A new report raises concerns about the editorial independence of a Delaware-based online publication and its potential ties to Chinese influence operations.

By Sam Cooper | The Bureau

In an era where newsrooms across the globe struggle with shrinking budgets and reduced staff, an opaque Delaware-based online publication, Beijing Times, has quietly gained traction as a source for China-related stories. However, according to a new report from the Jamestown Foundation, the outlet publishes stories from reporters suspected of being AI creations, cites sources linked to Beijing’s United Front Work Department, and mimics the design of prominent Western newspapers to plant pro-China stories in major outlets like Newsweek and the Daily Mail.

The Jamestown Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank specializing in national security threats, has championed the use of open-source intelligence to alert Western readers to increasing dangers from authoritarian regimes, including media manipulation. Their report on Beijing Times resonates with allegations recently revealed in a Department of Justice indictment accusing Russian nationals of funding a sprawling network of right-wing influencers in Canada and the United States.

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Highlights from the Jamestown Foundation report:

• The online media website Beijing Times publishes stories on topics the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) deems sensitive and aligns with the CCP’s preferred narrative. These stories are interspersed with neutral coverage of international affairs, providing credibility to increase the publication’s audience.
• The publication’s articles praising advances in the People’s Republic of China’s military technology have gained traction with mainstream media in the West and have been picked up, cited, linked to, and quoted by outlets including Newsweek, the Daily Mail, and The Defense Post.
• The Beijing Times is an obscure organization. Some of its reporters do not appear to exist, as no trace of them can be found elsewhere on the Internet, and their photos appear to be AI-generated.
• The website is part of a larger network of dozens of “news” websites aimed at local readerships in cities throughout the United States, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.