China used a top HBCU to manipulate its pandemic response.

Chinese Propaganda Machine Taps Historically Black University to Spin COVID-19 Response

Background

The China-U.S. Exchange Foundation, a think tank in the Chinese government’s foreign influence network, sponsored a report from students at Morgan State University that analyzed China and America’s handling of the pandemic, according to Justice Department filings. The report is filled with analysis that treats the Chinese and American responses to coronavirus as equal, ignoring growing evidence that Beijing has lied about the virus leaking from a lab in Wuhan.

The Report

The 97-page report credits the Chinese Communist Party’s centralized political system with allowing the quick dissemination of foreign aid, in contrast to America’s system which “[weakened] the stability of public health aid.” It says the Wuhan lab theory is a “long-lasting anti-China narrative hyped by some think tanks, media, and online communities in the U.S.” The report asserts that former president Donald Trump “ruined” the reputation of the United States and laments that rhetoric about the virus has caused anti-Asian bias.

Morgan State University

Morgan State, located just an hour from the nation’s capital in Baltimore, Maryland, is led by David Wilson, who last month accompanied Vice President Kamala Harris on her trip to Ghana. Wilson met with National Security adviser Jake Sullivan to discuss national security issues in February. The collaboration between the China-U.S. Exchange Foundation and Morgan State, which as a leading HBCU is the recipient of massive amounts of taxpayer funds, is a major cause for concern, according to one China watcher.

The China-U.S. Exchange Foundation

“The China-U.S. Exchange Foundation isn’t a mysterious organization,” says Michael Sobolik, a fellow in Indo-Pacific studies at the American Foreign Policy Council. “It’s a known entity in the policy and academic communities at this point, and it’s pretty difficult to claim ignorance of the group’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party. It’s a united front group that infiltrates U.S. higher education to shape the way American students view China.”

Concerns

American officials, including CIA director William Burns, have identified the foundation as a key weapon in China’s campaign to influence American foreign policy towards Beijing. “If Morgan State University truly cares about the education of its students, its leaders should sever its partnership with the China-U.S. Exchange Foundation immediately,” Sobolik told the Washington Free Beacon.

Wilson Global Communications

The China-U.S. Exchange Foundation’s relationship with Morgan State has been managed by Wilson Global Communications, a Washington, D.C., consulting firm. Wilson Global, which is registered as a foreign agent of the foundation, has hosted student trips for HBCU students to China and organized events with Congressional Black Caucus leaders to beef up U.S.-China ties.

Conclusion

Like much of China’s propaganda, it is unclear how much impact it had on perception of how China handled the virus. However, the report preaches cooperation between the United States and China, saying the superpowers “should work together rather than compete and point fingers at one another,” echoing a common theme from other Chinese propagandists.