Freedom of the press in China refers to the journalism standards and its freedom and censorship exercised by the government of China. The Constitution of the People's Republic of China guarantees "freedom of speech [and] of the press" which the government, in practice, routinely violates with total impunity, according to Reporters Without Borders.[1]

Authorities often label independent or investigative coverage as "fake news".[2] Since Xi Jinping became the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 2012, various commentators, protesters, feminists, lawyers, journalists, and activists have been arrested, detained, jailed, and threatened for attempting to exercise press freedom.[3][4] As of 2023, Reporters Without Borders called China "the world's largest jailer of journalists."[1]

Background

The country's constitution prohibits media workers, including internet users, from publishing, writing, circulating, or otherwise posting fake news, misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda related to various subjects such as national security, terrorism, ethnic hatred, violence, and obscenity. However, most private journalists are restricted from sharing certain views and opinions with the general public.[5]

China introduced Article 35 of the constitution of China that provides its citizens the right to observe "press freedom" in a free environment. However, Article 51 prohibits such activities for the national interest, which limits press freedom in the country. Chinese mass media such as radio and television broadcast news fall under Article 25, which limits their ability to broadcast plays, news, and other forms of information in free journalism standards. This, according to the Regulation on the Administration of Publishing, prevents transmitting of such content that poses risks to sovereignty and public interest.[5]

A book titled 'Freedom of the Press in China: A Conceptual History, 1831-1949 by Yi Guo has also been published in August 2020 by Amsterdam University Press, consisting of a detailed analysis of press freedom in China from 1831 to 1949.[6][7]

Freedom of the Press in China was greatest during the early period (1966-1968) of the Cultural Revolution.[8] During this period, several Red Guard organizations also operated independent printing presses to publish newspapers, articles, speeches, and big-character posters.[8]

Media organizations and its workers, explicitly, foreign media working within the country, "must" obtain a license before they engage in journalism compiled with standards which are regulated by the foreign affairs authority. Foreign media have limited access or freedom to attend press conferences of the National People's Congress. However, the law of China allows state-owned media with "free press", such as raising questions or concerns in the press conference.[5] Domestically, all credentialled journalists must study Xi Jinping thought through the "Study Xi, Strengthen the Country propaganda application" in order for them to renew their press credentials.[1] The app instructs journalists to "correctly guide public opinion."[9]

Global rank

As of 2023, the global rank of China declined to 177 out of 180, with only North Korea having less press freedom. China has been one of the countries with nominal freedom of press regulations. Reporters Without Borders, a non-government organization dedicated to safeguarding the right to information, published an annual report, the World Press Freedom Index, indicating that the Chinese Communist Party, the ruling party, is exercising self- and direct-censorship on the press.[10]

Censorship

According to Reporters Without Borders, the role of the media in China is to impart state propaganda.[1] Chinese authorities, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, are often argued to have been involved in press suppression. It is often referred to as one of the frontline-countries where freedom of mass communication and its associated people, such as journalists, persistently experience troubles.[11] China often blocks news websites, social media platforms, and other services such as Facebook, Gmail, Google, Instagram, and Pinterest, and has limited their access to the general public. The Great Firewall has blocked most foreign news websites, such as Voice of America, VOA Chinese, the BBC, The New York Times, and Bloomberg News. In 2017, Chinese authorities also removed about "300 politically sensitive articles" from the Cambridge University Press. However, this article removal was later contested online on Change.org. In 2019, some scholars and writers deleted their posts or permanently deleted their feeds after authorities asked them to do so. Some writers were warned for retweeting or liking posts.

Up to 2012, when Hu Jintao was the Communist Party's leader, the press was free to share their views online. However, Xi Jinping is arguably using technology as a propaganda tool and often blocks sensitive information through the Great Firewall.[12] The authorities often raid pro-democracy activists and media owners in an attempt to suppress the press.[13] In 2019, China blocked all available versions of Wikipedia in the country without any notice to Wikimedia Foundation.[14]

Chinese journalists are often detained for alleged negative coverage. In 2016, more than twenty journalists, including commentator Jia Jia, were arrested after an open letter was published calling on Chinese leader Xi Jinping to resign. According to Reporters without Borders, independent journalists and bloggers are often surveilled, harassed, detained, and, in some cases, tortured.[1] A report published by the committee to Protect Journalists in 2016 asserted that an estimated 49 journalists are serving prison terms, indicating that China is a "prolific jailer of media workers".[15]

See also

Books

  • Guo, Yi (2020). Freedom of the Press in China: A Conceptual History, 1831-1949. Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 978-9-0485-4462-2. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "China". Reporters Without Borders. 23 May 2023.
  2. ↑ "China's pressure and propaganda - the reality of reporting Xinjiang". BBC News. 15 January 2021.
  3. ↑ Schlesinger, David; Henochowicz, Anne; Wang, Yaqiu (17 March 2016). "Why Xi Jinping's Media Controls Are 'Absolutely Unyielding'". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  4. ↑ Krishnan, Ananth (28 December 2020). "Chinese citizen journalist jailed for 4 years for Wuhan reports". The Hindu. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 Zhang, Laney (8 June 2019). "Limits on Freedom of Expression". www.loc.gov.
  6. ↑ Guo, Yi (26 October 2020). Freedom of the Press in China. Amsterdam University Press. doi:10.1515/9789048544622. ISBN 9789048544622. S2CID 241983667 – via www.degruyter.com.
  7. ↑ Guo, Yi (8 March 2020). Freedom of the Press in China: A Conceptual History, 1831–1949. Amsterdam University Press. doi:10.1017/9789048544622. ISBN 9789048544622. S2CID 229546433 – via Cambridge University Press.
  8. 1 2 Russo, Alessandro (2020). Cultural Revolution and revolutionary culture. Durham: Duke University Press. p. 148. ISBN 978-1-4780-1218-4. OCLC 1156439609.
  9. ↑ "How China trains its journalists to report "correctly"". The Economist. 20 July 2023. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  10. ↑ "China : Even tighter control | Reporters without borders". RSF. 23 May 2023.
  11. ↑ "One Country, One Censor: How China undermines media freedom in Hong Kong and Taiwan".
  12. ↑ "Press Freedom Continues to Face Setbacks in China | Voice of America - English". www.voanews.com.
  13. ↑ "How China is limiting freedom of the press in Hong Kong". PBS NewsHour. 10 August 2020.
  14. ↑ "Wikipedia blocked in China in all languages". BBC News. 14 May 2019.
  15. ↑ "China Gets Worst Ever Score in Global Press-Freedom Survey". Time.

Further reading

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