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China spending billions to spread disinformation: US gov't report

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Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Performers dance during a cultural performance as part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, at the Bird" s="" Nest="" national="" stadium="" in="" Beijing="" on="" Monday.="" Noel="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/overseas/06/29/20210628-china-100-founding-anniversary-cpc-afp-4-s.jpg"/><figcaption>Performers dance during a cultural performance as part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, at the Bird&#x27;s Nest national stadium in Beijing on Monday. <em>Noel Celis, AFP</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>WASHINGTON, United States - China is spending billions of dollars globally to spread disinformation and threatening to cause a &quot;sharp contraction&quot; in freedom of speech around the world, warned a US State Department report published Thursday.</p><p>China&#x27;s &quot;global information manipulation is not simply a matter of public diplomacy -- but a challenge to the integrity of the global information space,&quot; the report said.</p><p>&quot;Unchecked, Beijing&#x27;s efforts could result in a future in which technology exported by the PRC (People&#x27;s Republic of China), co-opted local governments, and fear of Beijing&#x27;s direct retaliation produce a sharp contraction of global freedom of expression.&quot;</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2753683" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>The report, released by the State Department&#x27;s Global Engagement Center, said Beijing spends billions of dollars annually on &quot;foreign information manipulation&quot; through the use of propaganda, disinformation and censorship, while promoting positive news about China and its ruling Communist Party.</p><p>At the same time, it said, China suppresses critical information that contradicts its narratives on contentious issues such as Taiwan, human rights and its flagging domestic economy.</p><p>&quot;When you look at the pieces of the puzzle and you put it together, you see a breathtaking ambition on the part of the PRC to seek information dominance in key regions of the world,&quot; James Rubin, GEC special envoy and coordinator, told reporters.</p><p>&quot;If we don&#x27;t allow this information manipulation to be stopped, there&#x27;s going to be a slow, steady destruction of democratic values,&quot; he said. &quot;We don&#x27;t want to see an Orwellian mix of fact and fiction in our world.&quot;</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/19/19/carpio-to-filipinos-rebut-chinas-fake-news-on-south-china-sea-ownership">Carpio to Filipinos: Rebut China&#x27;s &#x27;fake news&#x27; on South China Sea ownership</a></li></ul><p>The report said China&#x27;s approach to information manipulation includes promoting &quot;digital authoritarianism,&quot; exploiting international organizations and exercising control of Chinese-language media.</p><p>Beijing, it added, had also acquired stakes in foreign media, sponsored online influencers and sought to co-opt foreign political elites and journalists.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uTDqTTPDTb0?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>In East Africa, for example, it alleged that China &quot;paid for favorable coverage&quot; in a local newspaper while concealing its sponsorship of content, and had sought to gain &quot;significant control over Pakistani media.&quot;</p><p>These efforts could enable Beijing to &quot;reshape the global information environment,&quot; the report said.</p><p>The report accused China of exploiting social media site WeChat to disseminate disinformation targeting &quot;Chinese-language speakers residing in democracies,&quot; and Chinese technology giant ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, of seeking to &quot;block potential critics of Beijing from using its platforms.&quot;</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mn2ODh7s53g?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>There was no immediate response to the report from Beijing.</p><p>The report comes after Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday said China was seeking to surpass the United States as the &quot;dominant power in the world -- militarily, economically, diplomatically.&quot;</p><p>bur-ac/nro</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

China is spending billions of dollars globally to spread disinformation and threatening to cause a 'sharp contraction' in freedom of speech around the world, warned a US State Department report published Thursday.