Beijing Declines to Say How It Will Guarantee Press Freedom During 2022 Winter Olympics

Police conduct an ID check on a man (C) before a planned protest for press freedom in Hong Kong on Aug. 11, 2020, a day after authorities conducted a search of the Apple Daily newspaper's headquarters after the company's founder Jimmy Lai was arrested under the new national security law. Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs failed to provide specifics during its regular press briefing on March 2 about its promise of complete media freedom for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.

Following a report released by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China (FCCC), which indicated a “rapid decline in media freedom” in China, based on 150 responses to a survey of correspondents and interviews with bureau chiefs, a reporter from ZDF television at the briefing asked: “How do you respond to that [FCCC report]?