By: Adam Kredo
Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) is set to unveil legislation that would stop China’s Communist Party from exploiting loopholes in U.S. laws that critics say have enabled it to beam propaganda into America through a radio station connected to a state-controlled press organ, according to a copy of the legislation exclusively obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
Cruz’s bill, the first of its kind, was sparked by the purchase of a radio station connected to Phoenix TV—an outlet owned by the Chinese government—that is now using a broadcast tower in Mexico to beam Chinese-language propaganda into the United States. The Mexican station was purchased in 2018 by an investment group with ties to China and is now running communist propaganda produced by Phoenix TV.
Phoenix TV drew the ire of Republican lawmakers and others earlier this year when one of its reporters confronted President Donald Trump during a White House briefing about the coronavirus pandemic. Lawmakers such as Cruz raised objections to the White House granting access to a reporter working for an adversarial regime.
Phoenix TV has used Mexican radio towers to skirt U.S. laws barring the dissemination of foreign propaganda in America and broadcast state propaganda throughout Southern California, sources said.
The effort to shut down Phoenix TV’s radio affiliate is just one of many current efforts in Congress to combat Chinese propaganda in light of its efforts to deceive the world about the origin and spread of coronavirus. Other legislative efforts seek to hold China financially accountable for allowing the virus to spread across the globe.
Cruz’s bill would close existing loopholes in U.S. law by banning the Federal Communications Commission from granting licenses to any person who intends to change the language of the station they are purchasing. In Phoenix TV’s case, the outlet’s affiliates applied for an FCC license and then began broadcasting propaganda in Chinese once it assumed control of the Mexico-based radio towers, located near Tijuana.
While the FCC has not granted the license, the station has continued to operate on a temporary license. After initially assuming control of the station, the new owners switched it from Spanish to Chinese-language programming; it is now heard across Southern California.
If approved, Cruz’s bill would ensure the FCC does not grant the station a license, effectively shutting down Phoenix TV’s U.S. broadcasts. (Washington Free Beacon)
