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.
On July 29, 2024, the China Media Group (CMG) hosted a cultural exchange event in Madrid titled “China’s deepening reform in the new era” as part of Beijing’s broader effort to shape international media narratives following the Third Plenum – a gathering of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party traditionally focused on economic policy. Speakers included Shen Haixiong (慎海雄), CMG president; José Luis Centella, president of the Communist Party of Spain; and Yao Jing (姚敬), Chinese ambassador to Spain. Shensaid that China’s reforms would bring “more opportunities” to the world, echoing standard CCP messaging on Chinese modernization. During the event, CMG also announced several cooperation projects, including “A Look at China: Spanish Journalists’ China Tour” (一起看中國:西班牙記者中國), which would bring Spanish reporters to China for media reports on Chinese development; a CGTN digital exhibition on paintings from the Song dynasty; and an invitation for Spanish museums to participate in CMG’s National Treasure (國家寶藏) program, broadcast on CCTV-3 channel, which regularly showcases Chinese cultural highlights. Ten CMG-produced programs promoting Chinese modernization and Sino-Spanish cooperation were scheduled for broadcast across Spanish outlets, including Mediaset, EFE News Agency, and Barcelona Television
On July 19, 2018, Xinhua News Agency (新华通讯社) and South Africa’s Independent Media co-hosted the 3rd BRICS Media Forum in Cape Town, South Africa. According to Xinhua sources, the event reportedlyattracted attendance from 48 mainstream media organizations from the five BRICS countries and African nations, though Independent Online confirmed “38 mainstream media organisations from the BRICS bloc as well as African countries” attended. Xinhua reported that African media representatives expressed “expectations for strengthening cooperation with BRICS countries’ media” (期待与金砖国家媒体加强合作). A representative from Kenya’s The Standard (旗帜报) was quoted as saying that “Africa has its own stories to tell the world” (非洲有自己的故事要向世人讲述), echoing narratives promoted by Chinese media about African storytelling. The forum adopted the Cape Town Declaration 2018, which established commitments for content sharing and creating “a united news service between the various BRICS news services.”
On April 29, 2021, the state-funded newspaper Diario El Salvador published an extensive interview with the Chinese Ambassador to El Salvador, Ou Jianhong (欧箭虹). In the interview, the ambassador characterized the bilateral relationship as having “consolidated” following President Nayib Bukele’s 2019 state visit to China. She utilized the platform to push several key PRC strategic narratives: dismissing concerns of “secret agreements” by emphasizing transparency, highlighting record-breaking Salvadoran sugar exports to China (up 105.7 percent in 2020), and framing China’s “vaccine diplomacy” and infrastructure gifts — including a new National Library and a new National Stadium — as “disinterested cooperation.” Notably, the Ambassador praised the Bukele administration’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic as a “global example.” This placement is an example of how China uses state-aligned local media to validate a partner government’s domestic performance while simultaneously promoting the benefits of aligning with the PRC’s geopolitical and economic framework.
A delegation of Vietnamese mainstream news media organizations held talks with the Fujian International Communication Center (福建國際傳播中心) in Fuzhou on June 11, 2026. The Fujian International Communication Center was established on June 21, 2023, under the direction of the propaganda office of the Fujian CCP Committee and is operated by Fujian Media Group (福建省廣播影視集團). Lai Han (賴晗), general manager of Fujian New Era International Communication Center Co., Ltd. (福建新時代國際傳播中心有限公司), attended and spoke at the session, expressing interest in exchanging international communication experience and sharing content innovation and digital platform skills with the Vietnamese delegates. The session took place within the framework of the “2026–2027 China-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation Year” — a bilateral diplomatic initiative announced by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Vietnamese General Secretary and President Tô Lâm in April 2026 — and was framed by participants as an opportunity to jointly “tell the story” of Vietnam-China friendship and promote people-to-people ties. Participants discussed trends in digital and cross-border communication and exchanged experience in what the VNA described as promoting “the effectiveness of media information outreach.” The delegation also toured Fujian Media Group’s studio facilities.
