New York Times: China’s Coronavirus Battle Is Waning. Its Propaganda Fight Is Not.
“…As the pandemic unleashes the worst global crisis in decades, China has been locked in a public relations tug-of-war on the international stage. China’s critics, including the Trump administration, have blamed the Communist Party’s authoritarian leadership for exacerbating the outbreak by initially trying to conceal it. But China is trying to rewrite its role, leveraging its increasingly sophisticated global propaganda machine to cast itself as the munificent, responsible leader that triumphed where others have stumbled…” (Wang/Fu, 4/8).

POLITICO: Republicans whack China over coronavirus as Trump plays nice
“Republican lawmakers are launching an all-out assault on China over its handling of the coronavirus outbreak, accusing Beijing of a deadly cover-up fraught with lies, propaganda and stonewalling. But their posture is somewhat at odds with that of the Trump administration, which has of late adopted a more restrained approach to dealing with Beijing as officials in both countries focus more on addressing the public health crisis…” (Desiderio/Toosi, 4/7).

Reuters: In apparent swipe at China, Pompeo calls for transparency in coronavirus fight
“U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday urged all countries to be transparent and honest as they grapple with the coronavirus pandemic, a thinly veiled swipe at China, which reported no deaths from the illness for the first time since the outbreak began. … Pompeo said all countries have an obligation to provide accurate and timely data to help the world learn more about the virus. ‘Every nation, be they a democracy or not, has to share this information in a transparent, open, efficient way,’ he said. … China insists it has been transparent about the pandemic and has sharply criticized U.S. officials who cast doubt on that…” (Pamuk et al., 4/7).