Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of the Communist Party of China (CCP) mouthpiece Global Times, has come a full circle in life. Xijin had participated in the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 but later became the editor-in-chief in bootlicking the CCP and its autocratic leaders.
However, recently on November 8, that is the Chinese Journalists’ Day, Xijin lamented his pain and went into his old activism mode. And as a citizen of a country where we have the fortune of having seen the hyper activist students of JNU and Jamia Milia Islamia, it is time that we Indians rise up and give our unflinching backing to Xijin and his social crusade.
Reportedly, in an article published in Global Times titled, “Frontline media need to be trusted to carry on mission”, Hu Xijin did not only underscore the media’s indispensable contribution towards the country’s stability, but also dropped a subtle threat to the CCP if Chinese media continues to get the step-motherly treatment from the state leadership.
It’s becoming difficult to do my job as a journalist – Hu Xijin:
Hu wrote in the article, perhaps for the first time in his illustrious servile career, “I feel deeply that it is becoming more and more difficult to do media.” Highlighting the CCP’s increasingly frustrating interventions in the workings of Global Times, Hu further wrote, “frankly speaking, media practitioners have been subject to increasing restrictions for some time. Most of these interventions have come from government departments and local governments other than the publicity department, as well as various influential institutions.”
Hu also stressed how media’s coordination with the local government was increasingly becoming an arduous task in China. He wrote, “If the media indulges in serving localities and departments, it will impact the media’s function as news outlets and lose credibility and combat effectiveness. Its actual result is the loss of the country’s systemic functions. The more interference they receive, the greater pressure of “making mistakes,” and less enthusiasm journalists will have.”
Big whoop, the article taken down by CCP:
As soon as the article caught the attention of the CCP’s regulators and censors, it was immediately taken down, further widening the rift between the CCP governed departments and the state-backed media. Needless to say, censorship in China has reached staggering levels that has now made journalism a perilous profession for the Chinese.
It’s rather poetic that words or rather the insult words penned by him for other nations are aptly suiting his current predicament. As reported by TFI, last year, at the peak of the trade war between Australia and China, Xijin had passed a rather distasteful remark by comparing Australia to chewing gum.
Hu had said, “Australia is always there, making trouble. It is a bit like chewing gum stuck on the sole of China’s shoes. Sometimes you have to find a stone to rub it off,”
Also read: ‘Australia is like chewing gum,’ China is using cheap tricks as Australia demands investigation
Xijin foreshadowing his fate:
However, after Xijin’s rant in his tabloid, it appears that he is the chewing gum of the state media which CCP and the entire politburo is looking to get rid off.
In an editorial published last month (October 2), Hu Xijin had once again foreshadowed his fate. Reportedly, he had viciously attacked press freedom organisation Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and in particular, its project – Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI).
Hu accused RSF of “building an alliance of lies” to harm China and concluded his rant with a childish warning: the “wild dog” RSF better watch out for China’s “stick”.
Xijin wrote, “It seems that JTI has become an awkward play with more actors than audience. But organizations like the RSF are cheeky. Like a wild dog, it will haunt the road ahead of China from time to time. Therefore, we must carry a stick in our luggage when forging ahead.”
However, after the incidents of the last few days where CCP pulled the plug on Xijin’s article, it is rather hard to comprehend who is the dog and who is the master with the stick.
In a nutshell, Global Times is a voice of rising paranoia and its conductor, Hu Xijin – a weak, loudmouth troll who has given in to the insanity of his job. Sooner or later, the cracks were going appear and this time, it looks like Xijin has indeed lost the plot. However, we Indians stand in solidarity with him. #IStandwithHuXijin