China’s flagship TV network has not registered as a foreign agent in US
CGTN America has been described as an attempt by China to spread its soft power globally
Ongoing investigations into Russian meddling in last year’s US presidential election have led to increased scrutiny of foreign outlets operating in the United States.
RT, the Russian state-backed English-language news organisation, was recently ordered by the US Justice Department to register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), but one of China’s biggest government-controlled news outlets has not registered its Washington operation.
In 2012, China Central Television (CCTV), the Chinese state broadcaster, launched an English-language affiliate headquartered in Washington. CCTV America – recently rebranded as CGTN America – has been described as an attempt by China to spread its soft power globally.
Its coverage of US domestic issues is professional and not clearly slanted in one direction or another. But any China-related reports strictly follow Communist Party media guidelines, presenting China as a positive, peaceful force whose geopolitical interests are righteous.
While CGTN America has not registered as a foreign agent, a public relations company that worked on behalf of the network’s US division did. In late 2011, just ahead of the channel’s American launch, CCTV signed a US$15,000-a-month contract with Ogilvy Public Relations to “communicate to the American public that CCTV America will provide compelling, comprehensive, and balanced news programming from an Asian perspective that is relevant to a global audience”.
