Propaganda chief Liu Yunshan offers a sobering glimpse of media policy for China’s Olympic year
By David Bandurski – It’s been more than three months now since the 17th National Congress, and still we’re waiting with bated breath for news of China’s all-important national meeting of propaganda ministers (宣传部长会议), which should signal any changes in media policy at the top. So far, nothing — a great big, substantial NOTHING.
This is very unlike what we saw five years ago, when 2003 dawned with a whole constellation of media terms dragged along by “The Three Closenesses.”
Today, however, we have news of the first important speech by politburo member and propaganda chief Liu Yunshan (刘云山) since the close of the congress last October. The gist, obscured by a fog of anti-pornography rhetoric, is an intensified push against political content.
[ABOVE: Screenshot of a release on the January 17 conference call and Liu Yunshan's speech at the Shanghai Municipal Government website].
In a national conference call with local leaders of China’s “sweep pornography and strike illegal publications” campaign, or sao huang da fei (扫黄打非), Liu Yunshan urged an intensification of last year’s efforts to “struggle” (斗争) against unfavorable publications. Topping the list were “illegal publications of a political nature” (政治性非法出版物), which would presumably include the likes of journalist Zhai Minglei‘s Minjian magazine [more from CMP here].
The release on the Liu Yunshan-led conference posted on Shanghai’s official government website said:
In 2007, deployed in concert by central and city leadership, various Shanghai districts and counties carried out a struggle to “sweep pornography and strike illegal publications,” organizing a series of targeted clean-up campaigns and achieving clear results in dealing with (查堵) illegal publications of a political nature (政治性非法出版物), indecent or pornographic publications, etc., and pirated or copyright violating publications.
The emphasis on “illegal publications of a political nature” suggests leaders intend to leverage law enforcement in 2008 to target print and online content deemed “unfavorable.”
“We must continue and deepen the struggle against pornographic and illegal publications in order to promote a rapidly developing and booming socialist culture, and create a favorable thought and public opinion climate and cultural environment,” the release said.
The very phrase employed for the official campaign — “sweep pornography, strike illegal publications” (扫黄打非) — speaks volumes about the willful conflation by Chinese authorities of the anti-pornography crusade and political censorship generally.
In an unaccountable exception, no release was apparently made available from the official Xinhua News Agency.
[Posted January 18, 2008, 12:52pm HK]
ADDITIONAL SOURCES:
“30 Key 2007 Cases in the National ‘Sweep Pornography, Strike Illegal Publications’ Campaign“, Chinacourt.org, January 18, 2008
China’s official “sweep pornography, strike illegal publications” Website
Following the Liu Yunshan tele-conference, the City of Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, touts its own “sweep pornography” record, January 18, 2008
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I have to go with Jeremy on this – similar announcements have been made by similarly situated officials at similar times for years – see http://www.cecc.gov/pages/virtualAcad/index.phpd?showsingle=10878:
“Shi Zongyuan, Director of the General Administration of Press and Publication, Director of the National Copyright Office, and Deputy Chief of National “Sweep Away Pornography” and “Strike Down Illegal Publications” Task Force also spoke at the meeting. Throughout 2005 the work of “Sweeping Away Pornography” and “Striking Down Illegal Publications” will most heavily emphasize stopping, investigating, and confiscating illegal political publications. ”
Its sobering, but no more so than it was three years ago.
Jeremy:
Yes, you’re very right that much of the language here is familiar and “boilerplate.” We’re not suggesting a change in policy direction. In that sense, of course, this is “business as usual” (in the broader perspective of controls, in fact, it’s been business as usual since the mandate of “guidance” was inaugurated in 1989).
What is interesting, though, and we think uncharacteristic, about this particular announcement from Liu Yunshan is that it should come ahead of the national meeting of propaganda ministers (宣传部长会议) and be his first message post-17th. It could be nothing, but it’s worth keeping a careful eye on.
Thanks as always for your valuable input and feedback.
David
This all seems pretty boilerplate to me: if you Google the terms 政治性非法出版物 and 扫黄打非, you get hundreds and hundreds of People’s Daily and Xinhua stories dating back at least to 2002. If I read anything out of Liu’s speech, it’s :”business as usual”.