The following censorship instructions, issued to the media by central government authorities, have been leaked and distributed online.
Lawyer Li Zhuang cried foul on heavenly price the courts charged him for photocopies.
Central Propaganda Department: The Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed railway opens on December 26. Related reports must give this positive publicity. Do not produce negative reports or commentary. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：京广高铁于26日开通，相关报道要坚持正面宣传，不作负面报道评论。
Chinese journalists and bloggers often refer to those instructions as “Directives from the Ministry of Truth.” CDT has collected the selections we translate here from a variety of sources and has checked them against official Chinese media reports to confirm their implementation.
Central Propaganda Department: With regards to additives in children’s food products, unify reporting in accordance with the information issued by authoritative bureaus. Do not follow your whim and quote rumors or news from other sources. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：对涉儿童食品添加剂的报道要严格控制，按权威部门发布内容统一报道，不随意转引其他来源的谣言和信息。
Central Propaganda Department: No media are to republish, report, or comment on the contents of a report on eight provincial Party secretaries who have been eliminated over the past four years. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：对有关近四年落马的八名省级党委政府秘书长的报道内容，各媒体不转载不报道不评论。
Caixin published this report on these eight former provincial Party secretaries and vice-secretaries, including a chart listing their criminal convictions and sentences [zh], on December 21. The chart names Wu Zhiming of Jiangxi Province, Peng Yong of Hubei, Bai Zhiming of Inner Mongolia, Xie Pengfei of Guangdong, and Zhang Zezhong of Shandong, all former vice-secretaries; and Zhang Wanqing of Shandong, Chen Shaoyong of Fujian, and Feng Shunqiao of Zhejiang, all former secretary-generals.
Central Propaganda Department: The media are not to republish or comment on reports by certain media outlets on the recent sale of houses at reduced prices by employees of government agencies in Guangdong and Jiangsu provinces. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：对个别媒体关于广东、江苏多地近日出现政府机构人员放盘卖房现象的报道，各媒体不转载不评论。
Central Propaganda Department: Firmly control the type and degree of reporting about Christmas. Do not make it too prominent in your layout plans. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：对圣诞节报道要把好关把好度，版面安排不要过于突出。
Guangdong Propaganda Department: Use wire copy provided by the Railway Ministry as the standard when reporting on the adjustment of ticket prices on the Guangzhou-Zhuhai Intercity Railway and related issues. Strengthen positive guidance. Do not produce reports or commentary of a questioning nature. (December 25, 2012)
广东省委宣传部：对广珠城际铁路票价调整及相关问题的报道，以铁路部门提供的通稿为准，加强正面引导，不作质疑性的报道评论。
Central Propaganda Department: When covering the kindergarten bus accident in Guixi, Jiangxi, follow Xinhua wire copy and downplay the story. Do not put the news on the front page or lure readers to it. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：对江西贵溪一幼儿园校车侧翻事故的报道，按新华社通稿刊播并淡化处理，不上头版和导读。
Central Propaganda Department: Use statements issued by Xinhua and authoritative bodies as the standard for information related to individuals and their families at the vice-provincial level and above. Do not directly quote from Internet sources or other media. (December 25, 2012)
中宣部：对涉及副省级以上干部个人、家庭相关信息要以新华社和权威部门发布的为准，不直接转引互联网和其他媒体的信息。
Guangdong Propaganda Department: Cease reporting and commenting on Internet rumors that the Huizhou procuratorate and courts charge exorbitant prices for printing, and related issues. (December 25, 2012)
广东省委宣传部：对网传所谓惠州检、法两院收取天价复印费及相关问题，不再报道评论。
On December 24, lawyer Li Zhuang wrote on Weibo [zh] that the Huizhou procuratorate and court charged him a total of 292,400 RMB (US$46,897) for copies he had made of his clients’ dossiers for a case involving 34 defendants. “In the whole nation, how many lawyers gouged like this?” he lamented. The story appeared in state-run media by December 26.
Since directives are sometimes communicated orally to journalists and editors, who then leak them online, the wording published here may not be exact. The original publication date on CDT Chinese is noted after the directives; the date given may indicate when the directive was leaked, rather than when it was issued. CDT does its utmost to verify dates and wording, but also takes precautions to protect the source.
