UK moves to silence CGTN

On Thursday, UK media regulator Ofcom revoked the broadcasting license of China Global Television Network (CGTN), officially pulling the channel off British airwaves after 18 years of broadcasting in the country. Ofcom made the decision after an investigation concluded: “that the license is wrongfully held by Star China Media Limited.”

The news network, formerly known as CCTV News, is an international news organization headquartered in Beijing but has offices in Washington, Nairobi and London.

The British regulator insisted that Star China Media Limited (SCML), the license-holder for the CGTN service, did not possess editorial oversight as required by broadcasting laws of the country.

“Our investigation found that SCML does not have editorial responsibility for selecting or compiling CGTN’s program schedule. It is the distributor of the CGTN service in the UK, rather than ‘the provider’ of the service,” Ofcom said in a statement.

In response, CGTN said Ofcom came to the decision after being “manipulated by extreme right-wing organizations and anti-China forces” in early 2020. The network also provided detailed explanations to Ofcom in a “proactive and cooperative manner” and sought a constructive solution with the office.

During a press briefing held on Friday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Wang Wenbin pointed out that while Britain has always professed the importance of press freedom, it has abandoned facts and objectivity in its interference with CGTN’s broadcast in the country, a move that manifests blatant double standards and political oppression.

Ofcom’s decision is likely to escalate tensions between the two countries and add fuel to the current war of words between media on both sides over issues on Xinjiang and Hong Kong – two places that Western media have repeatedly accused the Chinese government of committing “human rights” violations often without offering credible evidence.

On Friday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement accusing the BBC of ideological bias in its January 29 report, which politicized COVID-19 and raised unfounded claims about the virus’ origin once again.

“The BBC and its Beijing office should also make a public apology to China over the fake news, abandon its ideological bias, and stop deliberately smearing and