Beijing Review
 Peking Review front page from 13 October 1959 | |
| Type | Weekly |
|---|---|
| Publisher | China International Publishing Group |
| Founded | March 1958 |
| Political alignment | Chinese Communist Party |
| Language | English, Japanese, French, German, Chinese, and Spanish[1] |
| Headquarters | Beijing |
| Website | www |
| Beijing Review | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 北京周报 | ||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 北京周報 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Beijing Review (simplified Chinese: 北京周报; traditional Chinese: 北京周報; pinyin: Běijīng Zhōubào; lit. 'Beijing Weekly'), previously Peking Review, is China's only national news magazine in English, published by the state-run China International Publishing Group. In addition to the English print edition, Beijing Review also publishes online editions in Chinese, English, French, German and Japanese.[2]
Beijing Review has two overseas branches: the North America Bureau in New York, U.S.A., and the CHINAFRICA Media and Publishing (Pty) Ltd in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Overview
Founded in March 1958[3] as the weekly Peking Review, it was an important tool for the Chinese government to communicate to the rest of world. The first issue included an editor's note explaining that the magazine was meant to "provide timely, accurate, first-hand information on economic, political and cultural developments in China, and her relations with the rest of the world."[4] The U.S. Postal Service initially restricted distribution of the magazine but the U.S. Supreme Court overturned this policy in Lamont v. Postmaster General in 1965.
In 1963, Peking Review launched Spanish, French, Japanese, and German editions.[3] The magazine also published an Indonesian edition in the mid-1960s, followed by Arabic and Portuguese editions in late 1970s.[2][5] With the exception of the English edition, all foreign-language print editions ceased publication in 2000 and subsequently continued online.
In 1973, at the invitation of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, a delegation of Chinese newspaper editors led by Xinhua News Agency president Zhu Muzhi visited the United States, with Peking Review deputy editor-in-chief Wang Xi among its members. The delegation was received by U.S. President Richard Nixon and later visited Canada, where it met Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.[6]
In 1979, the magazine underwent major editorial and design reforms. While continuing to publish official documents and policy-related articles, it expanded original reporting, special features, and regular columns aimed at overseas readers. The English title was also changed from Peking Review to Beijing Review in line with the Chinese government's adoption of pinyin.[5] In 1980, a delegation from Time magazine led by Henry Grunwald visited the publication.[7]
During the 1989 student demonstrations in Beijing, Beijing Review initially published reporting sympathetic to the protesters. The magazine was subsequently placed under temporary supervision by Lin Wusun, head of the China International Publishing Group, and its coverage returned to the party line over the following year.[4]
In October 2020, the United States Department of State designated Beijing Review as a "foreign mission" of China.[7][6]
References
- ^ "About BEIJING REVIEW". Archived from the original on 26 October 2010. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
- ^ a b "1977". www.beijingreview.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
- ^ a b "1964". www.beijingreview.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
- ^ a b "1989". www.beijingreview.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
- ^ a b "1979". www.beijingreview.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
- ^ a b "1973". www.beijingreview.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-07.
- ^ a b "1980". www.beijingreview.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-02-07.