State Council vows more access for foreign media

The State Council Information Office intends to raise the quality, efficiency and professionalism of its services to the media to an even higher level to promote mutual understanding between China and the international community, officials said.

Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, said at a reception hosted by the information office on Wednesday in Beijing that next year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, and there have been huge changes in China.

Xu Lin, minister of the State Council Information Office said that in the coming year, the office will take a more open stance and work more actively to intensify exchanges and communication with various circles, including the media.

"We hope journalists from overseas will travel more around China and obtain more knowledge about China's development so as to present a true and multidimensional China to the world," he said. So far this year, the office organized nearly 560 news conferences, which provided firsthand information to the international community, Xu said.

The office also organized many field visits for foreign journalists to help them gain familiarity with the country, he said.

The reception was attended by more than 400 people, including media members from China and overseas, ministry spokespersons, foreign envoys to China and representatives of international organizations.

Issaku Harada, a Beijing correspondent of The Nikkei－a Japanese financial newspaper－said in 2018 he went to a news conference almost every week.
"The news conferences have helped us to learn more about China," he said. "I am glad to see that foreign reporters attending the news conferences can get fair treatment, as they are given equal chances of asking questions if they raise their hands."

Harada said most officials attending the information office's conferences are vice-ministers, and he hopes more ministers can attend the news conferences as they may give more inclusive answers to questions asked by reporters.