Coronavirus: free press in China would have prevented the pandemic, says RSF

Audio 26:19

Security personnel wearing masks cross a street in Financial Street in central Beijing on February 3, 2020. REUTERS / Jason Lee

By: Steven Jambot Follow | Simon Decreuze Follow

First media workshop carried out during confinement. We looked at the beginnings of the coronavirus epidemic in Wuhan, China, and how the Chinese media reported it.

Publicity

Reporters Without Borders says " if the Chinese press were free, the coronavirus may not have become a pandemic ." In essence, RSF explains that the censorship and control imposed by the Chinese authorities on the media prevented the inhabitants of Wuhan from grasping the extent of the danger. Christophe Deloire , secretary general of RSF, was our guest to speak about it.

Then we joined RFI's permanent special envoy to Beijing, Stéphane Lagarde . He went to Wuhan in January, on the eve of the confinement of this megalopolis of 11 million inhabitants. He says: “ It was an exceptional moment for Chinese journalists. I had never seen so many Chinese journalists mobilize. (...) I have seen incredible reports, even from Chinese central television. Then propaganda took over, he explains.

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  • Coronavirus
  • China
  • Containment
  • Freedom of press
  • Journalism
  • Media

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