The Honorable Ajit Pai Chairman Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street S.W. Washington D.C. 20554
Dear Chairman Pai
It has come to my attention that the Federal Communication Commission is currently reviewing an application (File Number: 325-NEW-20180614-00001) received June 20 involving H&H Group USA LLC and XEWW a Mexican broadcasting station. The application requests a permit for to deliver programs to foreign broadcast stations pursuant to 47 U.S.C 325(c). Approving the application would permit H&H Group USA LLC to use XEWW to broadcast: a full range of Mandarin Chinese language programming on station XEWW-AM including music entertainment weather report local (LA) traffic report and local Chinese community news."
The Commission has previously explained that Section 325(c) is intended primarily to address two problems: objectionable programming and harmful interference by foreign stations." I am concerned that approving this application would enhance the ability of the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) to broadcast objectionable political propaganda into America and to interfere in domestic American politics. I respectfully request that the Commission deny the H&H Groups pending application.
The application states that the applicants are entirely domestic American persons and entities: Applicant…will be 100 owned by H&H Group USA LLC a New York limited liability company. Vivan Huo a U.S. citizen owns 97 of the membership interests in H&H Group USA LLC.". There are many troubling facts that are not included in the application which deserve further review.
According to its corporate website H&H Capital assists PRC companies with finding strategic investors from around the globe" and works with Chinese companies interested in buying U.S. companies or the Chinese rights to U.S. brands." It was founded by Ms. Huo who is described on the website as native of Beijing" who has conducted in-depth research and analysis of major financial legal and business news including… key legal issues facing Chinese state-owned enterprises among other topics."
H&H Capitals corporate website also states that Ms. Huo spent half a decade as the New York correspondent for one of Chinas largest publications." Radio Free Asia recently reported that Ms. Huo worked in New York as a correspondent for Global Times which is owned by the Peoples Daily an official newspaper of the CCP registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
The actual beneficiary owner of this deal is reportedly Phoenix Satellite TV. Though Phoenix Satellite TV" does not appear anywhere in the H&H Groups application the address listed for programing content 3810 Durbin St. Irwindale CA 91706 is a building owned by Phoenix Satellite TV USA. According to the Washington Free Beacon the H&H Group recently hired Jackie Pang who has been a Phoenix television reporter for decades. According to the Epoch Times a recruiting advertisement placed by Phoenix TVs U.S. branch on WeChat the popular social media platform seeks program producers narrators hosts and ad sales managers for AM 690 Phoenix U Radio."
Phoenix Satellite Television US is a subsidiary of Beijing Phoenix TV based in Hong Kong. The Peoples Republic of China (PRC) exerts control over Chinese media and the control extends to Phoenix: in 2009 testimony to the U.S. Economic and Security Review Commission on China Anne Marie-Brady a Global Fellow at the Wilson Center said Phoenix is nominally privately-owned; however its current main investor is the State-owned enterprise China Mobile." In 2016 for example Phoenix broadcast the forced confessions of five Hong Kong booksellers for violating PRC censorship law.
CCP state-run China Radio International (CRI) president Wang Gengnian has described Chinas use of local media in foreign countries as borrowing a boat to go out to sea." Wang emphasized the need for China to target foreign media to compete to lead international public opinion" and set the agenda" on the global stage. As part of the borrowed boat" strategy CRI has previously partnered with foreign radio stations such as Turkish FM station Yn Radyo which was utilized to present the CCP narrative in the aftermath of the 2009 rmqi riots. According to Wang positive feedback from Turkish listeners demonstrated the benefits of effective international broadcasting targeted at a specific group."
The Chinese Communist Party is waging an information warfare campaign to undermine American democracy. The decision before the Commission risks allowing the CPC to broadcast government-approved propaganda into Southern California one of the most densely populated regions in America of Mandarin speakers to boost that warfare campaign. The Commission should reject the application given the unresolved and undisclosed details surrounding the application.
Sincerely
Ted Cruz United States Senator
cc: GLR Southern California LLC H&H Group USA LLC Chinese Sound of Oriental and West Heritage
