What’s new: Chinese foreign ministry Thursday condemned the U.S.’ decision to designate six more Chinese media organizations’ as “foreign missions” and vowed to take necessary countermeasures against such escalation.
Zhao Lijiang, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry said during a press conference that Washington’s designation was “the latest political suppression and stigmatization” of Chinese media operated in the U.S. He added that the U.S. has been escalating its discrimination on Chinese media based on a “Cold War mentality and ideology bias.”
The background: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Wednesday that the State Department was designating six more Chinese media organization’s U.S. operations as “foreign missions.” “They are substantially owned, or effectively controlled by a foreign government,” he said.
The latest designation includes Yicai Global (一财全球), Jiefang Daily (解放日报), the Xinmin Evening News (新民晚报), Social Sciences in China Press (中国社会科学杂志), the Beijing Review (北京周报), and the Economic Daily (经济日报).
In February and March, the U.S. designated in total of nine Chinese media publications as “foreign missions.” The designation requires those outlets to report their personnel rosters and real estate holdings to the U.S. State Department.
Contact reporter Lu Zhenhua (zhenhualu@caixin.com) and editor Marcus Ryder (marcusryder@caixin.com)
