The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday it will temporarily ban China's Xinhua News Agency and the People's Daily from sending journalists to Taiwan because the two media outlets only air opinions from the "extreme sides of Taiwan's political spectrum."
Council Chairman Joseph Wu (
The two official Chinese media outlets' coverage on Taiwan news "has not helped China understand Taiwanese society at all," he said.
The council's original aim of permitting Chinese journalists to come to Taiwan was to promote mutual understanding between China and Taiwan, Wu explained.
However, the unbalanced reports written by the journalists from Xinhua and the People's Daily on political affairs in Taiwan have not helped the Chinese public know more about Taiwan, according to Wu.
"Xinhua and the People's Daily are state-controlled media. Their coverage on Taiwan has been very unhelpful, extreme and negative over the years ... Their reports did not truthfully reflect the voice of the people of Taiwan," Wu said. The official stressed the move was not a setback for press freedom.
The journalists from Xinhua and the People's Daily collaborated with China's agenda of political propaganda and their reports often "distorted the truth," said a statement released by the MAC.
"Apparently, these journalists have lost the neutral stance their profession requires. They intend to mislead the Chinese public and they worsen misunderstandings between Taiwan and China," read the statement.
MAC spokesman You Ying-lung (
Wu told reporters in Wulai that some media outlets in China are controlled by the state, but other unofficial outlets aren't.
"We do not exclude the possibility of allowing [unofficial] news agencies to send reporters to Taiwan," Wu said.
Noting the government will not completely ban Chinese reporters from coming to Taiwan, Wu nevertheless pledged to "carefully evaluate" cross-strait cultural exchanges to ensure that they increase mutual understanding between Taiwan and China.
Commenting on the MAC's decision, Vice President Annette Lu (
"But it is not too late to take the step now," added Lu, who called the decision a move to defend Taiwan's national security.
Beijing strictly blocks all Taiwanese news Web sites so that people in China have no access to Taiwan's local news coverage -- restricting the Chinese' public's knowledge of Taiwan.
Apart from Xinhua and the People's Daily, three Chinese media outlets, including CCTV, the China News Agency and China National Radio, also have reporters in Taiwan. Each of them is allowed to send two reporters to Taiwan. The news agencies rotate their reporters in Taiwan each month.
The government first permitted Chinese media to send reporters to Taiwan in August 2000. A MAC official said the council has communicated with Xinhua and the People's Daily journalists regarding their reports.
also see story:
Opposition slams MAC's ban on Chinese reporters
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in