Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party

{{Short description|Internal party body}} {{redirect|Central Propaganda Department|the Vietnamese department|Commission for Information and Education}} {{Infobox government agency | agency_name = Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party | nativename_a = {{lang|zh-Hans-CN|中国共产党中央委员会宣传部}} | nativename_r = Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Xuānchuánbù | seal = | seal_width = | seal_caption = | logo = Danghui.svg | logo_width = 150px | logo_caption = Emblem of the Chinese Communist Party | image = Headquarters of CCP Publicity Department.jpg | image_caption = Headquarters of the Publicity Department | formed = {{start date and age|1924|05}} | preceding1 = | preceding2 = | dissolved = | superseding = | jurisdiction = Chinese Communist Party | headquarters = 5 Chang'an Avenue, Xicheng District, Beijing | employees = | coordinates = {{coord|39|55|26|N|116|23|55|E|source:kolossus-zhwiki|display=inline,title}} | budget = | minister1_name = Li Shulei | minister1_pfo = Head | deputyminister1_name = Hu Heping | deputyminister1_pfo = Executive Deputy Head | deputyminister2_name = Shen Haixiong* | deputyminister2_pfo = Deputy Head | deputyminister3_name = Zhuang Rongwen* | deputyminister3_pfo = Deputy Head | deputyminister4_name = Sun Yeli* | deputyminister4_pfo = Deputy Head | deputyminister5_name = Cao Shumin* | deputyminister5_pfo = Deputy Head | deputyminister6_name = Wang Gang | deputyminister6_pfo = Deputy Head | deputyminister7_name = Hong Dayong | deputyminister7_pfo = Deputy Head | parent_department = | parent_agency = Party Central Committee | child1_agency = National Radio and Television Administration | child2_agency = China International Communications Group | child3_agency = National Office Against Pornography and Illegal Publications | website = {{Official URL}} | footnotes = ''<nowiki>*</nowiki>Maintains full minister-level rank'' | agency_type = Department directly reporting to the Central Committee<br>Ministerial level agency }} {{Infobox Chinese | title = CCP Central Publicity Department<br />(common abbreviation) | s = 中共中央宣传部 | t = 中共中央宣傳部 | p = Zhōnggòng Zhōngyāng Xuānchuánbù | order = st | altname = Abbreviated as | s2 = 中央宣传部 | t2 = 中央宣傳部 | p2 = Zhōngyāng Xuānchuánbù | altname3 = Further abbreviated as | c3 = 中宣部 | p3 = Zhōngxuānbù }} {{Politics of China |expanded = Publicity }}

The '''Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party''', also known as the '''Propaganda Department''' or '''Central Propaganda Department''', is an internal division of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in charge of spreading official ideology and propaganda as well as media guidance and censorship.

The department was established by the CCP in May 1924, modeled on its counterpart in the Soviet Union. In 1941, the department was put in charge of leading and reviewing newspapers and magazines. It became responsible for implementing CCP policies in literary and artistic work and news work in 1943. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the department assumed a greater role in activities related to mass organizations, including trade unions, artists' associations, and party branches. The department was abolished shortly after the Cultural Revolution, with its powers transferred to the Cultural Revolution Group. In October 1977, after the end of the Cultural Revolution, the department was re-established. In 2018, the department's powers were expanded, with the newly created National Radio and Television Administration placed under its control as part of a series of institutional reforms.

The department exercises direct leadership over the media control system. It is one of the main entities that enforces media censorship and control in the People's Republic of China. The department also engages in propaganda for both domestic and foreign audiences to increase support for the CCP, and is responsible for researching, devising, and disseminating the ideology of the CCP. Additionally, the department monitors and researches public opinion about public support for CCP policies. Its inner operations are highly secretive.

== History == {{Unreliable sources|date=November 2025|section}}{{Copy edit|date=November 2025|section}}[[File:汉口中共中央宣传部旧址.jpg|thumb|Former site in Hankou]]Following the 1st Party National Congress in 1921, the CCP Central Committee decided to establish the Central Propaganda Department of the CCP.<ref>{{Cite web |title=中國共產黨第一個綱領 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66627/66627/4489306.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190425003607/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66627/66627/4489306.html |archive-date=2019-04-25 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh|trans-title=The First Program of the Chinese Communist Party|date=July 1921}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中国共产党中央局通告—关于建立与发展党、团、工会组织及宣传工作等 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64162/64168/64553/4427950.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200710193830/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64162/64168/64553/4427950.html |archive-date=2020-07-10 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh|trans-title=Announcement of the Central Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party — On the establishment and development of Party, Youth League, and trade union organizations and propaganda work, etc.|date=November 1921}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=新闻宣传异同论 |url=http://media.people.com.cn/GB/22100/41466/41467/3027940.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413070844/http://media.people.com.cn/GB/22100/41466/41467/3027940.html |archive-date=2020-04-13 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh|trans-title=Differences and similarities in news propaganda}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable (WP:NOTRS).|date=November 2025}} The department was founded in May 1924. At its establishment, the department was structured using its counterpart in the Soviet Union as a model.<ref name=":Laikwan">{{Cite book |last=Laikwan |first=Pang |title=One and All: The Logic of Chinese Sovereignty |date=2024 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=9781503638815 |location=Stanford, CA |doi=10.1515/9781503638822}}</ref>{{Rp|page=136}} The ''Resolution on Propaganda Work'' of the 4th Party National Congress in 1925 stipulated that "to make propaganda work perfect and systematic, the Central Committee should have a strong propaganda department to be responsible for all matters and to guide the local propaganda departments to have a close and systematic relationship with it."<ref>{{Cite web |title=《党内组织及宣传教育问题议决案》 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66627/66627/4489257.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410181940/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66627/66627/4489257.html |archive-date=2019-04-10 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh|trans-title=Resolution on Issues Related to Party Organization and Propaganda Education}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=對於宣傳工作之議決案 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/BIG5/64162/64168/64556/4428265.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200710192901/http://cpc.people.com.cn/BIG5/64162/64168/64556/4428265.html |archive-date=2020-07-10 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh|trans-title=Resolution on Publicity Work}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable (WP:NOTRS).|date=November 2025}}

