An apparent audio mishap during the closed-door portion of the high-stakes Trump-Xi meeting in Beijing has ignited a slew of comments and backlash among netizens after Chinese state broadcaster CCTV accidentally aired part of Xi Jinping’s remarks before abruptly cutting the feed. The incident occurred on May 14 inside Beijing’s Great Hall of the People during the highly anticipated meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Trump arrived in Beijing the previous evening aboard Air Force One and was greeted with a high-level reception led by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng. The following morning, Trump and Xi held talks lasting approximately two hours and fifteen minutes before later touring the Temple of Heaven together.
On May 15, the two leaders reportedly met again for tea and a working lunch at Zhongnanhai before Trump and his delegation departed China. The high-profile meetings also included several prominent American business and technology leaders, including Elon Musk, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, and several senior U.S. trade and national security officials.
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A rare mishap
The summit reportedly began with Xi referring to Trump as “Mr. President” and expressing pleasure at welcoming him back to Beijing for the first time in nine years. Xi reportedly stated that the world was facing “great changes unseen in a century” and said both China and the United States should work together to confront global challenges and stabilize bilateral relations.
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At the end of the meetings, Xi also invited Trump on a tour of Beijing’s walled-off Zhongnanhai compound, in what analysts are describing as a “highly symbolic” gesture among the two leaders.
The unexpected moment came as reporters were being escorted out of the room before the closed-door talks officially began. During the live broadcast, CCTV appeared to mistakenly leave the room audio feed active, allowing viewers to briefly hear Xi continue speaking.
“China-U.S. relations have experienced considerable fluctuations over the past year, and both sides should regard maintaining stable, healthy, and sustainable relations as…” Xi was heard saying before the audio suddenly cut out. Moments later, voices believed to be Chinese officials could be heard urgently instructing journalists to leave. “Leave! Everyone leave!” one voice shouted. “Let’s go, let’s go, everyone out!”
The footage was reportedly captured by international outlets, including the BBC, which had rebroadcast CCTV’s signal. Clips quickly spread across Chinese-language social media and overseas platforms, prompting online reactions such as: “Why is there still audio?” and “CCTV messed up again.”
Previous ‘hot mic’ incident resurfaces
The incident also revived discussion of another controversial CCTV broadcast mishap during China’s military parade in September 2025. At the time, microphones reportedly captured Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un casually discussing topics including organ transplants, longevity, and living to 150 years old while walking together in Tiananmen Square.
The leaked conversation triggered international media attention before CCTV later removed usage rights for portions of the footage. As Putin and Xi walked toward the Tiananmen rostrum where they viewed the parade with Kim, Putin’s translator could be heard saying in Chinese: “Biotechnology is continuously developing.” The translator added, after an inaudible passage: “Human organs can be continuously transplanted. The longer you live, the younger you become, and [you can] even achieve immortality.”
The latest incident added to growing online scrutiny over how tightly Chinese state media controls sensitive broadcasts involving top CCP leadership.
Rubio draws attention
Another widely circulated moment from the Trump-Xi summit involved apparent chaos inside the media section as the two leaders entered the venue together. Among the most closely-watched members of the delegation was Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has been sanctioned twice by Beijing over his criticism of China’s human rights record in Xinjiang and Hong Kong.
According to reporting from Radio Free Asia (RFA), the first sanctions were imposed in July 2020 after Washington sanctioned Chinese officials over alleged abuses against Uyghurs. Beijing later sanctioned Rubio and several other U.S. lawmakers in retaliation.
A second round followed in August 2020 after the United States sanctioned Chinese and Hong Kong officials accused of undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy.
After Trump returned to the White House in January 2025 and appointed Rubio as secretary of state, Chinese officials reportedly softened their earlier posture. Observers noted that Chinese state media quietly altered the Chinese rendering of Rubio’s surname from “卢比奥” to “鲁比奥,” a move critics mocked as an attempt to sidestep the embarrassment of previously sanctioning a now-serving U.S. secretary of state.
Rubio’s appearance in Beijing alongside Trump, despite officially remaining under Chinese sanctions, quickly became another focal point of online chatter.
