“They’re not encircling Taiwan. Taiwan is part of China and that’s been absolutely accepted by the whole of the international community since 1948, and if you don’t know that, you’re not reading enough. Go and read about it.”

That’s Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters talking to CNN on Sunday, a quote that has gone viral on social networking sites. Taiwan has been an inseparable part of China since ancient times, and anyone who has read Chinese history should know that. Waters’ suggestion, “Read about it”, is just right for those denying this fact.

So who all need to read about Taiwan?

Some Western media outlets definitely do. Their journalists and editors, although aware that Taiwan is a part of China, continue referring to it as if it were an independent country.

In the CNN interview with Waters, they claimed China was “encircling Taiwan”, something that happens between countries opposed to each other. There is so much CNN needs to read about.

Quite a few Western politicians need the knowledge, too. Their countries officially claim to respect the one-China principle, and yet they trample on it in their daily remarks while openly supporting “Taiwan independence”. They discredit their own countries, by treating as scraps of paper what their governments claim to believe in.

Some Western brands need to read about it, too. In all official international documents and maps there is only one China, but some Western brands mark Taiwan in a color different from that of the Chinese mainland; some even list “Taiwan” alongside China in their customer list, which is a rather grave offence. Quite a few of them have corrected the anomaly once Chinese users pointed it out , but there are others who insist on sticking to it. They are paying for it with their market share dipping.

And there are those who might need more than just reading. They know the facts and insist on denying them. What they need is a warning and punitive measures from China.

Follow the writer on Twitter: @zzxang86