In October 1928, the CCP Central Committee required provincial committees, the county and district committees to set up local propaganda departments and that the party branches have propaganda officers to be responsible for propaganda work.<ref>{{Cite web |title=中央通告第四号——关于宣传鼓动工作 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66631/4489524.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502203358/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66631/4489524.html |archive-date=2019-05-02 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中国共产党民主革命时期宣传工作思想述论 |url=http://www.ccps.gov.cn/cadre_education/lsyj/201207/t20120727_21631.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923201206/http://www.ccps.gov.cn/cadre_education/lsyj/201207/t20120727_21631.html |archive-date=2015-09-23 |access-date=2012-10-14 |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中央特别通告——关于组织兵士暴动问题 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66636/4489681.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502135544/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66636/4489681.html |archive-date=2019-05-02 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中央通告第六十号——执行武装保护苏联的实际策略 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66634/4489591.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502171632/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66634/4489591.html |archive-date=2019-05-02 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=People's Daily |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中国共产党第三次修正章程决案第十九条 |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2003-01/19/content_696147.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523194405/http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2003-01/19/content_696147.htm |archive-date=2013-05-23 |accessdate=2012-11-08 |website=Xinhua News Agency |language=zh}}</ref>{{Excessive citations inline|date=November 2025}} In 1938, Mao Zedong stated that the department's focus should be publishing textbooks for soldiers and instructional material for cadres.<ref name=":RedInk">{{Cite book |last=Li |first=Ying |title=Red Ink: A History of Printing and Politics in China |publisher=Royal Collins Press |year=2024 |isbn=9781487812737}}</ref>{{Rp|page=134}} During World War II, the department was assigned leadership and censorship tasks in the areas of theory, opinion, education, and culture as part of the war effort.<ref name=":Laikwan" />{{Rp|page=136}}

On 25 May 1941, the Central Committee's ''Instructions on Unifying External Propaganda in Various Base Areas'' stipulated that "all external propaganda leadership should be unified under the Propaganda Department"<ref>{{Cite web |title=《中央關於統一各根據地內對外宣傳的指示》 |url=http://guoqing.china.com.cn/2012-08/31/content_26745852.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130222183331/http://guoqing.china.com.cn/2012-08/31/content_26745852.htm |archive-date=2013-02-22 |accessdate=2019-08-22 |website=China Internet Information Center}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=对于组织问题之议决案 |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2003-01/19/content_696080.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313201702/http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2003-01/19/content_696080.htm |archive-date=2013-03-13 |accessdate=2012-11-08 |website=Xinhua News Agency}}</ref> and mandated that the Propaganda Department lead and review newspapers and magazines.<ref>{{Cite web |title=《中央宣传部关于各抗日根据地报纸杂志的指示》 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66644/4490542.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502141128/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66644/4490542.html |archive-date=2019-05-02 |accessdate=2012-09-07 |website=People's Daily |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=党的组织问题议决案 |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2004-11/25/content_2259212.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080826230032/http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2004-11/25/content_2259212.htm |archive-date=2008-08-26 |accessdate=2012-11-08 |website=Xinhua News Agency |language=zh|trans-title=Party organizational issues resolution}}</ref> On 20 June 1941, the ''Outline of the Central Propaganda Department on the Party's Propaganda and Mobilization Work'' stated that "all theories, propositions, education, culture, literature and art, etc., belong to the scope of propaganda and mobilization activities" and "printing, radio and film are powerful tools for propaganda and mobilization." After 1943, the Central Propaganda Department was responsible for implementing the Party's policies in literary and artistic work and news work.<ref>{{Cite web |title=中央宣传部关于执行党的文艺政策的决定 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66645/4490704.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190216212148/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64184/64186/66645/4490704.html |archive-date=2019-02-16 |accessdate=2012-09-07 |website=People's Daily |language=zh|date=November 7, 1943|trans-title=Decision of the Central Propaganda Department on the implementation of the Party's policies on literature and art}}</ref> In 1946, the Central Propaganda Department put forward requirements for positive propaganda in the ''Notice on the Propaganda Policy of Broadcasting and Newspapers''.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |title=关于中央人民政府成立后党的文化教育工作问题的指示 |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2004-12/15/content_2336734.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080827023046/http://news.xinhuanet.com/ziliao/2004-12/15/content_2336734.htm |archive-date=2008-08-27 |accessdate=2012-10-14 |website=Xinhua News Agency |language=zh|trans-title=Instructions Regarding the Party's Cultural and Educational Work Issues After the Establishment of the Central People's Government}}</ref>

