China targets media’s ‘evil trend’

china-cyberspace-small From Asia Times online: “Top officials from China’s propaganda sector recently convened a high-level meeting in central China’s Henan province and concluded that some people are ‘exploiting the Internet’ to attack the government and ruling Communist Party, Asia Times Online has learned from an informed source in Beijing. China experts say this session may signal the end of the honeymoon of China’s mass media and the new Beijing leadership, which began after party chief and President Hu Jintao replaced his hardline predecessor Jiang Zemin as commander-in-chief. Authorities in Beijing now seem determined to tighten the leash on traditional media, as well as the vibrant and emerging cybermedia, the Internet. ”

The full article is here.


Recently, many official mouthpiece websites including www.people.com.cn and www.cctv.com have simultaneously reprinted an article that criticizes the heated debates about Chinese governance in cyberspace, saying they mostly focus on the dark side of society, on official corruption and on other negative factors. The article said drastic, radical rhetoric tends to make bad news spread faster and more widely than any good news, a phenomenon exacerbated by such modern and advanced technology as the Internet. The official editorial points out that communist propaganda is facing a grave new challenge under the multifaceted media environment. It said the image of the CCP and its administration and the effort to lure foreign investment will be ruined once negative public opinions, fanned by the Internet, burst out of control.

On the other hand, the editorial admits that it would be unadvisable to demonize or vilify the Internet tool. “Counterattacks including rigid refutation and even legal action should be made to malicious rumor-mongers and libelers, while prudent analysis should be given to those emotional, ex parte, extreme but well-meant remarks,” it stressed.

CDT EBOOKS

Subscribe to CDT

SUPPORT CDT

Browsers Unbounded by Lantern

Now, you can combat internet censorship in a new way: by toggling the switch below while browsing China Digital Times, you can provide a secure "bridge" for people who want to freely access information. This open-source project is powered by Lantern, know more about this project.

Google Ads 1

Giving Assistant

Google Ads 2

Anti-censorship Tools

Life Without Walls

Click on the image to download Firefly for circumvention

Open popup
X

Welcome back!

CDT is a non-profit media site, and we need your support. Your contribution will help us provide more translations, breaking news, and other content you love.