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| Secretary of State Mike Pompeo |
The Chinese government is notorious for its media censorship and propaganda. Reporters Without Borders has ranked China number 177 out of 180 countries in terms of their freedom of the press. Several months ago, the United States announced that reporters from five different media outlets will have to register as "foreign agents" due to the Chinese government's intense control of their nation's media coverage. The following day, China expelled three American reporters based on an editorial concerning the coronavirus outbreak that originated in China. A month later, China has expelled two more reporters who work for American media outlets.
In response, the United States has announced that China's primary news outlet, Xinhua, will have to reduce their United States based staff from 160 to 100 reporters. A United States official claims that the reduction is long overdue and allows for a "level playing field". The United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claims that this does not take away from the freedom of the Chinese press as the content of their reporting is not being restricted. Pompeo hopes that the change in policy will encourage Chinese leaders to change their practices. Pompeo stated, "It is our hope that this action will spur Beijing to adopt a more fair and reciprocal approach to US and other foreign press in China".
When I first read about this story, I felt that the United States may be going out of bounds by restricting the Chinese reporters. Now that I have had a chance to think about the issue, I can better understand Pompeo's claims. As long as we are not controlling what the Chinese reporters can and cannot report, I see the United States' reasoning. With that being said, I am not completely on one side or the other. I think that we need to do our best to protect the integrity and reputation of our country, but we need to be careful not to limit the freedom of others to do so.
BBC's Report on the New Restrictions
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