Chinese Province Shuts Down TV and Radio Channels as State Media Struggles for Audiences

Observers say the closures reflect financial strain and shrinking audiences as younger Chinese turn to social media and livestreaming platforms.

Commuters ride bicycles near the China Central Television (CCTV) building in the central business district in Beijing on Sept. 1, 2022. Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo

Several state-run television and radio channels in central China’s Hubei Province will cease operations at the end of June, a move that observers say reflects mounting financial pressures on China’s traditional media system and the declining influence of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) long-standing propaganda apparatus.

In a June 10 announcement, Hubei Television said it would shut down two television channels as well as three radio frequencies, according to a report on Chinese news portal Sohu. The closures, approved by China’s National Radio and Television Administration, will take effect on June 30.