Chinese State Media Uses Times Square Screen to Play Xinjiang Propaganda

A new electronic billboard leased by Xinhua (2nd from top), the news agency operated by the Chinese government, makes its debut in New York's Times Square, on Aug. 1, 2011. The LED sign is 60 feet (18.3 meters) by 40 feet (12.2 meters) and is located on the building at 2 Times Square. Stan Honda/AFP via Getty Images

NEW YORK—Chinese state media Xinhua is running digital billboards in one of the world’s most coveted ad spaces to promote goods from Xinjiang amid rising global outcry over the regime’s campaign of repression in the region.

In New York City’s Times Square just before Christmas, a giant screen measuring about 64 feet high and 40 feet wide repeatedly played a video by Xinhua, depicting Shihezi, one of the largest cities in Xinjiang, as a thriving “green” city.