Justice Department orders Chinese media groups to register as foreign agents

The Justice Department has ordered two top Chinese state-run media outlets to register as foreign agents — a move connected to efforts by the U.S. to crack down on foreign influence operations, people with knowledge of the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

The details: This comes on the heels of an escalating trade conflict between Washington and Beijing. Sources told WSJ the order for Xinhua News Agency and China Global Television Network to register was done under a foreign lobbying law employed in a case involving former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. The policy requires people in the U.S. to disclose when they are working on behalf of foreign governments or political entities.