Fu Xiaotian (, born 12 June 1983) is a Chinese news correspondent. Fu worked in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

when she first joined

state media State media are typically understood as media outlets that are owned, operated, or significantly influenced by the government. They are distinguished from public service media, which are designed to serve the public interest, operate independent ...

outlet

Phoenix Television Phoenix Television is a majority State-owned enterprise, state-owned television network that offers Standard Chinese, Mandarin and Cantonese-language channels that serve mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and other markets with substantial C ...

, taking on the roles of chief correspondent and bureau chief. In 2011, she journeyed twice to

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

as a wartime reporter. The following year, she transferred to Phoenix TV's Hong Kong headquarters, where she worked as a senior reporter, covering major political events internationally. In June 2023, she disappeared from public view.

Early life

Fu Xiaotian was born in

Chongqing ChongqingPostal Romanization, Previously romanized as Chungking ();. is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the State Council of the People's Republi ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, to an engineer and a housewife. Her grandparents enlisted in the

Chinese Red Army The Chinese Red Army, formally the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army( zh, labels=no, t=中國工農紅軍) or just the Red Army( zh, labels=no, t=紅軍), was the military wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1928 to 1937. I ...

before settling in Chongqing. She received a bachelor's degree from

Beijing Language and Culture University Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU; ) is a Types of universities and colleges in China, public university of linguistics in Haidian, Beijing, Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of ...

and another from

Peking University Peking University (PKU) is a Public university, public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the Peop ...

. She received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in education from

Churchill College, Cambridge Churchill College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. It has a primary focus on science, engineering and technology, but retains a strong interest in the arts ...

, in 2007.

''Talk with World Leaders''

''Talk with World Leaders'' is a one-on-one interview program on Phoenix TV, aiming to provide a platform for international leaders to communicate their views directly to Chinese audiences. The 32-minute program broadcasts worldwide on

Phoenix Chinese Channel Phoenix Television is a majority state-owned television network that offers Mandarin and Cantonese-language channels that serve mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and other markets with substantial Chinese-language viewers. It is headquarter ...

, Phoenix North American Channel, Phoenix European Channel, as well as

Phoenix Hong Kong Channel Phoenix Hong Kong Channel is one of the six channels that Phoenix Television operates. It was launched on 28 March 2011 in order to serve Chinese viewers in Hong Kong, and it is Phoenix Television's first Cantonese language channel that is availab ...

on a weekly basis. Fu headed the program from 2014 to 2022. Her final interview in the ''Talk with World Leaders'' series was in March 2022 with Chinese diplomat

Qin Gang Qin Gang (born 19 March 1966) is a Chinese former diplomat and politician who served as the 12th Minister of Foreign Affairs (China), Minister of Foreign Affairs from December 2022 to July 2023 and as State councillor, State Councillor from Mar ...

, who at the time was Chinese ambassador to the United States.

Awards and recognition

Fu was knighted with the Order of Stella d'Italia (Star of Italy) by President

Sergio Mattarella Sergio Mattarella (; born 23 July 1941) is an Italian politician and jurist who has served as the president of Italy since 2015. He is the longest-serving president in the history of the Italian Republic. Since Giorgio Napolitano's death in 20 ...

of Italy in 2017. Italy's Ambassador to China at the time, Ettore Sequi, delivered a speech at the ceremony. The Xiaotian Fu Garden

In 2016, her alma mater, Churchill College at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

named a garden after her – the Xiaotian Fu Garden – in recognition of her £250,000 contribution to support education, learning and research.

Disappearance

In July 2023, China's foreign minister

disappeared amid speculation over an alleged affair with Fu. Around the same time, Fu also disappeared from public view. According to a 26 September article by the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'', Fu was in a relationship with Qin, citing unnamed sources. According to the article, Qin and Fu met in London in 2010, when both were in the UK, and they developed a closer relationship nearly a decade later in Beijing. It also mentioned that Fu had a child with the help of a

surrogate mother Surrogacy is an arrangement whereby a woman gets pregnant and gives birth on behalf of another person or couple who will become the child's legal parents after birth. People pursue surrogacy for a variety of reasons such as infertility, danger ...

in the US. It mentioned that Qin began to limit contact with Fu after his appointment as foreign minister, prompting Fu to drop hints about their relationship on social media.

Personal life

Fu has a son whom she calls "Er-Kin," delivered via

surrogacy Surrogacy is an arrangement whereby a woman gets pregnant and gives birth on behalf of another person or couple who will become the child's legal parents after birth. People pursue surrogacy for a variety of reasons such as infertility, danger ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Publications

* ''Talk with World Leaders on China'' (世界政要谈中国：晓田访谈录) (2017) * ''Meeting World Leaders'' (风云之交) (2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fu, Xiaotian Chinese television presenters Living people Missing Chinese people 1983 births People from Chongqing Beijing Language and Culture University alumni Peking University alumni Alumni of Churchill College, Cambridge