China vying to control Pakistani media with the help of proposed 'nerve centre': US report

An official US report has indicated that the Pakistani media has come under the claws of China as Beijing is vying to reshape the information environment with the help of a "nerve centre", termed as an "example of Beijing’s ambition to assume direct control over a close partner’s domestic information environment."

A special report under the title "How the People's Republic of China seeks to reshape the global information environment", pointed at the information manipulation being carried out by China.It slammed China for seeking to gain "significant" control over Pakistani media.With Pakistan, the report said, China sought to deepen cooperation on “combating disinformation,” including under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Media Forum.

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It went on to say that Beijing and Islamabad are using the same forum to thwart what it sees as propaganda and “malicious disinformation”.For this, the special report indicated, both countries have launched initiatives like the “CPEC Rapid Response Information Network” and, most recently, pledged to launch the China-Pakistan Media Corridor (CPMC).

Nerve centre

The report also mentioned how both nations negotiated to establish a jointly operated “nerve centre” to monitor and shape Pakistan’s information environment. This was in 2021 when China sought to negotiate significant control over Pakistani media as part of the China-Pakistan Media Corridor.

"The scope of the proposal – which it does not appear Islamabad seriously entertained – and the fact that the mechanisms it detailed appeared to disproportionately benefit Beijing is notable as an explicit example of Beijing’s ambition to assume direct control over a close partner’s domestic information environment," the report read.

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"The PRC’s draft concept paper called for the PRC and Pakistan governments to establish a “nerve center” to monitor Pakistan’s information environment by streamlining inputs from think tanks, opinion leaders, CPEC study centers, media organizations, PRC companies, and even local Confucius Institutes," it added.

Giving further details of the proposed nerve centre, the report said that the nations would have relied on “three mechanisms” and “two platforms” to carry out this mission.

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"The mechanisms would have provided means to convert 'important reports'into Urdu products to sway popular opinion; provide PRC Embassy reports directly to Pakistan’s official press release system; and monitor and respond to public criticism about the PRC. The two proposed platforms called for the creation of a joint PRC-Pakistan authoritative system for 'dispelling rumours'and a newsfeed application to promote approved news to the local market," it added.

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