Introduction: Ideology, Propaganda, and Political Discourse in the Xi Jinping Era

Ondřej Klimeš,Maurizio Marinelli

doi:10.1007/s11366-018-9566-3

Abstract

The ideology, propaganda, and political discourse of the Communist Party of China (CPC) have continued to function as key elements of the political system of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the post-Maoist period since 1978. In the first term of the Xi Jinping leadership (2012–2017), the CPC, for instance, elaborated on its guiding ideological concepts, devised inventive ideational framings of phenomena usually perceived as tangible (such as the “New Normal”), engaged in complex intellectual debates on crucial topics (such as “eco-civilization”), intensified and diversified its argumentation patterns and discursive strategies, and consolidated ideational governance over some citizens’ individual values, beliefs, and loyalties. Furthermore, it is often no longer possible to differentiate between the CPC’s internal and external propaganda, as seemingly exclusively domestic ideational and discursive issues increasingly correlate with international phenomena. However, the trends in the Xi era do not present paradigmatic shifts, but rather an overall reassertion-cum-innovation of previous Maoist and post-Maoist uses of ideology, propaganda, and political discourse, primarily aiming at strengthening one-party rule.

Highlights

Ideology, Propaganda, and Political Discourse in the Xi Jinping EraOndřej Klimeš1 & Maurizio Marinelli2Published online: 19 July 2018 # The Author(s) 2018 AbstractThe ideology, propaganda, and political discourse of the Communist Party of China (CPC) have continued to function as key elements of the political system of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the post-Maoist period since 1978
Before we started working on this project in 2015, scholars were in agreement that, despite the more pragmatic and rationalized policy agenda pursued by the CPC throughout the reform era in a new governing paradigm, ideology remained at the core of the PRC’s political system
The party controls the dissemination of information and ideas, and tailors its response to emerging socio-political challenges associated with modernization and globalization, preventing other actors from undermining the CPC’s legitimacy and challenging its official narrative ([5], 4, 30)

Summary

Introduction

Propaganda, and Political Discourse in the Xi Jinping EraOndřej Klimeš1 & Maurizio Marinelli2Published online: 19 July 2018 # The Author(s) 2018 AbstractThe ideology, propaganda, and political discourse of the Communist Party of China (CPC) have continued to function as key elements of the political system of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the post-Maoist period since 1978. The following five articles explore some of the most significant developments in the ways in which official ideology, propaganda, and political discourse feature in contemporary China, providing a temporal focus on the first term of the Xi Jinping leadership (2012–2017).

Results

Conclusion