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bjbjLULU JEFFREY BROWN: Now, a look at China's latest efforts to communicate with the rest
of the world From Washington, D.C. Ray Suarez has the story. RAY SUAREZ: This program looks
like it could be from anywhere, flashy computer-generated graphics, a clean, sharp, modern set, competent,
professional news anchors. They're at work with producers, editors and writers from around
the world in a brand spanking new state-of-the-art studio in Washington, D.C. MAN: Full coverage
from there when they arrive. RAY SUAREZ: Across the globe, you can tune in the BBC, Russia
Today, France 24, each with different degrees of editorial independence. The Chinese government
looked at the international broadcasters and decided it had to be in that business, too.
This is Chinese Central Television America. PHILLIP YIN, news anchor, CCTV America: It
is 9:00 p.m. in Washington and 9:00 a.m. in Beijing. Ma Jing is the director general of
CCTV America. MA JING, director general, CCTV America: This is the natural outgrowth of
China's Central Television. CCTV has 42 channels which can reach 1.2 billion audience in China.
But the domestic market is almost saturated. So we're only seeking a growth point on the
global market. RAY SUAREZ: Chinese government-owned and -operated, CCTV America rolled out last
month, unveiling three new programs in English for American viewers. Americans can watch
CCTV on cable and satellite systems across the country. "Biz Asia America" one hour,
five nights a week reports on general news with an emphasis on economics, finance, trade,
and business, as it relates to North and South America and China. Former Bloomberg and CNBC
correspondent Phillip Yin is the lead anchor. PHILLIP YIN: This is a group of international
journalists that are working together for one single common goal. And in my case, it's
really to demonstrate business news from an international perspective. RAY SUAREZ: Mike
Walter, who worked at a CBS News affiliate in Washington, D.C., is the general news anchor
and hosts Saturday night's talk and debate show "The Heat." MIKE WALTER, news anchor,
CCTV America: In many respects, it's a fascinating place to work. You ve got people from all
over the world here and from every network you can imagine. So it's been an incredible
experience. RAY SUAREZ: CCTV also wants to keep an eye on the rest of the hemisphere.
A new show, "Americas Now," is produced by former "60 Minutes" producer Bob Radori and
focuses on Central and Latin America. WOMAN: A phone call is making international headlines.
RAY SUAREZ: It's all a natural outgrowth of the Chinese government's desire to make its
views known around the world, says Jim Laurie. He's a former ABC and NBC correspondent and
now he's a consultant to CCTV. JIM LAURIE, Senior Consultant, CCTV America: Clearly,
the Chinese want to have their perspectives on the international stage. They feel that
there are areas of the world that are important to China that are undercovered, they're not
covered sufficiently by the traditional networks. WOMAN: CCTV's correspondent Sean Callebs,
who is live here in Washington tonight -- Sean. RAY SUAREZ: But producing content in the United
States for an American audience is motivated by another factor, according to longtime China
watcher Susan Shirk. SUSAN SHIRK, director, Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation,
University of California: And the Chinese government thinks that, as a major global
player, they should have their own media organizations operating around the world, just as the U.S.
does, the Europeans do, the Japanese do, and even the Arab world has. RAY SUAREZ: So this
is me-too-ism? Well, these big, important countries have this, so we should have it,
too? SUSAN SHIRK: I think it's largely that. RAY SUAREZ: CCTV is just the part of a larger
Chinese government effort to speak to a wider world. Once a week, American newspapers include
an insert published by the government newspaper. The country has beefed up its presence online.
And China's government has supported the opening of more than 800 Confucius Institutes and
classrooms like this one in George Mason University in Virginia where people can study Chinese
language and culture. But is CCTV free, independent journalism? Is it news? PHILIP CUNNINGHAM,
Cornell University: It looks and spells like state TV. It doesn't really strike me as being
different just because there's a studio in Washington. I think it's still propaganda.
RAY SUAREZ: Philip Cunningham has lived on and off in China for over three decades working
as a journalist for various Western news organizations. He's appeared on China Central Television
talk shows in Beijing more than 100 times. PHILIP CUNNINGHAM: You know, in a lot of ways,
CCTV Washington is an active imagery. And it sounds like the news. You have the format.
