Joanna Chiu Profile picture
Sep 21, 2020 18 tweets 9 min read Read on X
Global Times is making the news for publishing a threat on the Taiwan president's life. Some important context here by @pingroma on the belligerent state-owned newspaper. It's not quite a direct mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party. qz.com/745577/inside-…
It's important to differentiate between China's "state-run" and "state-owned" media. I don't want to give an exhaustive list because my understanding may be outdated. Here's @ericfish85 on the extent to which the @globaltimesnews speaks for itself. foreignpolicy.com/2017/04/28/chi…
People's Daily newspaper, on the other hand (@PDChina) is definitely the Chinese Communist Party's official mouthpiece. scmp.com/tech/article/2…
Xinhua (@XHNews) is China's official news agency, publishing in multiple languages. But unlike big news wires headquartered in democratic countries, Xinhua is completely state-run and has zero editorial independence. Its stories reflect official policy. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xinhua_Ne…
Is there a detailed break-down of the different major Chinese news outlets? If so, please let me know because we should share such a guide widely.

There could be bad unintended consequences if people treat the often-absurd Global Times as literally the voice of Xi Jinping.
Why is it important for people in the West to understand the differences between Chinese media outlets?

Well, for politicians in particular, security experts say it's pretty important they figure it out before speaking with any foreign media. Read: thestar.com/news/canada/20…
Al Richmond, a Canadian municipal-level politician, spoke with Xinhua on several occasions on topics like Huawei and Beijing's handling of the #COVID19 pandemic, then told me he was surprised by the way Xinhua presented his comments... thestar.com/news/canada/20…
On the other hand, when we lump all Chinese media together, we also miss out on some valuable journalism from outlets like @caixin. Twitter tags Caixin as "state-affiliated" media, but it's pretty much as independent as it gets (without being shut down). caixinglobal.com
And many China nerds would agree that many articles from the relatively new English online magazine @SixthTone are vital for understanding the fabric of Chinese society, particularly youth culture. But its parent company is a state-owned enterprise. sixthtone.com
I wouldn't know any of the above if I didn't live in Beijing as a correspondent. When China expels or detains/intimidates foreign journalists, it's targeting the people who can report most accurately and with the most nuance for international audiences. thestar.com/news/world/aus…
Most of my favourite journalists in China have been forced out of the country. For the many now reporting on China from outside the country, it's hard but we have to try to maintain contacts inside the country in order to report as accurately as possible. cbc.ca/news/world/chi…
That means taking responsibility for conveying nuance to readers, and not treating the Global Times as the mouthpiece for Beijing. In all likelihood, its ramblings are dominated by the ideas of this one dude @HuXijin_GT. You can read his tweets in English.
And full disclosure: Global Times ran this rambling op-ed complaining about my interview with the former Canadian ambassador. It's not unusual for GT to rag on foreign journalists, and we typically don't take them as serious threats. globaltimes.cn/content/113732…
The recently reported detention of Australian journalist for Chinese state media @ChengLeiCGTN, and alarming treatment of Australian correspondents @MikeSmithAFR @billbirtles is something we should all be following carefully. The latest from @MJSCarney: abc.net.au/news/2020-09-2…
Follow the @fccchina on updates on the working conditions of foreign journalists in China. I used to do research for @pressfreedom and can vouch for their very stringent fact-checking standards for their reports on press freedom in China: cpj.org/asia/
Before I left Beijing, I worked on this 100-page guide to censorship on Chinese social media. The early sections contain detailed explanations of the Chinese media landscape and censorship regulations. And there are lots of case studies: pen.org/wp-content/upl…
The research here is mine, while the analysis and recommendations come from @penamerican editors: pen.org/research-resou…
Sigh... what I just texted a friend, so he can see how well I spent my time. So much for a pre-bedtime relaxation routine. Image

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More from @joannachiu

Sep 18
EXCLUSIVE: This is exactly when China blocked ChatGPT, Hugging Face and other AI sites.

I received first access to a platform that can track the precise timing of Chinese censorship, when previously this was difficult.

