Chinese President Hu Jintao said Friday the Chinese government will safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of foreign news media and continue to facilitate foreign media coverage of China in accordance with the law.

"We will continue to make government affairs public, enhance information distribution, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of foreign news organizations and reporters, and facilitate foreign media coverage of China in accordance with China's laws and regulations," Hu said while addressing the World Media Summit in Beijing.

Foreign media coverage of China is growing in terms of its scale, scope and range, which "has played an important role in helping people around the world understand the development and changes in China," he said.

"We sincerely hope that media organizations from around the world can make new contribution to deepening the world's understanding of China, and helping consolidate and develop friendship between the Chinese people and those in the rest of the world."

The government also supports the Chinese media in enhancing exchanges and cooperation with their foreign counterparts in news communication, human resources, information technologies and business development, he said.

Hu said the government has always attached great importance to the development of the media, encouraging the Chinese media to be close to national conditions, life and the masses, and to create new concepts, new content, new methods and new means in order to make the media more accessible, attractive and appealing.

The Chinese media are also encouraged to play a key role in beefing up healthy trends, reflecting social conditions and public opinions, orienting public focuses, soothing public dissatisfaction, ensuring supervision by public opinion, and safeguarding the public rights to information, participation in public affairs, expression and supervision.