences through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other platforms censored within China itself. The center claims to have “expanded Chongqing’s overseas influence” through its foreign-language content, with officials reporting that Chongqing’s international exposure ranks “fifth nationally” and “first in western China.”It describes itself as China’s first provincial-level international communication center and bills itself as a hub for international communication serving western China and facing the world. The center runs a “3+X” content matrix built around three platforms: the iChongqing English-language website, the Bridging News app, and the Let’s Meet online TV program, which is co-produced with Chongqing Satellite TV. The WICC claims more than 24 million overseas users and over 4.74 billion total views across its platforms, according to the center. It is part of Xi Jinping’s broader drive, accelerating from 2021, to leverage provincial and municipal media resources and propaganda offices in a centrally directed campaign to “tell China’s story” to global audiences. In April 2025, the WICC expanded its overseas distribution network by launching a dedicated Let’s Meet channel on Sri Lanka Mirror, a Colombo-based news outlet, marking what iChongqing described as the platform’s first overseas “station.”

Nigerian Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation

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The Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation is a government ministry in Nigeria responsible for managing the country’s public image, information dissemination, and cultural promotion. Established in 1999 under President Olusegun Obasanjo, dissolved on January 11, 2007, and re-established in 2015 under President Muhammadu Buhari, the ministry is currently headed by Minister Mohammed Idris Malagi, who assumed office in August 2023. The ministry claims its mandate is to establish “a dynamic public information system” that provides citizens and global communities with “credible and timely information.” Its stated functions include “strategic communication of government policies,” promoting “national consciousness,” regulating media, developing “cultural values and awareness,” and managing the National Archives.

Government of the United Kingdom

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The Government of the United Kingdom, formally known as His Majesty’s Government (HMG), is the central executive authority of the UK led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer since July 2024. While King Charles III serves as head of state, executive power is exercised by the government, with the Prime Minister selecting all ministers. The Cabinet, comprising the PM and senior ministers, forms the supreme decision-making committee. Ministers are typically members of Parliament, accountable to either the House of Commons or Lords, though the government primarily depends on Commons’ confidence. The government operates through 24 ministerial departments and 20 non-ministerial departments, supported by approximately 560,000 civil servants. Government ministers lead legislative debates, answer questions during Prime Minister’s Questions and departmental sessions, and appear before parliamentary committees. While the monarch possesses constitutional authority through the Royal Prerogative, these powers are largely delegated to ministers and exercised conventionally with minimal direct royal involvement in governing.

Government of Bangladesh

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The Government of Bangladesh operates as a unitary state with its central government headquartered in Dhaka. Following Sheikh Hasina’s resignation in August 2024, Dr. Muhammad Yunus serves as chief adviser of the interim government. The president functions as head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces, while the prime minister typically holds executive authority. The country employs a unique power transfer system where civil society members oversee a three-month transition period and general elections, a practice first implemented in 1991 and constitutionally adopted in 1996. The unicameral legislature, Jatiya Sangsad, contains 350 seats, including 50 reserved for women. The most recent parliamentary election was held on January 7, 2024. Local governance is structured through divisions, districts, subdistricts (upazilas), unions, and villages, with elected officials at the union level and civil servants administering larger units.

Sinovision

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Founded in 1990, SinoVision distributes television programs to Chinese-language viewers in the Greater New York area. The outlet describes its positioning as “facing local audiences, and getting close to mainstream society.” SinoVision launched its 24-hour digital news channel in 2011. It also operates the news website SinoVisionNet. The network is linked to the PRC and its official China News Service, under the auspices of the United Front Work Department of the CCP, through the Hong Kong-based Ya Zhou Wen Hua Enterprises Limited (HK).

Juba Echo TV

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Juba Echo TV is South Sudan’s private television channel, broadcasting from Juba and available on South One Decoder Channel 50, MTNTV+, and Myhometv. Established in 2015, the channel has consistently delivered accurate, timely, and impactful news coverage to empower South Sudanese audiences. Under the leadership of CEO Patrick Oyet and Head of News Kelly Abale, Juba Echo TV has achieved remarkable milestones, including launching regional news segments in 2018, introducing online streaming services in 2022, and receiving international recognition for outstanding journalism in 2024. The channel’s comprehensive programming spans breaking news, sports coverage, entertainment shows, and business insights, all guided by core values of integrity, transparency, and excellence. Recent coverage includes significant national events and international recognition, with CEO Patrick Oyet providing insights into South Sudan’s current affairs.

Al Yamamah Press Establishment

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Al Yamamah Press Establishment founded in 1963 in Riyadh, is one of Saudi Arabia’s most influential media companies. The establishment publishes the Arabic daily newspaper Al Riyadh (الرياض), whose first issue was published on May 1, 1965. The company also publishes the weekly magazine Al Yamamah (اليمامة), originally founded by prominent Saudi journalist and historian Sheikh Hamad Al Jassir (حمد الجاسر) in 1953. The magazine was initially titled Al Riyadh and later renamed Al Yamamah. In 1963, Al Yamamah Press Establishment began publishing the magazine on a weekly basis after acquiring the rights from Al Jassir. The company also publishes Riyadh Daily, an English-language publication that began as a newsletter in the 1960s, was developed into a broadsheet in 1985, and transitioned to a digital-only format on January 1, 2017.

Tea FM

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Tea FM is an East Malaysian Chinese and English-language radio station jointly that began broadcasting in Kuching on August 1, 2015, and in Kota Kinabalu on August 8, 2015, before being officially launched on November 28, 2015, by Sarawak Chief Minister Adenan Satem. Tea FM is Sarawak’s first Mandarin Chinese and English local private radio station, with content described by the owners as 60% Chinese and 40% English, targeting listeners aged 20 to 40. The station broadcasts on 102.7 FM in Kuching and 102.8 FM in Kota Kinabalu, operating as a 24-hour service from Crown Towers at Jalan Padungan, Kuching.

China Minutes

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China Minutes  (中國時刻)is the English version of Paris-based Nouvelles d’Europe, which describes itself as “the most influential Chinese news organization in continental Europe.” In fact, the paper, the oldest Chinese-language outlet in France, is directly controlled by the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Formally launched in 2015 as a subsection of the official Nouvelle d’Europe website, China Minutes had to wait two years before it got an online home of its own. It frequently runs content lifted straight from state-run outlets like Xinhua and CGTN. Editorially, it also toes the line on topics like Taiwan and Xinjiang. In 2019, the outlet reprinted a Global Times article presenting pro-China perspectives on clashes at Australia’s University of Queensland between pro-democracy Hong Kong students and mainland counter-demonstrators.