Guwahati News Desk: China has banned BBC World News from broadcasting in the country for seriously violating its guidelines for reporting, China’s television and radio regulator has announced.
The move comes post-Ofcom, the British media regulator, nullified the license of China Global Television Network’s (CGTN), a Chinese state-owned broadcaster to broadcast in the UK.
The National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) has made the announcement on Thursday night.
China has criticised the BBC for its reporting on the deadly coronavirus pandemic and the persecution of ethnic minority Uighurs in the restive Xinjiang province and lodged a protest with the British broadcaster.
The NRTA statement said, “As the channel fails to meet the requirements to broadcast in China as an overseas channel, BBC World News is not allowed to continue its service within Chinese territory.”
The BBC reacting on China’s ban said: “We are 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.”
