Since the 18th National Congress of the CCP, General Secretary Xi Jinping has given a series of important speeches on the Party’s news, public opinion, and publicity work at a national meeting on publicity thought work, a symposium on the Party’s news and public opinion work, a symposium on Internet security and informatisation, a symposium on work in philosophy and social science, and a national symposium on thought and political work in high schools. He has put forward a series of new thoughts, opinions, and judgements, creating a broad and profound scientific and systematic news thought model which can creatively enrich and develop the treasure-house of Marxist news and public opinion. This is an important component of contemporary Chinese Marxism pointing to the area of publicity thought culture, especially advancing the frontline of news and public opinion in possession of many new historically particular great struggles and strong weapons of thought, and embodying the systematicity, innovation, and timeliness of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s News Thought.
Systematically Expound the News and Public Opinion Work of the CCP
Regarding the orientation of the Party’s news and public opinion work, Xi Jinping has pointed out that economic construction is the central work of the Party, and ideological work is extremely important. He emphasised completion of the Party’s news and public opinion work as a rallying policy to implement and fulfil the Party’s theoretical and guiding principles, relating to smoothly advancing the various works of the Party and the nation, concerning the coalescent centripetal force of every nationality in the country, and regarding the fate of the Party and future of the country. Xi Jinping will link the Party’s news and public opinion work to the future of the Party and nation, will bring this work from the capacity of mouthpiece, eyes, and ears to the height of thought to ‘govern the nation according to principle and bring peace and stability to the country’, and with a vast field of vision complete the news and public opinion work of the Party under new circumstances, brightly advancing a direction for fundamental adherence. Xi Jinping pointed out that we must proceed from the overall work of the Party to grasp the Party’s news and public opinion work, valuing working to a high degree of thought and precision strength. This requirement makes explicit the fact that news and public opinion work must be serve the work of the centre and find a correct position, embodying the Party’s will, reflecting the Party’s position, and fulfilling the responsibility and mission of ‘focusing on the centre and serving the interests of the nation’.
Regarding the core essence and fundamental requirements of the Party’s news and public opinion work, the principle of Party spirit is a red line running through the Marxist view of journalism, and is also the core element of Xi Jinping’s News Thought. Xi Jinping points out that the Party’s news and public opinion work insists on the principle of Party spirit, that Party and state-sponsored media are the publicity organs of the Party and government, and that they exist in the name of the Party. We must strengthen alignment with Party consciousness, and through thought and political action continue to support this to a high degree together with the Party centre. We must adhere to the unity of the Party spirit and the people, and turn the Party's theory and guiding principles into the conscious action of the masses. Public opinion and positive publicity are unified. News media must face existing problems in their work, face ugly social phenomena, eliminate vice and extol virtue, and address the current situation, and at the same time present critical reports which are accurate, analytic, and objective.
As for the fundamental purpose and guarantee of the Party’s news and public opinion work, serving the people wholeheartedly is the purpose of the Party. The Party has no special interests beyond the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of the people. The Party’s work is to adhere to the principle of putting the people at the centre of its work, and this is the basic principle of the Party’s news and public opinion work, as well as its starting point and foothold. The Party’s news and public opinion work should unceasingly address the basic questions of ‘for whom we exist, upon whom we depend, and who we are’. This realises, maintains, and develops the fundamental interests of the vast majority of the people, respecting the important status of the people, and creating a collective path for the people. Promoting the development and integration of the media relating to ideological work on the right to take initiative and the right to speak is to grasp the right to lead public opinion. Xi Jinping has emphasised the development of new media and integration with traditional media, as well as the need to follow rules of broadcasting and new media development, strengthen thought regarding the Internet, and ensuring the complementarity of traditional and new media, to support the advance of technology and creation of content. We must grasp integration in one hand and management in the other to ensure the correct direction for development.
