CNN admits mistake in misreporting ‘Chinese delegation’s reaction to Zelensky’s speech
By Published: May 26, 2022 10:45 AM Updated: May 26, 2022 10:38 AM
Photo taken on Jan. 21, 2019 shows the logo of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. The WEF Annual Meeting will kick off in Davos on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Xu Jinquan)
After Chinese Foreign Ministry urged on Wednesday a US lawmaker to make a correction after he mistakenly told CNN that the “Chinese delegation” did not applaud Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech at the World Economic Forum (WFF) in Davos and walked out, CNN said in an email to the Global Times on Thursday that it had made a clarification on air on Tuesday, saying that CNN has confirmed that delegation was not from China.
“We regret the error appeared on our air… we reached out to McCaul’s office for a statement,” CNN said in the email.
When CNN talked with Michael McCaul, a Republican from Texas, on air on Monday, McCaul showed a picture he took at Davos of what he called "the Chinese delegation" sitting during a standing ovation after Zelensky's speech.
McCaul said the "Chinese delegation" was sitting behind him and that the delegation refused to clap like others did after Zelensky made a "powerful" speech in rallying the international community.
The US lawmaker hinted to the Chinese official stance using that picture, saying that it “sent a clear message they do not support Ukraine,” he told CNN.
Both the Chinese delegation to Davos and the Chinese Foreign Ministry refuted such claim. The Chinese delegation said they were meeting with International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol during Zelensky’s speech. Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the ministry, urged McCaul to make a correction to his statement and stop spreading false information.
Some Chinese media outlets such as thepaper.cn and Caixin Magazine noticed that one of several men in the picture provided by McCaul appeared to be the vice prime minister of Vietnam.
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