=== After 1949 === Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Central Propaganda Department managed cultural and educational work. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the department took on a greater role in activities related to mass organizations, such as trade unions, artists' associations, and party branches.<ref name=":Laikwan" />{{Rp|page=136}} It became an important mechanism for mass line politics.<ref name=":Laikwan" />{{Rp|page=136}} Under the leadership of the Central Propaganda Department, it organized the Central Broadcasting Administration, the Central Publishing Committee, the Central Film Administration and other institutions. In December 1949, the Central Propaganda Department issued an instruction that party newspapers at all levels should not publicly promote themselves as official newspapers of the CCP, nor should they say that they are official newspapers of the government; they should say that they are newspapers of a certain place.<ref name=":8" />

In the autumn of 1962, the Central Propaganda Department began abolishing the Party Committee system in literary and artistic units. Xu Guangxiao implemented this system in the Ministry of Culture. Many units abolished the Party Committee system. In 1962, Yao Wenyuan's article criticizing "Hai Rui Dismissed from Office" was resisted by the Beijing Municipal Party Committee, headed by Peng Zhen, and the Central Propaganda Department, headed by Lu Dingyi. In 1966, Mao Zedong pointed out that the Central Propaganda Department was "the palace of the King of Hell" and that "the King of Hell should be overthrown and the little devils should be liberated." He criticized Peng Zhen, the Central Propaganda Department, and the Beijing Municipal Committee for protecting bad people, suppressing leftists, and not allowing revolution. He also said that if bad people were to be protected again, the Central Propaganda Department, the Beijing Municipal Committee, and the "Five-Person Group" would be dissolved.<ref>{{Cite web |title=点燃"文化大革命"的三把火 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/69112/70190/70194/5206586.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514064037/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/69112/70190/70194/5206586.html |archive-date=2011-05-14 |accessdate=2012-10-09 |website=People's Daily |language=zh}}</ref>

Shortly after the Cultural Revolution, the Central Propaganda Department was abolished. According to the May 16 Notice of the Central Committee in May 1966, the Cultural Revolution Group concurrently held its powers. The appendix to the May 16 Notice stated: "The Central Propaganda Department is the palace of the King of Hell", "the King of Hell should be overthrown and the little devils should be liberated", and "the Central Propaganda Department should be dissolved". Lu Dingyi was labeled a "counter-revolutionary." Nine deputy ministers of the Propaganda Department were labeled "traitors," "spies," and "Kuomintang members," respectively. The minister, deputy ministers, and secretary-general of the Propaganda Department were the first to be implicated, referred to as the "Kings of Hell." An enlarged meeting of the Politburo made a "Decision on the Suspension and Removal of Comrades Peng Zhen, Lu Dingyi, Luo Ruiqing, and Yang Shangkun from Their Posts," and issued an "Explanation on the Errors of Comrades Lu Dingyi and Yang Shangkun". Tao Zhu was transferred to serve as Executive Secretary of the Secretariat, concurrently serving as Minister of the Propaganda Department. Deputy Ministers Xu Liqun, Yao Zhen, and Lin Mohan, and Secretary-General Tong Dalin were suspended from their duties for self-reflection.<ref>1967年5月18日人民日报《伟大的历史文件》："我们伟大领袖毛主席正是总结了国际无产阶级专政的历史经验，发动亿万群众，进行这场史无前例的无产阶级文化大革命，这是使我们党和国家永不变色的最可靠的保证。这是毛泽东同志在理论上和实践上对国际无产阶级的最大的贡献。在这个文件中，宣布撤销原来由彭真反革命修正主义集团包办的"文化革命五人小组"，重新设立中央文化革命小组，隶属于中央政治局常委之下。这是进行无产阶级文化大革命的一个重要措施。"</ref>

On June 23, the Cultural Revolution Group of the Propaganda Department, headed by Tao Zhu, was established. In 1967, the department established the Office for the Translation of Chairman Mao's works.<ref name=":232">{{Cite book |last=Xu |first=Lanjun |title=Mao's Little Red Book: A Global History |date=2013 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-05722-7 |editor-last=Cook |editor-first=Alexander C. |location=Cambridge |pages= |chapter=Translation and Internationalism |doi=10.1017/CBO9781107298576}}</ref>{{Rp|page=86}} At a meeting of all staff members of the Propaganda Department, Tao Zhu announced the "Decision of the Central Committee on Reorganizing the Leadership of the Propaganda Department," and announced the abolition of the original departments and offices, replacing them with four departments and one office: the Department of Mao Zedong Thought Propaganda, the Department of Party Member and Cadre Education, the Department of Cadre Management, the Secretariat, and the Investigation and Research Office. On July 27, 1968, the Central Committee decided to impose military control over the former Central Propaganda Department. It appointed Li Xiao as head of the military control group and Wang Shaoping as deputy head. After the Central Propaganda Department was first smashed as a "palace of the King of Hell", propaganda, publishing and cultural departments at all levels of the Party and government were also "smashed" and then "militarily controlled".<ref>《中国共产党组织史资料: "文化大革命"时期》，第六卷，中共党史出版社，2000</ref>

