Beijing’s $900M Push to Sway American Opinion Exposed

Federal records reveal that China has poured close to $900 million into influencing American public opinion, exposing the scale and sophistication of Beijing’s multi-front influence operations inside the United States. According to Fox News, the Department of Justice recorded over $80 million in Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) expenses from Chinese government entities in 2025 alone, while industry data shows China has paid U.S. FARA-registered firms more than $418 million since 2016 — more than any other country.

The revelations come days after President Donald Trump delivered a primetime address on July 16 alleging Chinese interference in American elections and accusing intelligence officials of concealing evidence. While multiple news outlets, including CNN and Politico, have since questioned the strength of the evidence behind Trump’s specific election interference claims, the FARA records paint a detailed picture of a broad, systematic campaign by Beijing to shape American policy, media coverage, and public discourse.

State Media as a Propaganda Arm

At the heart of China’s influence machine is its state-controlled media apparatus. Five Chinese media operations are registered as active foreign agents in the United States: CGTN America (operated by CCTV), Xinhua News, China Daily, and Sing Tao News Corporation — the last being privately owned but consistently pro-Beijing in its coverage. CGTN America, China’s flagship English-language outlet, received $66.8 million in funding from CCTV between February and November 2025 alone.

A 2022 academic paper from King’s College London found that CGTN does not primarily aim to influence voter behavior but rather seeks to portray the United States as “poorly governed, plutocratic, racist and a destabilizing international influence” in contrast to a China that is “well governed, benign, stable and a rising superpower.” In 2025, the network amplified rhetoric similar to Democratic politicians, criticizing Trump’s tariffs and praising California Governor Gavin Newsom, widely seen as a Trump political rival.

Xinhua’s FARA filings reveal that the federal government required it to register because the DOJ believes it “intends to influence the American public or policy makers on relevant topics such as U.S. policy or foreign relations.” Globally, the State Department estimated in 2023 that China spends “billions of dollars annually on foreign information manipulation efforts” worldwide.

The China Lobby: Corporate Influence and the FARA-LDA Gap

Beyond state media, Chinese companies and government-linked entities maintain a formidable lobbying presence in Washington. Seven Chinese companies — including Huawei, BOE Technology America, Yangtze Memory Technologies, Hikvision, Futurewei Technologies, and JinkoSolar — maintain active FARA registrations, disclosing their political activities to the DOJ.

Tencent, the technology conglomerate recently added to the Pentagon’s list of “Chinese military companies,” has spent well over $10 million on lobbying expenses since 2025. In a statement, Tencent said its inclusion on the list “is a mistake” and indicated it would pursue legal proceedings to be removed.

Hikvision, the partially state-owned surveillance firm under U.S. sanctions for alleged complicity in the repression of Uyghur Muslims, has paid American lobbyists millions to advocate for lifting those restrictions. Because Hikvision operates under FARA, the public has access to materials its lobbyists distributed to policymakers — including a slideshow presentation given to Pentagon and Commerce officials in October 2024.

However, most Chinese companies lobby under the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA), which requires far less stringent disclosure than FARA. Senator Tom Cotton has accused Chinese entities of abusing the LDA to avoid FARA’s stricter transparency requirements. This regulatory gap allows Chinese firms to engage in extensive lobbying of Congress while disclosing only basic information about their activities.

Clandestine Operations and the United Front

Not all Chinese influence operations are visible through federal filings. Campus groups linked to the Chinese government, such as the Chinese Students and Scholars Association (CSSA), do not file FARA paperwork. The United Front Work Department — a global network of Chinese Communist Party loyalists that works to advance Beijing’s interests abroad — operates entirely without disclosures due to its clandestine nature.

The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), which receives hundreds of thousands of dollars from Beijing every six months to facilitate trade between the two countries, presents a more ambiguous case. While its stated mission is promoting bilateral commerce, the Jamestown Foundation asserts that CCPIT “has long been identified by the U.S. intelligence community as a united front entity supporting PRC diplomatic goals,” citing a declassified CIA memo from 1957.

China’s Response

The Chinese embassy in Washington rejected all allegations. A spokesperson told Fox News Digital that China is “committed to promoting mutual understanding and friendship between the Chinese and American peoples” and that describing normal exchanges as “influence operations” distorts facts and stigmatizes legitimate engagement. On the labeling of state media as propaganda tools, the spokesperson said it reflects “ideological bias and a Cold War mentality.”

What’s Next

Despite the escalating rhetoric over influence operations, President Trump has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit the United States in September 2026 for discussions on artificial intelligence and bilateral relations. The meeting will take place against a backdrop of deepening scrutiny of China’s American influence apparatus, with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle calling for tighter regulations to close the loopholes that critics say allow Beijing’s influence campaign to flourish.