HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020553.jpg
1.89 MB
Extraction Summary
4
People
6
Organizations
4
Locations
4
Events
2
Relationships
3
Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Government report (house oversight committee)
File Size:
1.89 MB
Summary
This page from a House Oversight Committee report (stamped HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020553) details the influence of the Chinese government on US broadcasters Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia. It describes how pressure from the Chinese embassy in Washington, DC, led VOA's Mandarin service to shift from critical reporting on Chinese history to 'soft' content like 'Cultural Odyssey' and English teaching segments. The document also details internal conflicts, including a 2011 budget fight and the 2012 hiring and subsequent firing of a service head following a controversial interview that angered the PRC. There is no mention of Jeffrey Epstein in this specific document.
People (4)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Jessica Beinecke | English teacher / TV personality |
Featured in a VOA program which launched her career in mainland China.
|
| Cao Yaxue | Dissident / Blogger |
Runs a human rights blog; mentioned as an example of content VOA avoided after the dismissal of the service head.
|
| Unnamed Female Head of Service | Former VOA Mandarin Service Head |
Chinese immigrant, former dissident, hired in 2012, fired over a controversial interview that angered the PRC.
|
| Unnamed VOA TV Editor | Editor |
Publicly pledged allegiance to China at an embassy event.
|
Organizations (6)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Voice of America (VOA) |
US broadcaster; subject of the report regarding Chinese influence on its Mandarin service.
|
|
| Radio Free Asia |
Mentioned alongside VOA as a target of Chinese influence.
|
|
| Chinese Embassy in Washington, DC |
Engaged in annual meetings with VOA leadership to influence content.
|
|
| Broadcasting Board of Governors |
Sought to cut 65% of the Mandarin service workforce in 2011.
|
|
| Congress |
Lobbied by VOA reporters to restore budget cuts.
|
|
| House Oversight Committee |
Indicated by the document footer stamp.
|
Timeline (4 events)
Locations (4)
| Location | Context |
|---|---|
|
Location of a cancelled gathering.
|
|
|
Location where the Beijing gathering was moved.
|
|
|
Location of the Chinese Embassy.
|
|
|
The country exerting influence over the broadcasters.
|
Relationships (2)
Chinese Embassy
→
Political Pressure/Influence
→
VOA Mandarin Service
Embassy officials held annual meetings to voice opinions on content; reached out to hosts.
Featured in a program that launched her career.
Key Quotes (3)
"Cultural Odyssey ate up one-third of the Mandarin service’s travel budget."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020553.jpg
Quote #1
"VOA officials internally praised these programs as both 'non-political and non-sensitive'"Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020553.jpg
Quote #2
"One of VOA’s TV editors even publicly pledged his allegiance to China at an embassy event."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020553.jpg
Quote #3
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (2,773 characters)
94
November 2018 gathering in Beijing was cancelled by Beijing and forced to move to
Singapore.)
Singapore.)
International service broadcasters
Another roadblock has been China’s efforts to limit the influence of the Mandarin
services of the Voice of America and Radio Free Asia. Starting in the first decade of the
2000s, the Chinese embassy in Washington, DC, and the leadership of VOA’s Mandarin
service began an annual meeting to allow embassy officials to voice their opinions
about VOA’s content. PRC embassy officials have also reached out to VOA hosts to
convince them to be more supportive of the regime. VOA personalities have hosted
events at the embassy. One of VOA’s TV editors even publicly pledged his allegiance
to China at an embassy event.56 It is not surprising, then, that some VOA staffers
interviewed for this report believe that China’s outreach campaign has succeeded in
pushing the VOA Mandarin service away from programs with direct relevance to China
toward programming that seeks instead to highlight American everyday life or teach
American-style English to Chinese listeners. An example would be a program called
Cultural Odyssey, a VOA TV series that focused on Americana, such as fried chicken,
doughnuts, and national parks. For years, Cultural Odyssey ate up one-third of the
Mandarin service’s travel budget. Another program featured English teacher Jessica
Beinecke, which launched her on a career as an English-teaching TV personality on
mainland China itself. VOA officials internally praised these programs as both “non-
political and non-sensitive,” a current senior VOA staff member noted. What’s more,
VOA officials sought to scale back what were perceived to be sensitive reports. After
running two years of a radio series on aspects of modern Chinese history, including the
Cultural Revolution and other events post-1949, VOA cut the program in 2009 despite
several of those shows garnering well over three million hits each on the web. In 2011,
the Broadcasting Board of Governors sought to cut 65 percent of the workforce from
the Mandarin service. However, reporters and editors in the service fought back, they
lobbied Congress, and the cuts were restored. In 2012, a Chinese immigrant, who was
also a former Chinese dissident and a specialist on the US political system, became
the first female Chinese head of the service. She was later fired over a controversial
interview that drew the official ire of the PRC, which threatened repercussions.57
services of the Voice of America and Radio Free Asia. Starting in the first decade of the
2000s, the Chinese embassy in Washington, DC, and the leadership of VOA’s Mandarin
service began an annual meeting to allow embassy officials to voice their opinions
about VOA’s content. PRC embassy officials have also reached out to VOA hosts to
convince them to be more supportive of the regime. VOA personalities have hosted
events at the embassy. One of VOA’s TV editors even publicly pledged his allegiance
to China at an embassy event.56 It is not surprising, then, that some VOA staffers
interviewed for this report believe that China’s outreach campaign has succeeded in
pushing the VOA Mandarin service away from programs with direct relevance to China
toward programming that seeks instead to highlight American everyday life or teach
American-style English to Chinese listeners. An example would be a program called
Cultural Odyssey, a VOA TV series that focused on Americana, such as fried chicken,
doughnuts, and national parks. For years, Cultural Odyssey ate up one-third of the
Mandarin service’s travel budget. Another program featured English teacher Jessica
Beinecke, which launched her on a career as an English-teaching TV personality on
mainland China itself. VOA officials internally praised these programs as both “non-
political and non-sensitive,” a current senior VOA staff member noted. What’s more,
VOA officials sought to scale back what were perceived to be sensitive reports. After
running two years of a radio series on aspects of modern Chinese history, including the
Cultural Revolution and other events post-1949, VOA cut the program in 2009 despite
several of those shows garnering well over three million hits each on the web. In 2011,
the Broadcasting Board of Governors sought to cut 65 percent of the workforce from
the Mandarin service. However, reporters and editors in the service fought back, they
lobbied Congress, and the cuts were restored. In 2012, a Chinese immigrant, who was
also a former Chinese dissident and a specialist on the US political system, became
the first female Chinese head of the service. She was later fired over a controversial
interview that drew the official ire of the PRC, which threatened repercussions.57
Since her dismissal, VOA’s Mandarin service has resumed a pattern of avoiding stories
that could be perceived to be too tough on China, according to several staffers. For
example, blogs written by dissidents such as Cao Yaxue, who runs the human rights–
that could be perceived to be too tough on China, according to several staffers. For
example, blogs written by dissidents such as Cao Yaxue, who runs the human rights–
Media
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020553
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