NEWSPAPER
SHANGHAI SEPT | REUTER THE MANAGEMENT OF THE BRITISH-
· OWNED NORTH CHINA DAILY NEWS, OLDEST AND LAST FOREIGN NEWSPAPER IN CHINA, ANNOUNCED TODAY THAT IT WOULD APPLY TO THE COMMUNIST AUTHORITIES OF SHANGHAI FOR PERMISSION TO CLOSE DOWN THE PAPER.
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THE NEWSPAPER LATE LAST NIGHT ANNOUNCED THAT THE NEWSPAPER WOULD CONTINUE TO APPEAR UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE, THUS AMENDING A NOTICE A FEW HOURS EARLIER THAT ITS PUBLICATION HAD BEEN SUSPENDED FOLLOWING AN ORDER BY THE MILITARY CONTROL COMMISSION BANNING THE ISSUING OF NEWS BY FOREIGN NEWS AGENCIES.
UNDER LABOUR REGULATIONS PROMULGATED ON AUGUST 20 NO FIRM IN SHANGHAI IS PERMITTED TO CLOSE BEFORE OBTAINING THE APPROVAL OF THE COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY BUREAU OF THE CITY GOVERNMENT.
THE NORTH CHINA DAILY NEWS BEGAN PUBLICATION AS A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER IN 1850, SEVEN YEARS AFTER SHANGHAI WAS OPENED AS A PORT.
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NEWSPAPER 2 SHANGHAI
WHEN THE COMMUNISTS TOOK OVER SHANGHAI, ALL CHINESE NEWSPAPERS CEASED TAKING FOREIGN AGENCY REPORTS, BUT THE NORTH CHINA DAILY NEWS HAS BEEN PICKING UP REUTERS NEWS BROADCASTS SINCE THAT AGENCY CEASED DIRECT DISTRIBUTION IN SHANGHAI ON AUGUST 1.
WHEN THE MILITARY CONTROL COMMISSION ORDERED ALL FOREIGN NEWSAGENCIES TO SUSPEND OPERATIONS FROM SEPTEMBER 1, THE NORTH CHINA DAILY NEWS ANNOUNCED THAT IT WAS SUSPENDING ITS MONITORED SERVICE OF FOREIGN NEWS.
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Extract
TIMES
31/8
NEWS RESTRICTIONS IN SHANGHAI
FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT
SHANGHAI, AUG, 30 The question of whether the British North China Daily News, the sole surviving foreign- owned newspaper in China, will survive may be decided within 24 hours. This morning the military control commission issued a notifica- tion ordering all foreign news agencies to suspend activities on August 31, the issuance of news after September 1 constituting a violation of the regulations. When the Com- munists took over Shanghai all Chinese news- papers ceased taking foreign agency reports. The United Press and Reuter services dropped out, leaving the North China Daily News monitor service and the Associated Press continuing and supplementing their income by the sale of the service privately to subscribers. It is at present not clear whether the authorities] merely intend to stop the sale of the services privately or whether they seek totally to pre- vent the sale of foreign news. Elucidation of
the position is at present being sought. Upon this depends whether the North China Daily News continues or stops publication.
ABUSE OF TITO
Another stage has been reached in th gradual closing down of freedom of informa tion in Communist China. The Shangh military control commission yesterday ordere all foreign news agencies to suspend oper tions, threatening severe penalties for viol tions. It is understood that only Agenc France Presse and Tass are affected, as a... other news agencies ceased distributing news some time ago because of financial difficulties. It is believed that the order applies only to distribution of news, and will not prevent foreign news agencies from sending news abroad. The British-owned North China) Daily News, which has recently relied on monitoring Reuters news broadcasts for nearly all its foreign news, announced that it would suspend its monitoring service pending clari- fication of the order. This means that, unless they listen to the radio, foreigners as well as Chinese in Communist China will henceforth have to rely exclusively on the official Government-controlled New China
agency.
news
During the past few days this agency has been issuing long and vituperative denuncia- tions of Marshal Tito-which can hardly be encouraging for those who have professed or hoped to see in Mao Tse-tung a sort of eastern Tito.
In addition to Marxist polemics, the New China news agency also contains a certain amount of factual material. It has announced that the Communists have created a new province in north China called Pingyuan, with the capital at Hsinhsiang, a railway junction 65 miles north of Chengchow. The new province has a population of 14m. people. The exact purpose of this administrative change is not stated, but possibly one object is to break down the old provincial loyalties.
Times
1/7/49