Explore our interactive graphic:
restofworld.org/2024/when-chin…
It was unclear when popular machine-learning site @HuggingFace was first blocked in China. The company reported issues in Oct. 2023.

It was actually blocked on May 7, 2023.

Read for more exclusive findings: restofworld.org/2024/when-chin…
I was amazed when UBC computer scientist @NP_tokumei offered me a first crack at his new platform, which tricks China's Great Firewall into showing precise blocking data. We worked on this research all summer!

Check out the interactive graphic here: restofworld.org/2024/when-chin…
Image
Read 10 tweets
Jul 4, 2023
Latest investigation by me, based on research from @DisinfoEU:

A website spread disinformation about Canada. Why did major Indian outlets treat it as news? via @torontostarthestar.com/politics/feder…
@DisinfoEU @TorontoStar IFFRAS appeared to be the last active Canadian node of a large fake news network.

This story highlights how disinformation can be weaponized to distort and misrepresent Canada to outsiders — and how it can malign diaspora in the process. @TorontoStarthestar.com/politics/feder…
@DisinfoEU @TorontoStar “These are sophisticated and purposeful activities meant not just to support the false information ecosystem within India for local consumption but to present false information to outsiders — including politicians and the public in Canada.”

#cdnpolithestar.com/politics/feder…
Read 9 tweets
May 29, 2023
#Breaking NDP is tabling a motion asking for David Johnston to step aside as special rapporteur on foreign interference “given clear appearance of bias.” @JennyKwanBC will also speak about her briefing with CSIS after she told @TorontoStar she was a “person of interest” to China. Image
Follow announcements live here: cpac.ca/episode?id=01a…

My previous interview with Jenny Kwan: thestar.com/amp/politics/f…
“Whoever is putting pressure on me, they won’t succeed,” says @JennyKwanBC, who said she’ll continue to stand with people of Hong Kong and China. She “recommits herself to this fight” and “no amount of foreign interference would change that.” Confirms targeting is from China. Image
Read 5 tweets
May 8, 2023
#EXCLUSIVE Canada set to name foreign labs, universities that pose risk to national security

Leading universities say they'll avoid working with the entities altogether — despite potential $100M loss in annual funding from foreign partners. thestar.com/news/canada/20… @TorontoStar
The list will include foreign entities at “higher risk” of engaging in research theft, unwanted knowledge transfers and interference, according to documents I saw.

The Canadian government confirmed to me this list is coming - likely first of its kind. thestar.com/news/canada/20…
NEW: Canada's list appears to be the first to serve as a “blanket ban” for federal funding for research with "higher risk" entities. And universities will apply more broadly.

The U.S. entity list for trade/export controls doesn't apply to research. thestar.com/news/canada/20…
Read 12 tweets
May 3, 2023
#EXCLUSIVE University of Waterloo ends research partnerships with Huawei thestar.com/news/canada/20… via @TorontoStar
Canada’s top-rated research university will end all its partnerships with Chinese telecoms giant #Huawei.

“We are disentangling ourselves from this company,” Charmaine Dean, vice-president of research at the University of Waterloo, told me exclusively. thestar.com/news/canada/20…
Waterloo’s decision — which @M_Johnston1 called extremely significant and possibly precedent-setting — will affect dozens of deals between the university and Huawei, including the school’s Waterloo-Huawei Joint Innovation Lab. thestar.com/news/canada/20… @TorontoStar
Read 10 tweets
Mar 27, 2023
My story on knowing the ABCs of foreign influence coming out soon @TorontoStar. I went on to explain here that the RCMP and CSIS definitions of “foreign influence” are different.

Thanks for having me on the panel, @TheAgenda!
Think you know what “foreign influence” means in Canada? Explainer is live tomorrow. Here’s a sneak preview.

Thanks for your contributions @Akshay_Thinks @JessMarinDavis @StephanieCarvin and Chinese-Canadian researchers who aren’t on Twitter 👏 thestar.com/content/thesta…
Think you understand ‘foreign influence’? Test your knowledge here: thestar.com/news/canada/20…
Read 9 tweets

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