As for the Party’s public opinion work ideas and methods, in the information age, the new form of networked public opinion means our work ideas and methods continue to change, requiring us to attach importance to news and publicity, but also to pay attention to news media. Emerging media should respect the laws regarding news dissemination and training and improve understanding of the law, and act according to objective laws. We must build a good network ecology and use the network to guide public opinion, reflecting the role of public opinion so that the Internet works for the benefit of the people. We must establish a correct view of network security and correct handling of the relationship between security and development as soon as possible. We must enhance China's soft power, tell China’s story well, promote publicity, and enhance our international voice. We must optimize the strategic layout, creating a strong international influence of our flagship media, to eliminate the international spread of the media "deficit".
An Innovative Model of News Thought
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the mission of the Party's public opinion work is to hold high a leading banner, focus on the centre, serve the overall situation, unite the people, clarify errors, distinguish between right and wrong, and communicate to the world. The 48 words of the new historical conditions of China's news and communication work under the political and social functions of six aspects is a refined scientific summary. Among them, in addition to continuing great importance of guiding public opinion, Xi Jinping also emphasised cohesion, connecting the Chinese and the foreign, communication, and other global duties and missions, in a highly innovative discussion.
Since the beginning of Reform and Opening Up, news and public opinion work has been exploring paths and methods of business reform and institutional reform. At the symposium on party news and public opinion, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed innovation in terms of concepts, content, genre, form, method, means, format, system, and mechanism. These nine aspects include all aspects of today's news reform. Xi Jinping’s series of important speeches on news and public opinion work were not only profound and easy to understand, but themselves also expressed innovation, including the "China Dream", "telling China’s story well, spreading the voice of China", and "creating a clear Internet space".
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the Party’s news and public opinion work requires in-depth development of Marxist journalism education on a strong foundation, taking the initiative to deal with the times, and the development of the situation of public opinion in the wake of new challenges. In his important series of speeches, Xi Jinping emphasised the responsibility to focus on young people, focus on the future, and focus on institutions of higher learning in media communication training. These requirements will promote institutions of higher learning to create a politically firm style, with the Party and the people together forming a relaxed news and public opinion work team.
The Development of a Marxist News Outlook
Under the new historical conditions, General Secretary Xi Jinping scientifically expounded the question of the importance of the work of public opinion in the Party, the question of duty, the question of Party spirit, the positive dialectical relationship between positive publicity and public opinion, the public opinion orientation of journalism, the integration of traditional media and emerging media, the professional quality of journalists, the problem of the construction of the international discourse rights of Chinese media, and the media literacy of leading cadres at all levels, forming a complete theoretical system.
In light of the rapid development of the Internet in China and the world, General Secretary Xi Jinping put forward the issue of the integration and development of traditional media and emerging media, very much in line with the needs of the times. In the face of the future development of digitalization, mobile-ization and socialization of news communication, Xi Jinping stressed that the Party's news and public opinion work must be adapted in the face of the use of mobile Internet for work, entertainment, education, and people’s expression of their own views This trend allows the Internet to better benefit the country and the people.
Xi Jinping’s News Thought expounds a vivid interpretation of the New Development Concept. "Innovation" will develop China’s news media into a strong driving force. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed the need to implement the network power strategy, "Internet +" action plan, and big data strategy. The "Coordination" concept highlights comprehensive balance. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that only if the state’s material strength and spiritual strength are enhanced, can the cause of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics smoothly move forward. "Green" is a necessary condition for sustainable development and an important manifestation of the people's pursuit of a better life. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed strengthening network ethics and network civilization construction, and playing a guiding role in moral education, will bring excellent results for human civilization by nourishing the Internet sphere and repairing network ecology. On the concept "open", General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed strengthening international communication capacity, enhancing China’s international voice, and focusing on the Chinese story, while optimizing the strategic layout and focusing on building a strong international influence for China’s flagship media. The "sharing" concept embodies the people-centred development of thought. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that cyberspace is the common spiritual home of hundreds of millions of people, advocating the construction of a common cyberspace destiny.
To achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, is a great ongoing cause. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that the online and offline worlds should be as one, together preventing social dangers, and jointly building a positive situation. This requires the mobilization of the people of all China’s nationalities under the leadership of the Party to comprehensively mobilise enthusiasm and cooperation to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Only by taking into account the wishes of all parties, seeking public opinion, cohesion and consensus, and seizing the initiative of public opinion can this be achieved.
