China revealing extent of its censorship with BBC ban: Gordon Chang – Fox News

China's recent announcement thatBBC World Newsis banned from broadcasting in the country is another troubling example of Beijingclosing itself off and makes clearthe extent of the Communist Party's censorship regime, author Gordon Chang says.

The authoritariangovernment'sNational Radio and Television Administration announced its restriction of theBritish broadcaster on Feb. 11,claiming the BBChad harmed Chinese "unity" with its reporting on the country's atrocities against ethnic minorities.

"China under Xi Jinping has been shutting out the rest of the world. Its basically a closing of the Chinese mind because Xi does not like foreign influences," Chang told Fox News."As China cuts itself off from the rest of the world, its not going to get the benefit of communicating with other people. Everyone benefits from talking with others, and societies that cut themselves off end up usually strangling themselves."

China was formally accused by the U.S. last monthof perpetrating a genocide against Uighurs and other Muslim ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang regionthrough a system of torture, internment, rape, and ethnic cleansing.

CHINA BANS BBC AFTER HARROWING REPORT ON ATROCITIES AGAINST UIGHURS

The BBC's Feb. 2 report on these atrocities, as well as U.K.media regulator Ofcom revokingthe license of the Communist Party-aligned China Global Television Network earlier this month, triggered China's decision to fully ban the BBC. It was already heavily censored there, although it could be viewed in hotels and some residential homes.

Chinais already facing global scrutiny over the origins of the deadly coronavirus pandemic and suppressing critical reporting about the disease at the beginning of the outbreak.It has since spread conspiracy theories through state media about COVID-19's origins.

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"People around the world are going to start to think about how much censorship there is in China," Chang said. "Xi Jinping has gotten away with this for quite some time... This could very well be a tipping point where people really start to understand how strict censorship is."

The BBC said it was "disappointed that the Chinese authorities have decided to take this course of action. The BBC is the world's most trusted international news broadcaster and reports on stories from around the world fairly, impartially and without fear or favour."

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China revealing extent of its censorship with BBC ban: Gordon Chang - Fox News