How far can Central Propaganda Department of People Republic of China control mass media?

A propaganda poster during Cultural Revolution

Central Propaganda Department of People Republic of China used to be an outstanding propaganda group. In retaliation against Japanese troops and later against kuomintang (nationalist party) in 1940s, the department helped Chinese Communist Party (CCP) establish an sincere, potent and friendly impression among peasants and workers majority of China population.

However, Propaganda Department nowaday is fettered by old conventions. Although the department are on par with modern communication technology (they are able to trace IPs to crack down on dissidents) and always coming out with various tricks to discredit dissidents and conceal wrong-doing of government officers, their political belief is left behind by the fast-changing political and social environment. They contain every piece of information that may be harmful to the government in fear that similar collapse of communism in USSR triggered by Glasnost will happen in China.

News media are tightly controlled by Central Propaganda Department. Such restriction acts more as a umberalla protecting bad and corruption, rather than element ensuring social stability. Peasants in countrysides are forced to give up their land to the authority but the compensation to their land are "eaten" by their corrupted cadres, while the petitioners are beaten up in Beijing. However, their voices can not be heard as the press are not allowed to report on the issues on the ground of social stability. In that case, neither national and citizens' interest are protected, instead it serves as a comfort zone for corrupted leaders.

Moreover, hindrance in flow of ideas and knowledge also undermine the effectiveness of govenrment's response to the crisis. Song-hua-jiang pollution incident, outbreak of SARS and bird flu can be contained effectively if the the incidents were reported to aware the neighbouring states. However, by the time the other states know about the incidents, the damage was already irriversible. Nanfangdushibao(Southern Cosmopolitian Newspaper) editor was sentenced to 8 years imprisonment for reporting the incidents of outbreak of SARS in Cantonese province, in spit of the fact that the report had allowed other countries to respond quickly to the spread of the disease. Being a big nation as China, the department is tarnishing the national image. How can the country convince others that the rise of China is peaceful while she remains irresponsible when it comes to international issues.

With the advancement in technology and sophistication in flow of people, Chinese are no longer kept stupid all the time. Recently, peasants used the internet to voice out unfair treatments by their leaders while the international news is flowing into China mainland "illegally". Huge flow of information allow Chinese to view China differently. Since the news can not be covered up completely, why don't the government consider allowing part of them to flow to the general public to make the government more credible?

There is a Chinese legend called Da Yu Zhi Shui. Da Yu was a hero appointed by the emperor to solve the problems of over-flowing of Huang-he. His precedents were executed for using an ineffective solution of building embankment to contain the water. The water flooded out of the embankment during the period when the river flood over the river bank. Da Yu, however, managed to solve the problems by channelling the river into the farmlands. Not only resolving problems of overflowing, farmlands were able to be irrigated by the water, too.

Should Central Propaganda Department contain the flow of information until it over-flows and break the very foundation of the country's stability, or should information be channelled to its people? ?The answer is quite obvious.