Foreign press under fire in China for flood coverage 2 minutes read
By Javier Triana
Beijing, Jul 30 (EFE).- From accusations of spreading fake news to death threats over the phone to correspondents – the coverage of the recent floods in central China has once again put the foreign media in the country under attack.
There have been reports of harassment, calls for non-cooperation with the foreign press, harassment on social media and even intimidation to delete material recorded of a flooded area in Zhengzhou, the capital of China’s central Henan province.
On July 21 – a day after images of the floods in Zhengzhou began to circulate on social media -, a cameraman of a European media entity, which prefers not to be named for security reasons, arrived at a flooded area in the city along with three other colleagues.
U.S. voices concern over harassment of media covering China floods
FILE PHOTO: An aerial view shows a flooded road following heavy rainfall in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China July 23, 2021. Picture taken with a drone. REUTERS/Aly Song reuters tickers
This content was published on July 30, 2021 - 04:57
July 30, 2021 - 04:57
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States is deeply concerned with the increasingly harsh surveillance, harassment, and intimidation of U.S. and other foreign journalists covering recent floods in China s Henan province, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Thursday.
China s harsh rhetoric toward news it perceives as critical has provoked negative public sentiment leading to tense, in-person confrontations and harassment of journalists, Price said in a statement.
US concerned over harrasment of journalists in China
30 Jul 2021, 13:27 GMT+10
Washington [US], July 30 (ANI): The United States has expressed deep concerns with what it called increasingly harsh surveillance, harassment, and intimidation of US and other foreign journalists in China, after correspondents of several international media outlets were reportedly heckled and booed on the streets of Henan province while covering floods.
In a statement, the US State Department said that Beijing claims to welcome foreign media and support their work but in reality, its harsh rhetoric toward any news it perceives to be critical of Chinese policies, has provoked negative public sentiment leading to tense, in-person confrontations and harassment, including online verbal abuse and death threats of journalists simply doing their jobs.
China: Foreign journalists covering flood disaster harassed
30 Jul 2021, 14:55 GMT+10
Beijing [China], July 30 (ANI): The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has condemned the attacks on foreign journalists in China and urges authorities to ensure that journalists can report safely and independently.
An IFJ release said foreign journalists reporting on the recent floods in Zhengzhou in central China s Henan province on July 22 were harassed and threatened by citizens in Zhengzhou and on social media platforms.
According to the Guardian, journalists from the BBC, Los Angeles Times, Deutsche Welle, Al Jazeera, CNN, Agence France-Presse and the Associated Press have been harassed and threatened by angry crowds of citizens.
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