Embassy Spokesperson's Comment on the Wrong Remarks by the UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs on the Decision of the National Radio and Television Administration of China

Question: On 11 February, the UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Dominic Raab issued a statement, saying that "China's decision to ban BBC World News in mainland China is an unacceptable curtailing of media freedom." What is the comment of the Chinese Embassy in the UK?

Embassy Spokesperson: For quite some time, BBC reports on China have gravely violated China's radio and television regulations and regulations on overseas satellite channels in China's mainland. BBC's serious violation of broadcasting rules on accuracy and impartiality has undermined China's national interests and ethnic unity and failed to meet the requirements for overseas channels to broadcast in China's mainland. As such, BBC World News is not allowed to continue its service in China's mainland, and the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) of China will not accept its broadcast application for another year.

BBC's relentless fabrication of "lies of the century" in reporting China runs counter to the professional ethics of journalism, and reeks of double standards and ideological bias, causing strong indignation among the Chinese people. The so-called "media freedom" is nothing but a pretext and disguise to churn out disinformation and slanders against other countries. All countries without exception exercise necessary supervision over media organizations. The NRTA's decision is legitimate and reasonable. We urge the BBC to abandon the Cold War mentality, stop fabricating and spreading disinformation, stop unfair, biased and irresponsible reporting, stop malicious attacks and smearing against the Communist Party of China and the Chinese government, and take concrete actions to remove the adverse impact of its related reports.