December 17, 2025 – China Headlines

Story gist: Hainan Free Trade Port in China approaches its operational ‘seal-off’ phase, a milestone in its development. State media outlets discuss preparations and clarify misconceptions about the process.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like Guangming Net frame the seal-off by correcting misconceptions, asserting it does not mean ‘sealing the island’ and rejecting inaccurate claims. Right-leaning China Net emphasizes countdown and robust biosafety governance ensuring national security. Center-leaning coverage is absent, omitting neutral or balanced perspectives on economic implications or public concerns.

Story gist: China’s 2025 Central Economic Work Conference outlined economic and technology policies. People’s Daily Online published a detailed explanation of the conference spirit. Sina News ran an interview with Sun Jin on rectifying ‘involution-style’ competition through institutional sources.

Bias summary: Left-leaning People’s Daily offers official, comprehensive exposition of conference directives, emphasizing policy alignment and positivity. Center Sina News highlights expert views on competition reforms, focusing on institutional solutions without strong endorsement. Right-leaning outlets absent, omitting potential critiques of state economic strategies or market liberalization angles.

Story gist: Cambodia-Thailand border clashes have killed 50 people. Thailand reiterated three ceasefire conditions and plans chartered flights to repatriate citizens stranded in Cambodia.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like Xinhua emphasize Thailand’s humanitarian evacuation of stranded citizens from Cambodia, portraying orderly repatriation. Center outlets like Sina Finance frame the conflict’s resumption by questioning why Trump’s prior ‘peacemaker’ role failed, implying ineffective past mediation. Right-leaning coverage is absent, omitting conservative perspectives on the clashes or ceasefire terms.

Story gist: CCTV Net published commentaries on prioritizing ideological and moral education for minors as strategic foundational work in China.

Bias summary: Left-leaning frame uses hopeful imagery of children as ‘little saplings’ pinning hopes on youth. Center perspective absent, leaving neutral or balanced views unrepresented. Right-leaning frame employs direct policy language urging persistence in moral construction as foundational task. All from CCTV Net, with emphasis on positivity (left) vs. imperative tone (right).