Other than controlling the media in China, the Chinese ruling Party also tries to control the media abroad. (AFP picture)

(Clearwisdom.net) April 18^th Report: the Chinese ruling Party has always tried to control the foreign media in the form of investments. Recently, through reports on the war in Iraq, some U.S. officials noticed the Party's gaining foothold in some U.S. media. Recently, the tendency displayed in much of the Chinese media abroad has attracted the attention of overseas Chinese people.

According to a report in Taipei's Liberty Times by journalist Yang Guowen from April 18^th, the Taiwanese intelligence agency recently discovered that the Chinese government has listed gradual manipulation of Taiwan's media as one of its important Taiwan-related projects. Several transfers of tens of millions of New Taiwan Dollars to the newspapers and T.V. stations in Taiwan with a form of investment were recorded after passing through several countries and areas. The intelligence department does not exclude the possibility of the Party using the media as cover in an attempt to collect political and societal information in Taiwan, as well as instituting a subtle form of brainwashing. Currently, the intelligence department is conducting an investigation.

Not long ago, Peng Chuibin, publisher of the Jinmen Evening News was charged with violation of the Statute for Punishment of Betrayal of Military Secrets and an unsuccessful attempt to prying into state secrets, a violation of the criminal law, by using his newspaper office as a cover to collect military secrets. He is currently under detention. The intelligence department said this is another shocking case of suspected information prying, using the news media. This has attracted the attention of high Taiwanese government officials.

The intelligence office received a report claiming the Party learned that many morning, many evening and Internet newspaper editions closed down due to financial difficulty, the environment of running media is much worse than before. Because it is easy for newspaper employees to obtain important government information and information on Taiwanese people's opinions, the Party made policies geared toward Taiwan and decided to make active investments in Taiwan media.

Individuals from the foreign branch of the Taiwanese intelligence department pointed out that several deposits in the amount of tens of millions of New Taiwan Dollars have been transferred to Taiwan through "third countries" and were used as investments for the news media.

The intelligence department investigated the source of the funds and found that in order to invest in Taiwan news media, some of these investors moved funds over "half the globe" before reaching Taiwan, while part of the money was transferred to Taiwan through countries that have no diplomatic relationship with Taiwan. Intelligence officers think this action indicates an attempt to prevent the Taiwanese government from discovering the source of these investments. The purpose for these investments are highly suspicious.

The newspaper and T.V. stations these intelligence officers have been watching recently made drastic changes in reporting style from the time before these investments were made. They added many reports on political and civil issues in China, clearly from a pro-Party standpoint. For example, they made positive comments on the Sixteenth People's Congress, the construction of the Three Gorges Dam and the development of technology in China.

This change is very unusual, and intelligence officers think the Party is trying to influence the Taiwanese people's opinion as part of a cultural invasion through the news media.

Intelligence officers also said so far no evidence exists that the news media in Taiwan have committed crimes. They are expanding the investigation and, to ensure the security of Taiwan, their focus centers on whether or not the Chinese government has controlled the media, and whether they collected political and societal information in Taiwan.

April 18, 2003