The Constitution of the People's Republic of China guarantees "freedom of speech [and] of the press" which the government, in practice, routinely violates with total impunity, according to Reporters Without Borders.
[2] Since Xi Jinping became the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 2012, various commentators, protesters, feminists, lawyers, journalists, and activists have been arrested, detained, jailed, and threatened for attempting to exercise press freedom.
"[1] The country's constitution prohibits media workers, including internet users, from publishing, writing, circulating, or otherwise posting fake news, misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda related to various subjects such as national security, terrorism, ethnic hatred, violence, and obscenity.
This, according to the Regulation on the Administration of Publishing, prevents transmitting of such content that poses risks to sovereignty and public interest.
[6] During this period, several Red Guard organizations also operated independent printing presses to publish newspapers, articles, speeches, and big-character posters.
Foreign media have limited access or freedom to attend press conferences of the National People's Congress.
[9] China often blocks news websites, social media platforms, and other services such as Facebook, Gmail, Google, Instagram, and Pinterest, and has limited their access to the general public.