The Chinese Communist Party is restricting the press freedom of Chinese-language media outlets in Australia, including censorship to suppress negative coverage of the party, according to a report from the think tank Australian Strategic Policy Institute.

The report noted that at least four Chinese-language media outlets in Australia have received funding from or were owned by the Chinese Communist Party, and at least 17 others have close ties with the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office.

The think tank found that the Chinese social media app WeChat encourages Australia-based Chinese media outlets to register their WeChat accounts in China instead of through the app’s international version. This limits them to making only four postings per month, which makes it easier for Chinese entities to control and censor them, the report said.

WeChat is commonly used among Austrlians, and the app’s contents are closely monitored by Chinese authorities to target news, including fake reports, to Australian users, according to the report.

“Persistent efforts by the Chinese Communist Party to engage with and influence Chinese-language media in Australia far outmatch the Australian government’s work in the same space,” said co-author Alex Joske.

The report said the Chinese-language news outlet Sydney Today omitted key elements from articles it translated from the Sydney Morning Herald and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The articles described raids on the offices and properties of New South Wales lawmaker Shaoquett Moselmane and his staffer John Zhang.

However, the translations omitted the explanation for Australia’s increased scrutiny over foreign interference, and dropped all mention of Zhang’s links to China’s United Front Work Department. The department monitors and attempts to influence important people and organizations inside and outside China.

Out of 24 Chinese-language Australian media outlets, four were owned by the Chinese Communist Party or received funding from it, according to the report. More than half have had some involvement in United Front groups.

The report said the Australia Pacific Media Group and the Nan Hai Culture and Media Group are supported by either the China News Service, which is run by the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, or the United Front Work Department.

The China News Service brings hundreds of overseas Chinese media representatives to its Global Chinese Language Media Forum, held every two years. There they attend talks on the party’s policies and discuss collaboration with the news service. Employees from ABC Chinese and SBS Mandarin attended the forum in 2013, according to the report.

The report recommended that the Australian government encourage the establishment and growth of independent media outlets. It should also hold all social media companies to the same set of rules, amend laws to increase the transparency of foreign ownership of the media, and review conflicts of interest and foreign interference risks in the industry.

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