You have the chit-chat. You have, okay, now over to you, and you have all the remote cameras
and stuff. And it looks just like a Western news product. But the agenda, the hidden agenda,
the political commissars who examine and help control and shape the daily news and what
the topics will be are not working for the sake of letting chips fall where they may.
They're working for the greater reputation of China. RAY SUAREZ: This theme, that journalists
are supposed to echo government's line, was spelled out by the president of CCTV. Speaking
before China's National Media Association last year, Hu Zhanfan said, "The first social
responsibility and professional ethic of media staff should be understanding their role clearly
and being a good mouthpiece." According to reports, he said, "Journalists who think of
themselves as professionals, instead of as propaganda workers, were making a fundamental
mistake about identity." Cunningham says CCTV America's news programs show this type of
bias. I asked him if any stories reflected Beijing's hand. PHILIP CUNNINGHAM: Somebody
who was interviewed by the show wrote to me and told me what he talked about and went
through everything that they covered. And he said, "I bet this won't make it on the
air." RAY SUAREZ: Cunningham discussed the incident on condition that the CCTV guest
not be named. But the NewsHour confirmed that the interview which appeared on "Biz Asia
America" and on "The Heat" was heavily edited. PHILIP CUNNINGHAM: And it was just cut to
pieces. And I know for a fact that there was discussion of Tibet. There was discussion
of Xinjiang. There was discussion of having whistleblower, of having the Chinese media
become more free, of having elections. And all five of those things were cut. And what
was left was fairly innocuous. RAY SUAREZ: While reporting outside China doesn't worry
CCTV's leadership, Susan Shirk says stories about sensitive internal issues are a different
matter. SUSAN SHIRK: The leaders of CCTV are Chinese Communist Party officials from the
propaganda apparatus and increasingly from the internal security apparatus. The red lines
are mostly about reporting Chinese domestic developments. RAY SUAREZ: But CCTV officials
say they edit their stories the same way other news organizations do. MA JING: We uphold
the traditional journalistic values. We consider accuracy, objectivity, truthfulness, and public
accountability very important, more important than anything else. PHILIP CUNNINGHAM: I don't
see people coming and saying, Mike, you have got to change this script. It hasn't happened.
RAY SUAREZ: In an email to the NewsHour, CCTV consultant Jim Laurie strongly objected to
the allegation of censorship. He wrote that correspondent "*** Guan was commissioned
to do a story that fit into the context of 40 years of U.S.-China relations, looking
back at Nixon's visit to China in 1972 and his meeting with Mao. ***'s interview was
meant to reflect Mao and the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, not on Tibet, Xinjiang
or the price of eggs. I would argue those issues were irrelevant to the profile that
was commissioned." *** Guan told us when we visited CCTV America that the president
of CCTV's comments about journalists as government mouthpieces have been exaggerated and misunderstood.
*** GUAN, CCTV America: I think it was taken, to some extent, out of context. That was an
hour-long address made by the president. I think he also mentioned the fact that journalists
should also to adhere to the principles of reporting news in an objective manner. RAY
SUAREZ: But it's the mistrust of CCTV editing that caused Shirk to decline the broadcaster's
invitation to be a regular participant on their programs. SUSAN SHIRK: I have my doubts
about the journalistic integrity of the organization at this point. And I'm hoping to be proven
wrong. Let's see how they do. RAY SUAREZ: Shirk says the Chinese leadership is divided
between those who understand the need for a truly free press and those who want government
control over what s reported. SUSAN SHIRK: This battle over media freedom is still under
way inside China, and it will be interesting to see how CCTV reflects that. RAY SUAREZ:
The journalists we spoke to at CCTV America say they know they have to earn viewers' trust
and that the proof of their journalistic bona fides will depend on the stories they produce.
MAN: Thanks for watching. We will see you tomorrow. gd$O gd$O :p$O urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags
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State urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags place JEFFREY BROWN: Now, a look at China's
latest efforts to communicate with the rest of the world From Washington, D Normal Microsoft
Office Word JEFFREY BROWN: Now, a look at China's latest efforts to communicate with
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