US journalist admits to working for China

An American journalist has confessed to acting as an agent for China. He illegally gathered US state security information for the Chinese government.

The journalist, named Thomas Weir Pauken II, pleaded guilty on Thursday in a US court. He admitted to conspiring to obtain sensitive information from the US government for China, according to the BBC.

Court documents revealed that Mr Pauken has lived and worked in China since 2010. He has worked for several Chinese media organizations, including CCTV and Xinhua News.

From at least 2019 until February this year, Mr Pauken worked under the direction of people he knew were connected to the People's Republic of China (PRC).

He mainly acted as a middleman between contacts in the US and China. Reports say he helped facilitate communications and passed on information from his targets. Court documents show he received over $100,000 for his work.

Mr Pauken worked with several individuals, including one named Cathy. She gave him tasks, like meeting with potential intelligence contacts.

These tasks required him to travel multiple times in 2019 and 2025 to meet people in the US who provided him with information to send to the PRC.

He also collaborated with two others in China, known as William and Richard. They claimed that the reports he filed for them were sent to Japan.

The BBC reported that the US journalist shared information about the US Department of Justice with a group from Wuhan, a major city in Hubei province, China. He also helped them find an expert for cyber espionage.

Now, the 50-year-old journalist faces a maximum of 10 years in prison. His sentencing is set for 1 September.

His plea has prompted a strong warning from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), according to Fox News.

FBI Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky stated that the case shows how far the Chinese Communist Party will go to gather intelligence and influence operations in the US.

He said, "By his own admission, not only did Thomas Pauken attempt to infiltrate U.S. political circles at the direction of China’s Ministry of State Security, but he gathered intelligence on his American targets and reported it back to his Chinese intelligence handlers.

“This case illustrates the lengths to which the Chinese Communist Party will go to undermine our democratic institutions and degrade our political freedoms. Still, it also demonstrates the FBI’s resolve to defend the homeland from threats to our national security.

“Let this plea serve as a clear warning: If you attempt to help a foreign adversary as an unregistered agent in the U.S., the FBI will find you and bring you to justice,” Mr Rozhavsky said.