BdF has been building up conversations with Chinese news outlets, authorities, and local organizations in Shanghai and Beijing. Executive Director Nina Fideles sat down for more than a dozen strategic meetings over the past few weeks. The visit comes just months after BdF officially set up its presence in China.
BdF had already been in the country since 2023 through a partnership with TVT, but on April 17, 2024, it rolled out its first official news desk in the Asian giant.
In Beijing, Nina Fideles was welcomed at the International Press Center by Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, signaling official recognition of efforts to open up communication bridges across the Global South.
“We had an excellent exchange of ideas and it became clear that China’s people-centered policies connect closely with what popular forces in Brazil want and fight for,” Fideles said.
Stepping up South-South information flows
The Beijing agenda included visits to the headquarters of People’s Daily Online, CGTN, and Xinhua News Agency. At all three outlets, BdF kicked off talks on different forms of cooperation, from content-sharing to joint reporting projects.
In Shanghai, the highlight was the signing of the “Journalistic Cooperation for a Popular Global Vision” agreement with Chinese portal Guancha.cn (观察者网). The partnership aims to push back against information flows long dominated by Western media corporations.
The visit comes as Brazil-China ties have been tightening in recent years, especially after the election of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his push to branch out economic partnerships and strengthen South-South cooperation.
During his visit to Brazil in 2024, Chinese President Xi Jinping said the relationship between the two countries “is at the best moment in history.”
“As the two largest developing countries in their respective hemispheres, China and Brazil should take on the historic responsibility of safeguarding the common interests of Global South nations and of pushing for a fairer international order,” Xi said in November 2024.
“It is increasingly important to understand that building multipolar systems and developing South-South experiences, such as Brics, will depend on more concrete communication practices,” Fideles added at the close of her visit, before heading off to Moscow for a similar trip.
Implications and next steps
Despite its short time in China, BdF has already stood out as a key independent media outlet covering the country, where most foreign outlets are corporate.
“Content exchange, co-productions, and closer ties between Global South outlets with shared perspectives are essential to broaden mutual knowledge between our countries and to help steer the flow of information toward the South,” said Fideles.
“That’s why we make a point of staying open to building new partnerships between BdF and Chinese media,” she concluded.
As its next step, BdF is locking in its pioneering role as the first Latin American and Caribbean media outlet to set up an official account on Chinese social media, specifically on WeChat.
This move breaks through historic barriers in global communication, long dominated by Western platforms, and positions BdF at the forefront of China–Latin America media diplomacy.
By going live on Chinese digital platforms, which gather hundreds of millions of users, BdF can put out content about Brazilian and Latin American realities without filtering it through Western hegemonic lenses, significantly expanding the reach of popular and counter-hegemonic perspectives in the Asian information landscape.