In October 1977, the 11th CCP National Congress approved the "Report on the Establishment of the Central Propaganda Department", reorganized the department, restoring its original functions and powers, and appointed Zhang Pinghua as its head.<ref>{{Cite web |title=中宣部宣教局网上系列座谈会盘点 |url=http://www.people.com.cn/GB/32306/32313/32330/3982251.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070816031351/http://www.people.com.cn/GB/32306/32313/32330/3982251.html |archive-date=2007-08-16 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |website=People's Daily |language=zh}}</ref> The directive on the re-establishment of the Central Propaganda Department reveals the structure and organization of the "extremely secretive" body, according to Anne-Marie Brady.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Brady |first=Anne-Marie |author-link=Anne-Marie Brady |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uj-1sxeO99kC |title=Marketing Dictatorship: Propaganda and Thought Work in Contemporary China |date=2008 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-7425-4057-6 |pages=13, 20 |language=en |oclc=968245349 |access-date=2020-05-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230308184443/https://books.google.com/books?id=uj-1sxeO99kC |archive-date=2023-03-08 |url-status=live}}</ref> The directive states that the department will be set up with one Director and several deputies, and the organizational structure will be set up with one office and five bureaus. The office is responsible for political, secretarial, and administrative work, and the five bureaus are: the Bureau of Theory, the Bureau of Propaganda and Education, the Bureau of Arts and Culture, the Bureau of News, and the Bureau of Publishing. The directive states that the staff will be fixed at around 200 personnel, selected from propaganda personnel across the country in consultation with the Central Organization Department.<ref name=":0" />

New departments and offices were established in 2004 to address the growing demands of information control.<ref name=":0" /> The Bureau of Public Opinion is in charge of commissioning public opinion surveys and other relevant research.<ref name=":0" /> The department organized networks of cultural workers' associations, which were headed by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles.<ref name=":Laikwan" />{{Rp|page=136}} The state incorporated existing cultural enterprises into the state apparatus, which provided stable income and working environments for artists.<ref name=":Laikwan" />{{Rp|page=136}} In 2018, the newly created National Radio and Television Administration was put under its control as part of the deepening the reform of the Party and state institutions.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Buckley |first=Chris |date=2018-03-21 |title=China Gives Communist Party More Control Over Policy and Media |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/21/world/asia/china-communist-party-xi-jinping.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112211222/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/21/world/asia/china-communist-party-xi-jinping.html |archive-date=2021-11-12 |access-date=2021-11-12 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=3 March 2018|title=China's Central Propaganda Department Takes Over Regulation of All Media|work=Radio Free Asia|url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-propaganda-03212018140841.html|access-date=November 12, 2021|archive-date=12 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112222456/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-propaganda-03212018140841.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Name== The CCPPD has several Chinese names, each with different English translations. Officially, it is the ''Zhōngguó Gòngchăndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Xuānchuánbù'' "Chinese Communist Party Central Committee Publicity Department" or ''Zhōnggòng Zhōngyāng Xuānchuánbù'' "Chinese Communist Party Central Publicity Department" or "Central Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China", colloquially abbreviated as the ''Zhōnggòng Xuānchuánbù'' "Chinese Communist Party Publicity Department" or "Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China", or simply ''Zhōng xuānbù'' ({{lang|zh-CN|中宣部}}).<ref name=":4" />

The term ''xuanchuan'' ({{lang|zh-CN|宣传}} "propaganda; publicity") has a neutral connotation. Some ''xuanchuan'' collocations can be translated as "propaganda" (e.g., ''xuānchuánzhàn'' {{lang|zh-CN|宣传战}} "propaganda war"), others as "publicity" (''xuānchuán méijiè'' {{lang|zh-CN|宣传媒介}} "mass media; means of publicity"), and still others are ambiguous (''xuānchuányuán'' {{lang|zh-CN|宣传员}} "propagandist; publicist").<ref>Translations from John DeFrancis, ed. (2003), ''ABC Chinese–English Dictionary'', University of Hawaii Press, p. 1087.</ref>

The ''Zhōnggòng Zhōngyāng Xuānchuán Bù'' changed its official English name from "Propaganda Department of the Communist Party of China" to "Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China".<ref name="Edney">{{Cite book|last=Edney|first=Kingsley|title=The Globalization of Chinese Propaganda|date=2014|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan US|isbn=978-1-349-47990-0|location=New York|pages=22, 195|language=en|doi=10.1057/9781137382153|quote=In recent years however the Party State has recognised the negative connotations of the word "propaganda" in English and now official English translations refer to the "Publicity Department" (although xuanchuan continues to the used in Chinese).}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last=Shambaugh|first=David|author-link=David Shambaugh|date=January 2007|title=China's Propaganda System: Institutions, Processes and Efficacy|journal=The China Journal|language=en|volume=57|issue=57|pages=25–58|doi=10.1086/tcj.57.20066240|issn=1324-9347|jstor=20066240|s2cid=222814073}}</ref> As China's involvement in world affairs grew in the 1990s, the CCP became sensitive to the negative connotations of the English translation ''propaganda'' for ''xuanchuan''.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Mackinnon|first=Stephen R.|date=January 1997|title=Toward a History of the Chinese Press in the Republican Period|journal=Modern China|language=en|volume=23|issue=1|pages=3–32|doi=10.1177/009770049702300101|issn=0097-7004|jstor=189462|s2cid=148316475}}</ref> Official replacement translations include ''publicity'', ''information'', and ''political communication''<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=73}} When Ding Guangen traveled abroad on official visits, he was known as the Minister of Information.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Chen|first1=Jianfu|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_fCdaPw3VugC|title=Implementation of Law in the People's Republic of China|last2=Li|first2=Yuwen|last3=Otto|first3=Jan Michiel|date=2002-05-29|publisher=Martinus Nijhoff Publishers|isbn=978-90-411-1834-9|pages=287|language=en|oclc=49853349|access-date=2020-05-09|archive-date=2023-03-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230308184714/https://books.google.com/books?id=_fCdaPw3VugC|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== External names === Under the "one institution with two names" system, the Central Propaganda Department uses several external names for different purposes (e.g., a public government statement). These names include:

