WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) pressed National Basketball Association (NBA) executive, William Koenig, on the league’s shady ties to Communist China. Estimates show that the NBA’s media rights in China are worth hundreds of millions of dollars per year and that team owners have invested more than $10 billion in the country all while the Chinese Communist Party has violated human rights and censored speech. Koenig refused to disclose how much the NBA has profited off investments in China.

Click here to download video of Senator Blackburn’s remarks during the Senate Commerce Committee hearing. 

On the NBA’s investments in China:

Blackburn: “Why don’t you tell me what the broadcast rights in China are worth and how much NBA owners have invested in China?” 

Koenig: “The NBA does have a very long history of distributing our games and content in China for more than 30 years.”

Blackburn: “I’m not asking about the length of time you’ve been in China. I’m asking, ‘What are the media rights worth?’ You’re the president of global content and media distribution so what are those rights worth and how much have the NBA owners invested in China?’

Koenig: “The NBA does not comment publicly on the financial terms of our relationships in the U.S. or abroad.”