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The coronavirus continues to expand 0:37
Hong Kong (CNN Business) - The Chinese government announced Wednesday that it would revoke the press credentials of three reporters from The Wall Street Journal , the country's largest foreign media expulsion in recent years.
Speaking at a press conference, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said the expulsion was due to an opinion article published by the US news organization on February 3, entitled "China is the real sick from Asia".
"The editors used a racially discriminatory title, which caused outrage and condemnation between the Chinese people and the international community," Geng said.
“Unfortunately, what The Wall Street Journal has done so far is nothing more than stopping and dodging its responsibility. He has not issued an official apology or informed us of what he plans to do with the people involved ... As such, it is decided that as of today, the press cards of three journalists from The W all Street Journal will be revoked. ”
Chinese authorities have increasingly used visa restrictions to show their dissatisfaction or put pressure on foreign media in China. Numerous foreign journalists have received short-term visas instead of the standard one-year visa.
But it is very unusual for an international journalist to be expelled from the country.
In an article about the expulsion on his website, The W all Street Journal said his office deputy director Josh Chin and reporters Chao Deng and Philip Wen had five days to leave the country.
Another journalist for The W all Street Journal , Chun Han Wong, was effectively expelled from the country in August after the government declined to renew his press credentials after co-authoring a report on the cousin of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
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Wednesday’s move comes less than a day after US officials announced they would treat the top five Chinese state media companies as effective extensions of the Chinese government.
A senior State Department official said on Tuesday that Xinhua, China Global Television Network, China Radio International, China Daily and People's Daily will be designated as "foreign missions", effective immediately.
The change will mean that media companies will now need the approval of the US government. UU. to buy or lease offices in the US UU. and must register personnel changes in the US Department of State. UU.
China's Foreign Ministry described the decision as "unreasonable and unacceptable" and maintained that China reserved the right to "respond more on this matter."
The expulsion of the three journalists follows a one-week campaign in Chinese state media that attacks The W all Street Journal for its decision to publish the opinion article.
The controversial article was written by American scholar Walter Russell Mead and criticized Beijing's initial reaction to the coronavirus epidemic, giving a hypothesis about what effect the outbreak could have on the country's economy and political system.
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In a Twitter post on Wednesday, state tabloid Global Times said the headline was "racist" and published an opinion piece asking The W all Street Journal to "apologize."
“A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China has also demanded a public apology from the newspaper. But The W all Street Journal has not yet apologized, nor has it taken any action to correct the error. He continues to adhere to his arrogance and prejudice, ”said the opinion article.
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