Congress Urged To Tighten Rules On Chinese State Media In US
Source: Associated Press
BY MATTHEW PENNINGTON
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON (AP) -- All staff of Chinese state-run media outlets in the United States should be required to register with the government as foreign agents as they may be supporting Chinese intelligence gathering and "information warfare," congressional advisers said Wednesday.
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission said that Beijing has rapidly expanded its overseas media presence to promote a positive view of the rising Asian nation and the ruling communist party, even as it has tightened its control over media and online content at home, and increased restrictions on foreign journalists in China.
The bipartisan commission recommends that Congress strengthen the Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA, which requires registration by people or companies disseminating information in the U.S. on behalf of foreign governments, political parties and other "foreign principals." The law is applied to foreign lobbying efforts, but the Justice Department has also required registration by media outlets funded by foreign governments.
While some state-run Chinese media outlets do register, the commission says the law is applied unevenly. It calls for all staff of state-run outlets to be registered as they are not part of an open press.
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