* State Council Information Office (SCIO, absorbed in 2014)<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last1=Lulu |first1=Jichang |last2=Jirouš |first2=Filip |last3=Lee |first3=Rachel |date=2021-01-25 |title=Xi's centralisation of external propaganda: SCIO and the Central Propaganda Department |url=https://sinopsis.cz/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/scio.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=2021-11-20 |website=Sinopsis |language=en-US |archive-date=2021-11-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120213638/https://sinopsis.cz/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/scio.pdf }}</ref> * National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA) * National Copyright Administration (NCA) * China Film Administration (CFA)

==Function== {{Further|Propaganda in China|Censorship in China|Internet censorship in China|Chinese information operations and information warfare}}

The Central Propaganda Department has a "direct leadership" ({{lang-zh|s=领导|p=lingdao}}) role in the media control system, working with other organizations such as the National Radio and Television Administration.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=17}} The Central Propaganda Department's tasks include managing, guiding, and censoring China's newspaper, publishing, radio, television, and film industries to align with the CCP.<ref name="Xu&Albert">{{Cite news |last1=Xu |first1=Beina |last2=Albert |first2=Eleanor |date=17 February 2017 |title=Media Censorship in China |url=https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/media-censorship-china |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726005300/https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/media-censorship-china |archive-date=26 July 2020 |access-date=20 August 2020 |newspaper=Council on Foreign Relations}}</ref> Internet censorship is handled by the Cyberspace Administration of China. The department also engages in propaganda work for both domestic and foreign audiences designed to increase support for the CCP. It is also responsible for researching, devising, and disseminating the ideology of the CCP, CCP theory, and the Core Socialist Values. Additionally, the department monitors and researches public opinion on support for CCP policies, tracks potential political instability, and engages in arts, culture, and foreign cultural exchanges, as well as human rights propaganda.<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |title=Decoding Chinese Politics: Party Center |url=https://asiasociety.org/policy-institute/decoding-chinese-politics?policy=party-center&group=organizations&size=rank&connection=personal |access-date=11 October 2024 |website=Asia Society |date=4 October 2024 |archive-date=11 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250211211905/https://asiasociety.org/policy-institute/decoding-chinese-politics?policy=party-center&group=organizations&size=rank&connection=personal |url-status=live }}</ref>

According to Bill Schiller of the ''Toronto Star'', its scope is to control licensing of media outlets, and to give instructions to the media on what is and what is not to be said, especially about certain issues, such as Taiwan, Tibet, etc., that can affect state security, or the rule of the CCP.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Schiller |first=Bill |date=September 27, 2009 |title=Beijing's 'aim is to make people docile' |work=Toronto Star |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/2009/09/27/beijings_aim_is_to_make_people_docile.html |url-status=live |access-date=May 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190607111408/https://www.thestar.com/news/2009/09/27/beijings_aim_is_to_make_people_docile.html |archive-date=June 7, 2019}}</ref> He says its central offices are located in an unmarked building near the Zhongnanhai at 5 West Chang'an Avenue, although the department has offices throughout the country at the provincial, municipal, and county level.<ref name=":1" /> Schiller says the editors-in-chief of China's major media outlets must attend the department's central office weekly to receive instructions on which stories should be emphasized, downplayed, or not reported at all.<ref name=":1" /> These instructions are not normally known to the public, but are communicated to media workers at the weekly meeting or via secret bulletins.<ref name=":1" /> However, since the rise of social networking tools, Propaganda Department instructions have been leaked to the internet. Examples presented by Schiller include "All websites need to use bright red color to promote a celebratory atmosphere [of the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic]" and "negative reports&nbsp;... not exceed 30 per cent".<ref name=":1" />

