The Guardian-Chinas manipulation of media threatens global freedoms says US report
September 28, 2023 2 min 333 words
这则报道揭示了美国国务院发布的一份新报告，其中指出中国通过审查、数据收集和秘密购买外国新闻机构，操控全球媒体，警告这一趋势可能导致全球言论自由的“急剧收缩”。报告发现，北京每年在信息操纵方面花费数十亿美元，包括通过“公开和非公开手段”收购外国媒体股份，赞助在线影响者，并签署促进未标明中国政府内容的分销协议。这一行为使中国政府创造了自己的信息生态系统，影响外国政治精英和记者，还投资于卫星网络和数字电视服务，优先推广中国国家支持的媒体内容。 这一报告的重要性在于，它强调了中国在全球范围内扩展政府控制媒体的努力，尤其是在北京与华盛顿之间的地缘政治竞争不断加剧的背景下。中国领导人试图对抗他们认为是由国际媒体传播的中国负面形象。报告还提到，中国在海外的数据收集使其能够通过针对特定个人和组织来精确实施全球审查。 然而，值得注意的是，尽管中国投入了前所未有的资源进行这一宣传活动，但在针对民主国家时却遭遇了“重大挫折”，因为受到了当地媒体和民间社会的反击。这表明，全球社会和媒体界对于言论自由的坚定捍卫是至关重要的。 这一问题引发了对全球言论自由和媒体独立的深刻担忧。中国的信息操纵行为应引起国际社会的警觉，促使采取行动来捍卫言论自由和保护独立媒体的原则。
China is manipulating global media through censorship, data harvesting and covert purchases of foreign news outlets, according to a new report from the US state department, which warned the trend could lead to a “sharp contraction” of global freedom of expression.
The report released on Thursday found that Beijing has spent billions of dollars annually on information manipulation efforts, including by acquiring stakes in foreign media through “public and non-public means,” sponsoring online influencers and securing distribution agreements that promote unlabelled Chinese government content.
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In July, Beijing responded to a Nato communique accusing it of coercive policies and spreading disinformation by saying the statement disregarded basic facts, deliberately discredited China and distorted its policies.
The US report comes amid controversy over China’s efforts in recent years to expand the global footprint of its government-controlled media, especially as geopolitical competition between Beijing and Washington has intensified. Chinese leaders have sought to combat the negative images of China they feel are spread by world media.
Citing public reports and “newly acquired government information,” the state department’s global engagement center said that Beijing had created its own information ecosystem by co-opting foreign political elites and journalists. It had also invested in satellite networks and digital television services in developing regions that prioritise Chinese state-backed media content.
Chinese data harvesting overseas “has enabled Beijing to fine-tune global censorship by targeting specific individuals and organizations”, it said.
“Unchecked, Beijing’s efforts could result in ... a sharp contraction of global freedom of expression,” the report said.
Despite unprecedented resources devoted to the campaign, Beijing had encountered “major setbacks” when targeting democratic countries due to local media and civil society pushback, according to the report, which was produced under a congressional mandate to detail state information manipulation.