Public broadcaster RNZ overhauled its security protocols – with advice from our spy agencies – ahead of launching a Chinese-language news service, amid fears about potential interference from “bad state actors”.
The broadcaster launched its Asia unit in mid-2023, amid concern about alleged censorship and foreign influence efforts affecting Chinese-language news media around the world – including New Zealand, with several high-profile cases in recent years.
RNZ told Newsroom before the launch that the unit’s establishment had not been driven by questions about the independence of existing outlets, but internal documents obtained under the Official Information Act show such concerns were a factor.
One proposal document from May 2023 said while Chinese New Zealanders were important to the country’s future “in sheer weight of numbers”, there were “other moral and democratic reasons to consider this proposal”.
“Shaping the messages to Chinese is a key concern for the Chinese Communist Party [CCP], whether internally or outside the country. While it is hard to be precise, there have been many concerns raised about the extent of the Party’s pressure and messaging within Aotearoa. This proposal is therefore partly based on the need to ensure a source of independent news for local Chinese.”
A separate, undated briefing document said RNZ had “strong protocols in place to deal with potential bad state actors”, having received advice from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation along with the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and “other government agencies”.
“There is significant editorial and political risk around the unit, which will need to be closely monitored.”
Those protocols included an editorial policy on candidates with suspected ties to the CCP – although RNZ did not release that document to Newsroom – and another on editing workflows, with all original reporting and translations checked by three separate people before publication.
“It is important to balance this emphasis on security with the fact that the communities we are aiming for are good citizens. The fact is the above security arrangements are a tightening of things we have in place now, giving us a chance to react if [there are] any issues. It also gives certainty to the public and staff that the unit is robust,” another (heavily redacted) document said.
RNZ’s head of news Mark Stevens told Newsroom there had been no signs of any foreign interference since the Asia unit’s establishment, and the broadcaster had spoken to public media outlets around the world to ensure it followed international best practice.
Stevens could not discuss the specific changes RNZ had made to its security protocols ahead of the Asia unit’s launch, but said work had been done to safeguard the security of both the organisation and its staff.
RNZ Asia’s managing editor Elliott Samuels confirmed there had been discussions with New Zealand intelligence agencies as part of the preparatory process for the unit, but the material provided was “fairly standard in terms of the advice they would give on such issues”.
Three ‘batches’ of Chinese-language pieces had been sent to an external translator so far as part of editorial safeguards, with “absolutely nothing of significance uncovered”.
Samuels also stayed in regular contact with members of the Chinese and Indian communities to seek feedback on the unit’s work and ensure there were no concerns about what was being produced.
Increased engagement with the Chinese and Indian communities had been beneficial not just for the Asia unit but for the media outlet’s wider work (with its Chinese-language reporting, RNZ Asia also produces English-language stories for Indian New Zealanders).
“When we have news stories that we want to focus on … they’re [the communities] able to add their voices and give their thoughts about their own perspectives and how it might affect themselves and the communities that they’re from,” Samuels said.
RNZ Asia had managed to set up an official account on the Chinese social media platform WeChat at the end of last year after navigating some bureaucratic obstacles, and had not been censored in any way since it was created.
The unit’s first year of operation was funded through the now-extinct Public Interest Journalism Fund, with RNZ required to cover the costs of a second year as part of that agreement. Stevens said there was “no intent to wind things down” once the two years were up, although a final decision could not be made until closer to that time.
“I don’t want to keep harping on to you about the charter, but while we have that sitting there – and that very real, clear commitment to reaching a really diverse New Zealand – it’s a no-brainer for me.”
Richard Leung, the NZ Chinese Association’s Auckland branch chairman, told Newsroom that RNZ’s editorial independence made it a valuable provider of Chinese-language news.
“It just gives some assurance to the community that what they’re being told is unbiased…it gives them another news source apart from the ethnic media that’s currently available, and even stuff coming from overseas via the internet.”
While the Chinese-language reporting of New Zealand news appeared good so far, he said the bigger test would be how it handled more political content about events within China. “That’ll be the proof in the pudding.”
