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All Lingua Sinica Dispatches

CMG Signs Animation Cooperation with RTP

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In August 2023, officials from China Media Group visited Portugal’s public broadcaster, RTP (Rádio e Televisão de Portugal), to formalize cooperation on the animated series “O Panda e o Galo” (The Panda and the Rooster), featuring a Portuguese Barcelos rooster and a Chinese panda. During the ceremony, a Letter of Intent was signed between RTP and CMG’s children’s programming department for potential future cooperation projects. The Chinese Ambassador to Portugal characterized the partnership as an opportunity to “strengthen friendship between the two peoples.” The 52-episode animation series aired as part of CMG’s broader initiative featuring international panda-related co-productions with multiple countries, including Russia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

Honduran State TV Airs CGTN Program Amid Diplomatic Shift

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On March 26, 2023, just hours after Honduras severed ties with Taiwan, the Chinese international state broadcaster CGTN (中國國際電視台) aired a special program on Canal Ocho (第八頻道), Honduras’s state-owned “Channel 8.” The program, clearly prepared well in advance of the shift of diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to the PRC, revealed the diplomatic role played by Chinese state media in the transition. CGTN operates under China Media Group (中國媒體集團), the state-run conglomerate directly under the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Propaganda Department (中央宣傳部). CMG subsequently established a permanent bureau in Tegucigalpa, while Xinhua News Agency (新華社) opened a local office positioned as a hub for Central American operations. Shortly afterward, 30 Honduran journalists participated in a ten-day, all-expenses-paid tour of China under Foreign Ministry supervision — consistent with Beijing’s post-recognition media engagement strategy across the region.

Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Summit 2018

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The Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism and China’s state-run People’s Daily (人民日報) co-hosted the Lancang-Mekong River Cooperation Media Summit (瀾滄江—湄公河合作媒體峰會) in Vientiane from July 1-3, 2018. The meeting was held under the theme “Cooperation in Lancang-Mekong Community for a Bright Future” and gathered senior officials and media representatives from six countries along the river system: Laos, China, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. The summit focused on evaluating the implementation of a joint declaration signed in Beijing the previous year and strengthening cooperation in media, particularly in new media and tourism promotion. The Lancang-Mekong Cooperation initiative, established in 2015 by China with the five Mekong countries, represents a multilateral framework for regional cooperation.

China and Vietnam Sign MoU on Media Cooperation

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On April 14, 2025, Nanning Media Center (南宁市体中心) and Hanoi Radio and Television (越南河内广播电视台) signed a memorandum of understanding during the “Audiovisual China in Vietnam” (视听中国·走进越南) event. It establishes cooperation in five key areas: mutual translation and broadcasting of programs (视听节目互译互播), joint production of content (视听栏目合拍共建), cultural exchange activities (文化交流活动合作), talent visits between organizations (人才交流互访), and other practical collaborations in the audiovisual field. This agreement furthers China-Vietnam media relations during the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations and the “China-Vietnam Year of Humanistic Exchange” (中越人文交流年).”

Chinese State Media Signs Deal with UN Tourism Body

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On July 29, 2024, China Media Group (CMG, 中央廣播電視總台) signed a cooperation memorandum with the United Nations Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in Madrid, Spain, focusing on tourism news reporting, brand promotion, and media events. CMG Vice Minister and President Shen Haixiong (慎海雄) and UNWTO Executive Director Zoritsa Urosevic attended the ceremony, with Chinese Ambassador to Spain Yao Jing also present. Shen referenced the Chinese Communist Party’s Third Plenum reforms concluded weeks earlier, claiming “unlimited potential” in media-tourism integration and positioning CMG as a “reliable partner” to UNWTO through its “multilingual advantages.” Urosevic expressed gratitude for CMG’s support, stating the Chinese state broadcaster’s programs have “effectively stimulated economic development” and created a “virtuous cycle” in global tourism recovery. The memorandum outlines resource sharing and collaboration in news production, tourism information dissemination, and program creation between the Chinese state media conglomerate and UN agency.

Slovak News Agency and CMG Sign Deal

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On November 5, 2024, the China Media Group (中央廣播電視總台) and the News Agency of the Slovak Republic signed a cooperation memorandum during the Slovak Prime Minister’s official visit to China from October 31 to November 5. The deputy director of CMG and TASR’s director general signed the agreement, which called for regular exchanges, content sharing, technological cooperation, and personnel visits between the two state-affiliated media organizations. The agreement coincided with the 75th anniversary of China-Slovakia diplomatic relations and the nation’s broader effort to establish a strategic partnership with China.

China-Cyprus-Europe Media Forum

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The China-Cyprus-Europe Media Forum was held from October 21-23, 2025, in Nicosia, Cyprus. According to a report from the official China News Service, the forum was organized by the China Media Group (中央广播电视总) and the Chinese Embassy in Cyprus, along with the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (塞浦路斯广播电视公司), the Cyprus Mail (塞浦路斯邮报), and the government-run Xinhua News Agency (新华社). More than 100 representatives from the media, government, diplomatic missions, universities, think tanks, and enterprises attended. The Chinese Ambassador said that he hoped participants would “deepen exchanges” and “tell stories of China-Cyprus friendship well” — language reflecting the Chinese Communist Party’s emphasis on “telling China’s story well” (講好中國故事), a core propaganda directive under Xi Jinping aimed at shaping international narratives about China. Cooperation between China and Cyprus, China-EU relations, media responsibilities, and the role of AI in media development were the main topics of the forum. The event released a declaration calling for the media to build “a community with a shared future for humanity” — this being a signature foreign policy concept introduced by Xi Jinping, and suggesting that the document was drafted by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The forum was timed ahead of the 55th anniversary of China-Cyprus diplomatic relations and Cyprus’s EU Council presidency in 2026.

Chinese Ambassador Meets with Senegal National Broadcasting Director

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Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Li Zhigang (李志剛) met with Senegal National Broadcasting Director Pape Alé Niang on January 7, 2026 to discuss China-Senegal media exchange and cooperation. Ambassador Li emphasized that China “highly values promoting China-Senegal and China-Africa civilizational exchange and mutual learning” ahead of the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges — an initiative between China and the African Union kicked off in January 2026 — and expressed willingness to cooperate with Senegal National Broadcasting on media coverage of major events including the Dakar Youth Olympic Games. Director Niang praised China’s contributions to Senegal’s development and stated willingness to “learn from China’s development experience” and “actively promote Senegal-China friendly cooperation.” The meeting represents China’s efforts to build media coordination with African state broadcasters as part of broader people-to-people exchange initiatives designed to strengthen “hearts connecting, emotions blending, and forces gathering.” The language of “civilizational exchange” reflects official CCP terminology positioning China as creator of “a new form of human civilization” that other countries should emulate, while “friendship” is a term the CCP uses to condition relationships on accommodating China’s core interests.

Xi Pens article for Serbian Media

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On May 7, 2024, the Serbian newspaper Politika published a signed article by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) titled “May the Light of Our Ironclad Friendship Shine on the Path of China-Serbia Cooperation” (願中塞鐵桿友誼之光照亮中塞合作之路). The placement of the article corresponded with Xi’s state visit to Serbia. In the article, Xi emphasized the “ironclad friendship” between China and Serbia, highlighting mutual support during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a Free Trade Agreement between the two countries. The article also referenced the 25th anniversary of the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Yugoslavia during a NATO aerial bombing campaign on May 7, 1999, which killed three Chinese journalists. Xi’s article referred to the bilateral relationship emotively as a “friendship forged in fresh blood” (中塞两国人民用鲜血凝成的友谊).