Propaganda Department directives are enforced by disciplines within the CCP, as all media in China are required to be loyal to the CCP, and are to serve as propaganda organs for the CCP in principle.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lin |first=Liza |date=2021-10-12 |title=China Targets News Media in Xi Jinping's Campaign to Expand Communist Party Control |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-targets-news-media-in-xi-jinpings-campaign-to-expand-communist-party-control-11634054123 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=2021-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211029033114/https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-targets-news-media-in-xi-jinpings-campaign-to-expand-communist-party-control-11634054123 |archive-date=2021-10-29 |issn=0099-9660}}</ref> Operational and reporting freedom increased in the Chinese media in the early 2000s.<ref name=":3" /> However, open defiance against the Propaganda Department directives is rare, as dissenting media organizations risk severe punishment, including restructuring or closure.<ref name=":3" /> In 2000, a system of warnings was introduced for individual journalists, whereby repeat offenses can lead to dismissal.<ref name=":1" /> One Chinese journalist, Shi Tao, was sentenced to prison after giving Propaganda Department instructions to a pro-democracy website; according to an American organization, the Dui Hua Foundation, the case was related to "illegally providing state secrets to foreign entities".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bradsher |first=Keith |author-link=Keith Bradsher |date=2007-08-15 |title=China cracks down on 'false news' |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/15/business/worldbusiness/15iht-china.4.7129282.html |access-date=2023-12-11 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=2023-12-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231211154448/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/15/business/worldbusiness/15iht-china.4.7129282.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

One important way the Propaganda Department has ensured that the media system remains well controlled is by ensuring that the boundaries of acceptable reporting are kept "deliberately fuzzy" in an effort to ensure that "news workers self-censor to a critical degree."<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last=Hassid|first=Jonathan|date=June 2008|title=Controlling the Chinese Media: An Uncertain Business|journal=Asian Survey|language=en|volume=48|issue=3|pages=414–430|doi=10.1525/as.2008.48.3.414|issn=0004-4687|jstor=10.1525/as.2008.48.3.414}}</ref>

===Credentialing and monitoring media personnel=== The department sets media policies and guidelines, licenses media agencies and internet companies, and registers and trains journalists.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hillman|first=Ben|title=The Communist Party of China: Understanding the Durability of the World's Most Powerful Political Organization|date=2025|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-009-66843-9|editor-last=Hillman|editor-first=Ben|edition=|location=New York|chapter=The Communist Party of China: Understanding Its Durability|editor-last2=Ji|editor-first2=Fengyuan}}</ref>{{Reference page|page=9}}

According to a report from Freedom House, the Central Propaganda Department is the most important institution for monitoring media personnel and controlling the content of print and visual media.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Speak No Evil: Mass Media Control in Contemporary China|url=https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/inline_images/Speak%20No%20Evil-%20Mass%20Media%20Control%20in%20Contemporary%20China.pdf|last=Esarey|first=Ashley|date=February 2006|publisher=Freedom House|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140503045157/http://www.freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/inline_images/Speak%20No%20Evil-%20Mass%20Media%20Control%20in%20Contemporary%20China.pdf|archive-date=May 3, 2014|access-date=May 9, 2020}}</ref>

The report says that the Central Propaganda Department plays a key role in monitoring editors and journalists through a national registration system. It also says that in 2003, the CPD, along with the General Administration of Press and Publication and the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television, required Chinese journalists to attend nearly 50 hours of training on Marxism, the role of CCP leadership in the media, copyright law, libel law, national security law, regulations governing news content, and journalistic ethics before renewing press identification passes in 2003.<ref name=":2" /> The report states that media personnel are required to participate in "ideological training sessions", where they are evaluated for their "loyalty to the party". Further "political indoctrination" courses are said to take place at meetings and training retreats, where participants study party political ideology and the media's role in "thought work" ({{lang|zh-Latn|sīxiǎng gōngzuò}} {{lang|zh-CN|思想工作}}).<ref name=":2" />

{{As of|2009}}, 90 percent of China's newspapers consisted of light stories regarding sport and entertainment, which are rarely regulated.<ref name=":1" />{{Update inline|date=March 2023}}

In 2019, the Media Oversight Office ({{lang|zh-CN|传媒监管局}}) of the Central Propaganda Department announced that training and testing of news professionals nationwide would be handled through the {{lang|zh-Latn|Xuexi Qiangguo}} mobile app.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bandurski |first=David |date=August 29, 2019 |title=News Control, In the Palm of Your Hand |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/2019/08/29/news-control-in-the-palm-of-your-hand/ |url-status=live |access-date=2021-10-29 |website=China Media Project |language=en-US |archive-date=2021-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211029183642/https://chinamediaproject.org/2019/08/29/news-control-in-the-palm-of-your-hand/ }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-09-20 |title=Chinese journalists to be tested on loyalty to Xi Jinping |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/20/chinese-journalists-to-be-tested-on-loyalty-to-xi-jinping |url-status=live |access-date=2021-10-29 |website=The Guardian |language=en |archive-date=2021-11-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211103032829/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/20/chinese-journalists-to-be-tested-on-loyalty-to-xi-jinping |author-last1=Kuo|author-first1=Lily}}</ref>

According to Radio Free Asia, in December 2022, the department issued a directive stating that in order to obtain credentials as a professional journalist, they must pass a national exam and "must support the leadership of the Communist Party of China, conscientiously study, publicize and implement Xi Jinping's thoughts on the new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics, resolutely implement the party's theory, line, principles and policies, and adhere to the correct political direction and public opinion guidance".<ref>{{Cite news |date=12 January 2023 |title=China forces journalists to take exam to demonstrate loyalty, political correctness |work=Radio Free Asia |url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-journalist-exam-01122023163055.html |access-date=12 January 2023 |archive-date=12 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230112214155/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-journalist-exam-01122023163055.html |url-status=live |last1=Hsia|first1=Hsiao-hwa|first2=Jojo|last2=Man|translator-first=Luisetta |translator-last=Mudie|editor-first1=Malcolm|editor-last1=Foster}}</ref>

