Falun Gong’s men and women in Washington
The Communist Party claims that its media is "the mouthpiece of the party," and, with few exceptions, it has succeeded. After reporting in China, it’s strange to attend an event in DC and be reminded that there exists a thriving Chinese anti-Communist Party media. At a press event today for Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington roughly ...
The Communist Party claims that its media is "the mouthpiece of the party," and, with few exceptions, it has succeeded. After reporting in China, it's strange to attend an event in DC and be reminded that there exists a thriving Chinese anti-Communist Party media.
The Communist Party claims that its media is "the mouthpiece of the party," and, with few exceptions, it has succeeded. After reporting in China, it’s strange to attend an event in DC and be reminded that there exists a thriving Chinese anti-Communist Party media.
At a press event today for Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington roughly a quarter of the Chinese media in attendance seemed to be Falun Gong, the spiritual sect banned in China and once practiced by as many as 70 million Chinese, whose affiliates run the "Global Center for Quitting the Chinese Communist Party," and other services dedicated to informing Chinese people that other options exist. These included the television broadcaster New Tang Dynasty and the newspaper the Epoch Times, best known for issuing a press pass to Wang Wenyi, the Chinese national who heckled Hu Jintao during a joint press conference at the White House with George W. Bush in 2006.
This year the reporters are much quieter, sitting near, but not next to the rest of the Chinese media. "They don’t invite us to their functions," said one Falun Gong-affiliated reporter. Another, Kitty Wang, a senior reporter from NDTV in Washington DC who left China in 2000, explains that she sees an educational function in her reporting. "We feel that we’re giving the true info the Chinese citizens, and let them use it as they see fit," she said, as we watched Xi speak on the screen in front of us. "We found that many people doing media had the government viewpoint, so we wanted to provide the other side."
Unsurprisingly, she’s not sanguine about the Party’s future. "Now the Communist Party is just trying to survive. There are people who recognize the wickedness of the Party, and so they have left it. They know that one day, when the Party falls, that they will be held responsible for participating."
More from Foreign Policy
Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America
The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.
The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense
If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.
Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War
Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.
How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests
And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.
Sign up for Morning Brief
Foreign Policy’s flagship daily newsletter with what’s coming up around the world today. Delivered weekdays.
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.