The Chinese Press Institute (中國新聞學會), or CPI, a Taipei-based journalism association founded in 1941 and re-established in Taiwan in 1965, conducted an eight-day visit to Shenzhen and Beijing from September 18–25, 2024, under arrangements made by the All-China Journalists Association (中華全國新聞工作者協會), or ACJA, the Chinese Communist Party-led press body that plays a central role in managing and controlling journalism and media in China. Led by CPI chair Chou Cheng-hu (周成虎), the delegation included senior executives from major Taiwanese media organizations: United Daily News (聯合報) president Yu Mei-yueh (游美月) and group executive director Huang Su-chuan (黃素娟); Taiwan Radio (台灣廣播公司) chair Ma Chang-sheng (馬長生); Gala Television (八大電視公司) general manager Wang Ko-chieh (王克捷); Meihua Media (梅花媒體集團) president Wang Cho-chung (王綽中); Penghu Times (澎湖時報) chair Hsu Chao-chien (許朝鑒); Taiwan Shin Sheng Daily News (台灣新生報) president Liu Chang-yu (劉長裕); National Broadcasting Company (全國廣播公司) general manager Pan Hsing-tsang (潘星蒼); EToday general editor Lin Wen-chun (林妏純); Convergence Media Group (匯流傳媒集團) chair Wu Shih-chang (吳世昌); Shih Hsin University (世新大學) president Chen Ching-ho (陳清河); and Chinese Internet Channel Community Association (中華網路頻道事業協會) chair Ko Shu-jen (葛樹人). In Shenzhen, the delegation received a welcome banquet hosted by Shenzhen municipal standing committee member Wang Chiang (王強), with attendance from the Shenzhen Taiwan Affairs Office — the local branch of the Taiwan Affairs Office (國務院台灣事務辦公室), or TAO, the State Council body responsible for implementing CCP policy toward Taiwan, including through what the Taiwan government and independent scholars have described as organized influence operations targeting civil society, media, and youth — and Shenzhen Press Association chair and Shenzhen Press Group (深圳報業集團) chair Ting Shih-chao (丁時照). Corporate visits included Tencent (騰訊), where the delegation toured exhibition facilities showcasing WeChat’s 1.37 billion combined users and an AI-powered digital recreation of the Dunhuang cave library; edge AI firm Intellifusion (雲天勵飛); and electric vehicle manufacturer BYD (比亞迪). Media visits included the Shenzhen Broadcasting Group (深圳廣電集團) and Shenzhen Press Group (深圳報業集團). A lunch hosted by Shenzhen propaganda office head Chang Ling (張玲) included screenings of promotional videos describing Shenzhen’s development through the lens of Xi Jinping’s ideological slogans. In Beijing, the delegation attended a forum at the ACJA on the theme “The Impact of New Technology on New Media,” at which representatives of the People’s Daily (人民日報), Xinhua AI subsidiary Xinhua Zhiyun (新華智雲), and the CCP-run media conglomerate China Media Group (中央廣播電視總台), which is operated by the Central Propaganda Department, participated alongside Taiwanese counterparts. Also participating were iQIYI (愛奇藝), China Renmin University professor Song Jianwu (宋建武), and Meituan (美團). On September 23, the delegation was received by Taiwan Affairs Office deputy director Wu Xi (吳壐), who urged Taiwanese media to “introduce a true mainland to Taiwan’s people” and attributed limits on cross-strait ties to the Democratic Progressive Party — language consistent with the TAO’s documented mandate to shape Taiwanese public opinion toward Beijing’s preferred framing of cross-strait relations.
National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) Deputy Director Dong Xin (董昕) met with Douglas Alexander, UK Minister of State for Trade Policy and Economic Security, on April 11 to discuss deepening Sino-British audiovisual cooperation. The officials exchanged views on implementing the “China-UK Cultural Industry Policy Dialogue” during Alexander’s visit to China. According to the NRTA, Dong expressed China’s willingness to “further deepen policy communication, content cooperation, and personnel exchanges” in the broadcasting sector. Alexander agreed with China’s proposals and stated that the UK “highly values strengthening cooperation with China in broadcasting and television.” During his visit, Alexander raised concerns with senior Chinese and Hong Kong officials about Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse being denied entry to Hong Kong. Hobhouse was refused entry at Hong Kong International Airport on April 10 without explanation, marking the first time a British MP has faced such treatment since 1997.
China Media Group (中央廣播電視總臺) and the Saudi Broadcasting Authority signed a memorandum of understanding in December 2022 during President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Saudi Arabia, which coincided with the first China-Arab States Summit (首屆中國—阿拉伯國家峰會) and China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit (中國—海灣阿拉伯國家合作委員會峰會). According to Chinese state media, the agreement was listed among the “important bilateral cooperation achievements” of Xi’s visit. The two broadcasters plan to establish what officials describe as a “regular cooperation mechanism” for program exchanges, personnel visits, and experience sharing, which they claim will “consolidate the friendly public opinion foundation” between the two nations. The Saudi Broadcasting Authority is the kingdom’s state broadcaster, operating multiple television and radio channels with signals covering Saudi Arabia and several Arab countries. This cooperation reflects expanding ties between the broadcasters in recent years.
Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Iran’s state-controlled news agency, signed a cooperation memorandum with the state-run China Media Group on September 2, 2025, during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin. The agreement was among 14 bilateral media cooperation deals CMG struck with broadcasters from 13 countries during the summit, covering news reporting, joint programming, cultural activities, technological innovation, industry development, personnel exchanges, and media resource sharing. The CMG partnership with IRNA is part of China’s broader efforts to strengthen SCO media cooperation.