==Structure== The leadership of the Propaganda Department is selected with guidance from the CCP General Secretary and the Politburo Standing Committee member responsible for the media, while local committees of the Propaganda Department work with lower levels of the party-state hierarchy to transmit content priorities to the media.<ref name=":2" /> The department's inner operations are highly secretive.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brady |first=Anne-Marie |author-link=Anne-Marie Brady |date=2006-02-01 |title=Guiding Hand: The Role of the CCP Central Propaganda Department in the Current Era |journal=Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture |publisher=University of Westminster Press |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=58–77 |doi=10.16997/wpcc.15 |issn=1744-6716 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The department has the following organizations:<ref>{{Cite web |title=中共中央组织结构图 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64162/64163/6418742.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120804161558/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64162/64163/6418742.html |archive-date=2012-08-04 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |website=People's Daily |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=原中宣部副秘书长李伟调任广电总局副局长 |url=http://jx.people.com.cn/GB/190252/12720744.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413071021/http://jx.people.com.cn/GB/190252/12720744.html |archive-date=2020-04-13 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |website=People's Daily |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中宣部宣教局长荆惠民：加快推进雷锋纪念馆提质改造 |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64093/64102/17589930.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235345/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64093/64102/17589930.html |archive-date=2018-10-06 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |website=People's Daily |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-07-18 |title=中宣部有关部门肯定来宾市"文化惠民"成果 |url=http://gx.people.com.cn/n/2012/0718/c339810-17253839.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130101124047/http://gx.people.com.cn/n/2012/0718/c339810-17253839.html |archive-date=2013-01-01 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |website=People's Daily |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中宣部宣教局副局长李晓军 |url=http://www.mof.gov.cn/gongzhongcanyu/zaixianfangtan/ftdbh081201-02-picture01.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304142516/http://www.mof.gov.cn/gongzhongcanyu/zaixianfangtan/ftdbh081201-02-picture01.html |archive-date=2016-03-04 |access-date=2012-08-16 |website=Ministry of Finance (China) |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中宣部宣教局刘树新等到湖南汝城调研红色旅游 |url=http://www.zgdsw.org.cn/n/2012/0720/c218989-18560855.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235023/http://www.zgdsw.org.cn/n/2012/0720/c218989-18560855.html |archive-date=2018-10-06 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |publisher=中国共产党历史网}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=中宣部輿情局副局長孫瑜 |url=http://www.people.com.cn/BIG5/14641/14643/42947/42949/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120082438/http://www.people.com.cn/BIG5/14641/14643/42947/42949/index.html |archive-date=2020-11-20 |accessdate=2012-08-16 |website=People's Daily |publisher= |language=zh}}</ref><ref name="报道0826A">{{cite web |author= |title=财政部办公厅、中宣部文改办关于报送2018年中央文化企业改革发展情况报告的通知（财办文〔2019〕26号）附件2：文化企业名单 |url=http://jkw.mof.gov.cn/zhengcefabu/201907/t20190715_3300215.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200910090031/http://jkw.mof.gov.cn/zhengcefabu/201907/t20190715_3300215.htm |archive-date=2020-09-10 |accessdate=2020-08-26 |website=Ministry of Finance (China) |language=zh}}</ref>{{Excessive citations inline|date=November 2025}}

=== Internal organization === {{Div col|colwidth=20em}} *General Office *Policy and Regulation Research Office *Cadre Bureau *Theory Bureau *Publicity and Education Bureau *Culture and Arts Bureau *Public Opinion Information Bureau *Government Information Bureau *External Information Bureau *International Liaison Bureau *External Promotion Bureau *International Communications Bureau *Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Information Bureau *Human Rights Affairs Bureau (Human Rights Affairs Bureau of the State Council Information Office) *Publishing House *Media Regulatory Authority *Printing and Distribution Bureau *Office for the Fight Against Pornography and Illegal Publications (National Office for the Fight Against Pornography and Illegal Publications) *Copyright Administration *Import and Export Administration *Film Bureau *Civilization Creation Bureau *Civilization Cultivation Bureau *Civilized Practice Bureau *Retired Cadres Bureau *National Office for Philosophy and Social Sciences *Office of Cultural System Reform and Development *Administration Bureau *Party Committee {{Div col end}}

=== Public institution managed by the Publicity Department ===

* China International Communications Group

=== Directly affiliated institutions === {{Div col|colwidth=20em}} *Publicity Department Service Center (Information Center) *Publicity and Public Opinion Research Center of the Publicity Department *People's Publishing House *China Press and Publication Research Institute *News and Publishing Newspapers *China Copyright Protection Center *China National Library of Editions (Central Publicity Department Publications Data Center) *Central Publicity Department Publication Product Quality Supervision and Inspection Center (Central Publicity Department Publication Review Center) *National Publishing Fund Planning and Management Office *China Research Institute of Film Science and Technology *Film Technology Quality Inspection Institute of the Central Publicity Department *China Film Archive (China Film Art Research Center) *Film Script Planning and Design Center of the Central Publicity Department *Film Digital Program Management Center of the Central Publicity Department *Office of the National Film Industry Development Special Fund Management Committee *Film Satellite Channel Program Production Center of the Central Publicity Department *Human Rights Development and Exchange Center of the Central Publicity Department (Human Rights Development and Exchange Center of the State Council Information Office) *National Publicity Cadres College *Party Building Magazine *Current Affairs Report Magazine *''China Daily'' *Editorial Department of China Civilization Network *Museum of the Chinese Communist Party *Ideological and Political Work Research Magazine {{Div col end}}

