Huang Chung-jung
Want China Times
January 10, 2015
China’s president Xi Jinping gives a speech at the opening of the first ministerial meeting of the China-CELAC forum in Beijing, Jan. 8. (Photo/CNS)
Chinese president Xi Jinping has highlighted the importance of the role of the authorities as leaders in the virtual world, given the country’s nearly 600 million online population, according to cpcnews.com –the Communist Party of China’s (CPC’s) news portal.
In an article published on Jan. 8, cpcnews.com recapped Xi’s series of remarks in the past to examine the Chinese leader’s views on the qualities required from people working in the news business today.
Propaganda works are “extremely important” to the CPC, the article reported, citing Xi’s address during a national conference in August 2013.
The Chinese president, who also serves as the general secretary of the CPC, said during the conference that propaganda officials should not only strive to be kept abreast of the trends but also aim to understand the bigger picture to plan strategies and provide proper responses.
He told propaganda officials that they need to focus on the fact that China has an online population of nearly 600 million, including many younger users who read news stories from online sources, instead of the mainstream media.
The CPC news portal also cited an article written by Xi that urged people working in the news media to change their way of thinking and to pay attention to voices from all segments of society, when he was the CPC chief in Ningde City, Fujian province, in 1989.
The CPC news portal further highlighted Xi’s use of the common man’s language, including popular terms used in the online community, and simple expressions in all his public addresses after he took power in late 2012.
This approach makes it easier for Xi to convey his ideas to the public and should be adopted by people working in the news business, the CPC news portal noted.
