John L. Perry, NewsMax.com
Friday, Sept. 7, 2001

As part of the package, the People's Republic of China is prepared to allow Rupert Murdoch's STAR network to telecast directly to a prospering mainland province near Hong Kong.

If the Australian mega-billionaire's deal with communist China goes through, the stateside partner of his own umbrella international conglomerate, News Corp., would be AOL Time Warner, another gigantic global media conglomerate that blankets the United States.

The combination of News Corp.'s 20-plus affiliated television stations and numerous cable channels in the United States with AOL Time Warner's far-flung U.S. cable connections and other mass-communications operations would gain access for the Chinese government's TV programming to a fast-growing audience of millions of Americans whom the communist rulers in Beijing are eager to influence.

A Communist Dream Come True

The Associated Press reported this as a major breakthrough for China's Marxist government, because it "regards television as a vital propaganda tool and has largely succeeded in keeping tight control of its airwaves."

If the content of the telecasts to be streamed into the United States is anything like that on CCTV-9, the English-language channel of China's main state television network, it will be heavy in "news" that is tailored to reflect the Communist Party line.

Quoting a spokeswoman for China's General Administration of Radio, Film and Television, the AP reports that News Corp. and AOL Time Warner would have to guarantee CCTV-9 wide access to the United States. Indeed, China has made it clear that if its government-directed TV programming is not allowed to reach major U.S. audiences, the deal is dead.

No one else is currently allowed by Beijing to transmit China's TV programming in the United States, although the CCTV-9 information and cultural telecasts are available in English worldwide on the Internet.

Already a Party Partner

This is no novel business affiliation with communist China for Murdoch, whose News Corp. recently invested millions in a joint venture inside China, a Web site called ChinaByte.com.

Murdoch's partner in that venture, the People's Daily Newspaper, is a propaganda organ of the Communist Party of the People's Republic of China.

Incongruously, News Corp. also owns Fox News Channel, the New York Post and the Weekly Standard magazine, generally regarded as conservative news and opinion outlets.

Some of News Corp.'s other wide-ranging enterprises are HarperCollins Publishers, 20th Century Fox movies, the Los Angeles Dodgers, newspapers in the United Kingdom including the Times of London and the Sun and newspapers in Australia including the Australian, the Daily Telegraph and the Herald Sun.

What? Ted Turner Again?

This latest Murdock deal brings to the fore another global media luminary – the founder of the left-oriented Cable News Network who is now AOL Time Warner's senior adviser and vice chairman of its board of directors – Ted Turner.

There was no immediate word as to what role, if any, Turner may have played in arranging the deal with communist China. Turner was quoted recently as saying he might move to Russia, there to create another news network.

Among AOL Time Warner corporate subsidiaries are Turner Broadcasting, Internet service provider America Online, Home Box Office, Time magazine, Warner Bros. movies and Time Warner Cable.

AOL Time Warner's online site spells out in some detail how the conglomerate perceives itself in the world of the 21st century.

Setting the Standard

"Our combination of the world's most-trusted brands, unparalleled Internet expertise, rich tradition of journalistic integrity and creative energy and experienced, focused management is unmatched," says its "corporate overview" message.

"Given these resources, we are able to provide our millions of readers, viewers, listeners, members and subscribers with instant access to a breathtaking array of choices and new ways to connect to the ever-expanding online universe. …

"As we look ahead to the next few years, we see a more converged and interactive world rapidly emerging – a world we seek to lead in a responsive, responsible way that sets the standard of leadership in our industries and our communities. …

"It is a fundamental part of our determination to become the world's most respected and valued company."

Now Who's Threatened?

In a speech in 1993, Rupert Murdoch declared that satellite television – which is what his STAR is – "has proved an unambiguous threat to totalitarian regimes everywhere."

Now he and the totalitarian regime in Beijing, which isn't acting particularly threatened, are about to shake hands on a deal to introduce into the United States in a big way the communist Chinese brand of state-controlled information and entertainment.

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

China/Taiwan

Media Bias

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