=== Directly affiliated enterprises ===

* China Film Group Corporation * China International Communication Center<ref name=":7" /> * Learning Publishing Company Limited * China News Publishing & Media Group * Thread Bookstore * China Book Publishing House

=== Responsible social groups ===

* Chinese Society of Ideological and Political Work

=== Other === The department publishes a journal called ''International Communication'' ({{Lang-zh|s=对外传播}}).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Colville |first=Alex |date=2024-12-06 |title=China's Global Talent Crunch |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/2024/12/06/chinas-global-messaging-talent-crunch/ |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=China Media Project |language=en-US |archive-date=2024-12-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241206160324/https://chinamediaproject.org/2024/12/06/chinas-global-messaging-talent-crunch/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Central Propaganda Department owns and runs the following organizations: * China Foundation for Human Rights Development<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Bandurski |first1=David |last2=Parete |first2=Dalia |date=February 16, 2024 |title=Human Rights Heist at the United Nations |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/2024/02/16/human-rights-heist-at-the-united-nations/ |access-date=February 22, 2024 |work=China Media Project}}</ref>

The department also owns and controls the following state-owned enterprises:

* China Publishing Group<ref>{{Cite report |title=Global Tone Communication Technology Co. Ltd |last=Hoffman |first=Samantha |date=2019 |publisher=Australian Strategic Policy Institute |pages=09–18 |jstor=resrep23095.8 |jstor-access=free}}</ref> * China International Communication Center<ref name=":7">{{Cite news |last=Bandurski |first=David |date=2023-02-17 |title=Co-Producing with the CCP |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/2023/02/17/co-producing-with-the-ccp/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220013229/https://chinamediaproject.org/2023/02/17/co-producing-with-the-ccp/ |archive-date=2023-02-20 |access-date=2023-02-20 |website=China Media Project |language=en-US}}</ref> * China Intercontinental Press<ref name=":6">{{Cite news |last=Bandurski |first=David |date=2018-10-18 |title=Documenting China's Influence |url=https://madeinchinajournal.com/2018/10/18/documenting-chinas-influence/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220013233/https://madeinchinajournal.com/2018/10/18/documenting-chinas-influence/ |archive-date=2023-02-20 |access-date=2023-02-20 |website=Made in China Journal |language=en-US}}</ref> * China Intercontinental Communication Center<ref name=":6" /> * Global Tone Communication Technology (GTCOM)<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Samantha |date=April 2022 |title=China's Tech-Enhanced Authoritarianism |journal=Journal of Democracy |language=en |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=76–89 |doi=10.1353/jod.2022.0019 |issn=1086-3214 |s2cid=245443824}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hvistendahl |first=Mara |date=August 19, 2020 |title=How China surveils the world |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/08/19/1006455/gtcom-samantha-hoffman-tiktok/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208030927/https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/08/19/1006455/gtcom-samantha-hoffman-tiktok/ |archive-date=2023-12-08 |access-date=2023-12-11 |website=MIT Technology Review |language=en}}</ref>

==Leaders== {{Main|Head of the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party}}

=== Composition as of the 20th Central Committee ===

* '''Head''' ** Li Shulei, member of the Politburo * '''Executive deputy head''' ** Hu Heping, minister of Culture and Tourism, member of the Central Committee * '''Deputy heads''' ** Shen Haixiong, ministerial-level, head of the China Media Group, member of the CCP Central Committee ** Zhuang Rongwen, ministerial-level, director of the Cyberspace Administration of China, member of the Central Committee ** Cao Shumin, ministerial-level, director of the National Radio and Television Administration, alternate member of the Central Committee ** Sun Yeli, ministerial-level, director of the State Council Information Office ** Zhang Jianchun ** Wang Gang

== See also == {{Portal|Politics|China}} *Agitation Department of the SED Central Committee *Propaganda and Agitation Department of the Workers' Party of Korea

==Further reading== * {{Cite journal |last=Brady |first=Anne-Marie |author-link=Anne-Marie Brady |date=2006-02-01 |title=Guiding Hand: The Role of the CCP Central Propaganda Department in the Current Era |journal=Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture |publisher=University of Westminster Press |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=58–77 |doi=10.16997/wpcc.15 |doi-access=free}}

==References== {{reflist}}

== External links == * {{Official website}}{{in lang|zh}}

{{Clear}} {{Central Committee of the Communist Party of China}} {{CCP Party Organs}} {{State Council of the People's Republic of China}} {{Authority control}}

Category:Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party Category:1924 establishments in China Category:Chinese propaganda organisations Category:Functional departments of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party Category:One institution with two names Category:Organizations established in 1924