On Feb 15, CNN published a story about "truthtellers in China", claiming some doctors and journalists were silenced because they tried to tell the truth about COVID-19.

They even made a list of the "truthtellers". A glimpse at the list will show CNN should have double-checked their facts before publishing, though doing so would lead any honest media outlet not to publish the story at all.

The most common example is Dr Li Wenliang, the famous opthomalogist in Wuhan who spread information about an unknown pneumonia in its early stage. In CNN's telling, Li was "called to a Wuhan police station" at first, asked to sign a document about his misbehavior, and died later after testing positive for the novel coronavirus.

But CNN would never admit the Wuhan police later withdrew their warning to Li, or that Li was given the honorary title of distinguished member of the Communist Party of China, as well as an excellent worker in fighting and preventing the COVID-19 epidemic.

What's more, he was never "silenced". On Feb 4, 2020, less than 48 hours before his death, Li was still accepting interviews from CNN. Had Li known how CNN would abuse his memory one year after his death, what would be his reaction? Does CNN feel any shame for making use of this distinguished doctor in an act of extreme ideological prejudice?

Another example on the CNN list is Zhang Zhan, who was sentenced to four years in prison for "seeking and provoking trouble" in December. Zhang went to Wuhan in February to do "independent reports", so she claimed. But her "reports" were not covering facts, they were full of ungrounded rumors and misinformation. Her "reports" distorted and hampered China's anti-epidemic efforts. It is her blaming of the government that made Western politicians use her as a martyr figure against China.

Various level of government provide updates about the COVID-19 epidemic every day. Whenever anything happens, there will be official news releases at the earliest time possible. But CNN turns a blind eye to all this, highlighting rumors that have been proven false time and time again.

That makes one wonder why CNN would publish this. Are they interested in what they lack, namely the honesty to report the truth?

If CNN is really concerned about truthtellers in China, they can pick a passerby on the street and ask questions, or log on Chinese social networks to see what people are talking about, instead of making wild claims not grounded in any identifiable reality.