Established as a Chinese-language weekly publication in 1993, an English-language version was launched on 20 April 2009 as part of a Chinese campaign costing 45 billion yuan to compete with overseas media. While the Chinese-language version strongly focuses on international issues, the English-language version reports more on China's domestic events. Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of both Chinese and English versions, stated that he expected it to make a loss of 20 million yuan in its first year as an English-language publication. The English-language version of the newspaper also has launched two local sections, Metro Beijing since September 2009 and Metro Shanghai since April 2010, in the two largest Chinese metropolises, in an effort to provide more information to local readers. The Global Times launched its US edition in 2013. In June 2020, the United States Department of State designated Global Times as a "foreign mission."
Editorial stance
The Chinese-language version has been known to have a pro-Communist Party of China slant, attracting a nationalistic readership since its inception in 1993. When launched in 2009, its editors claimed that the Global Times' English-language version took a less nationalistic stance. The Global Times' editorial stance has been viewed as channeling the views of the hardline faction of top leadership. In 2016, it was reported that the English-language edition then had approximately 20 "foreign experts" who were involved with assigning stories and copyediting, "as long as the coverage s not about politics".
Controversies
Astroturfing
According to Richard Burger, a former editor at Global Times, in the wake of the arrest of Ai Weiwei, the Chinese staff of the Global Times were ordered to conduct an "astroturfing" campaign against Ai Weiwei in favour of the Chinese Communist Party's criticism of Ai as a "maverick". According to Foreign Policy magazine, Global Times differentiates itself from other Chinese newspapers in part through its more populist approach to journalism, coupled with a tendency to court controversy. In 2019, Global Times was criticized for perceived bias in its coverage and portrayal of Uyghurs and of perceived disinformation campaigns regarding Xinjiang re-education camps, which led Twitter to ban it and other state-sponsored media outlets from ad purchases.
In May 2016, the Global Times ran a boycott campaign denigrating Hong Kong pro-democracy singer Denise Ho for allegedly advocating independence for Hong Kong and Tibet. On 5 June, Lancôme cancelled a promotional concert by the Cantopop star that was scheduled to be held on 19 June in Sheung Wan. Lancôme also added, in a Facebook post, that Ho was not a spokesperson for the brand. The Tibet allegation appeared to have stemmed from Ho's May 2016 meeting with the Dalai Lama. The cancellation drew a heavy backlash in Hong Kong. Some Lancôme shops in Hong Kong were shut down during the protests. Listerine, another brand that Ho represents, retained the singer despite the fact that the Global Times also criticized that company hiring Ho as its public face in Hong Kong.
Australia
The Global Times has been strident in its description of Australia as a paper cat in relation to the SouthChina Sea, and a former offshore prison in relation to an Olympic swimmer being identified as a former drug cheat.
United States
In response to Rex Tillerson's mid-January 2017 comments on blocking access to man-made islands in the South China Sea, the Global Times warned of a "large-scale war" between the U.S. and China, saying: "Unless Washington plans to wage a large-scale war in the South China Sea, any other approaches to prevent Chinese access to the islands will be foolish."
