On December 31st, CNN’s Mike Valerio reported live from Harbin, China’s massive ice festival, surrounded by bundled-up dancers and giant hand-carved ice sculptures. During his lively report, he challenged CNN hosts Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen to GO TO CHINA for the Chinese New Year:

“If you come here, beauty, ambition, drama. It’s time for you boys to come over here to China for the year of the horse!”

If they thought the Gregorian calendar New Years in China was spectacular, Chinese New Year is so much more. Think glowing cities wrapped in red lanterns, skies exploding with light, streets roaring with drums and lion dances, and millions of families gathering with love and laughter as the country steps into the new year. It is truly something to behold.

Why is this challenge so important? It’s because the mainstream media rarely shows us the real, unfiltered China. Over 95% of articles paint China in a negative light as part of the media’s campaign to turn China into the ultimate enemy and convince U.S. citizens that the government is trying to “protect us” from China by invading other countries like Venezuela and their next target… Greenland? (We all know it’s actually to extract oil and rare earth minerals to remain the hegemonic power)

So far, we’ve relied on independent media, travel vloggers, and content creators to show us China from the inside. The more mainstream media we get to China, the better!

That’s why we are joining in solidarity with the challenge made to CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen, summoning them to spend the Chinese New Year in China, witness the unprecedented celebrations, and share the magic with viewers back in the U.S. Sign our petition to join the challenge! 

👉CNN: WE CHALLENGE YOU TO SPEND CHINESE NEW YEAR IN CHINA!

It’s still possible to stop the push to war with China. And the way to do that is to stop listening to the mindless pro-war propaganda and start getting real. The U.S. just approved the largest arms deals to Taiwan in history… that’s $11.1 billion going into the pockets of weapons manufacturers like Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, all in the name of “protecting Taiwan.” The truth is, the only country Taiwan needs protecting from is the United States! Taiwan is just another Ukraine, Venezuela, Greenland… It’s another piece of land that the government would love to control. Not only because it’s a great place to launch an invasion into mainland China, but also because of its resources, like the semiconductors that are needed for all modern technology, including defense systems. 

But the government doesn’t want you to know that, so you won’t read about it in the news. Right-wing media just launched a large-scale takeover of CBS News, making it now under the influence of billionaire Larry Ellison (who works closely with the Department of War). They brought on notorious Zionist Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief, and we are already witnessing the censorship of important stories, like the 60 Minutes episode of the abusive El Salvador prison that the administration is sending innocent people to. 

At the same time, the government is continuing its ongoing partitioning of TikTok, putting it under the control of the same guy, Larry Ellison. It’s not because China is trying to “control the minds of American youth” as the media will tell you—it’s because TikTok has provided a platform for pro-Palestine activism that the government wants to censor. 

U.S. media has always been an extension of the pro-war imperialist elite. So if CNN is open to sending two of its top hosts to China to cover a story that will expose U.S. citizens to the beauty and humanity of the Chinese people as they celebrate one of the biggest holidays of the year, we stand in solidarity with that challenge. Sign our petition to add your name and challenge Andy and Anderson to spend the new year in China! 

👉CNN HOSTS ANDY & ANDERSON: CELEBRATE THE NEW YEAR IN CHINA!

Peace and solidarity, 

Megan, Jodie, and the CODEPINK Team

🎥 Join us this Friday 12pm ET to hear a report back from Nuvpreet & Charlie on their recent visit to China. RSVP HERE!

✈️ Join our CODEPINK community trip to China this spring. Fill out this form to get started.

Contact [email protected] to learn more.

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** Watch the video of Mike Valerio challening Andy and Anderson to visit China.