Gao Qi, Nie Hongna: Advantages and Approaches of Digital Technology-Empowered Grassroots Party Building
Primary-level Party building, as a critical foundation of the Party-building work system, plays a vital role in forging close ties between the Party and the masses, implementing Party decisions, leading primary-level governance, and promoting social development. In recent years, the rapid development of digital technologies—represented by big data and artificial intelligence—has profoundly reshaped the technical and social environment of primary-level Party building, creating new opportunities to promote its high-quality development. Regarding this, Xi Jinping has emphatically pointed out:
"We must be adept at using internet technology and information-based means to carry out Party-building work, striving to achieve full coverage of the Party's organizations and work both offline and online." [1]
Furthermore, in a series of documents such as the Opinions on Strengthening the Construction of Primary-level Service-Oriented Party Organizations, the Opinions on Strengthening and Improving Urban Primary-level Party Building, and the Opinions of the CPC Central Committee on Strengthening the Party’s Political Construction, explicit deployments and requirements have been made for the integrated development of digital technology and primary-level Party building. These provide directional guidance and policy support for empowering primary-level Party building through digital technology. Furthermore, for the current period and a long time to come, digital technology empowerment will remain an urgent task and a key agenda for the high-quality development of primary-level Party building. In view of this, this article intends to examine the potential risks and hidden dangers based on clarifying the technical advantages of digital technology in empowering primary-level Party building, and to explore targeted paths for development. This is done with the aim of providing a theoretical basis and practical reference for the digital transformation of primary-level Party building.
I. The Technical Advantages of Digital Technology Empowering Primary-level Party Building
As China enters the digital era, the flourishing development of digital technology has brought new developmental opportunities to primary-level Party building, providing new perspectives, tools, and methods for its work. Through the empowerment of digital technology, the advantages of integration, precision, and interactivity inherent in digital technology can be transformed into prominent strengths that promote innovative development in primary-level Party building, thereby continuously and steadily improving the quality and effectiveness of this work.
(1) The integrative advantage of digital technology helps promote resource integration in primary-level Party building.
In the New Era, doing a good job in primary-level Party building is inseparable from the effective exercise of the political party's resource integration function. Compared to traditional tools and means, digital technology, by virtue of its integrative advantages, can consolidate various originally scattered information resources to provide more comprehensive and systematic support for primary-level Party building.
Digital technology can promote the integration and sharing of resources for primary-level Party-building work. In terms of information resource storage, previous methods mostly relied on paper documents, magnetic disks, and optical discs. Not only was storage space limited, but the efficiency of resource retrieval and sharing was low. Cloud storage technology has broken through the performance and capacity bottlenecks of traditional storage methods; it has not only expanded resource storage space but also provided multiple data synchronization methods, enhancing the convenience and integrity of resource storage. In terms of information resource sharing, the construction of integrated digital Party-building platforms can effectively break down the hierarchical structure limitations of traditional resource utilization, shifting toward a more flexible and flattened sharing structure. Relying on integrated digital Party-building platforms, Party organizations at different levels and their members can conduct information processing and collaboration on the same platform, effectively advancing the cross-level, cross-organization, and cross-unit exchange and sharing of information resources required for primary-level Party-building work.
Digital technology can promote the continuous transformation of high-quality information resources into practical efficacy for primary-level Party-building work. By constructing integrated digital Party-building platforms, primary-level Party organizations can systematically absorb and internally integrate high-quality information resources, realize the continuous value output and effective utilization of these resources, and subsequently prompt their transformation into strong practical efficacy. [2] At the same time, as a comprehensive platform integrating management, inquiry, and analysis functions, the digital Party-building platform can help primary-level Party organizations form visualized information resource distribution maps through technologies such as real-time data engines, dynamic analysis of data interaction, and multi-scenario analysis. Based on the specific conditions of primary-level work, it can targetedly allocate and mobilize resources, promoting the conversion of resources into practical efficacy.
(2) The precision advantage of digital technology helps promote scientific judgment in primary-level Party building.
The primary level is characterized by a wide scope of coverage, a full range of involved fields, and high population mobility. This makes the primary level an area where contradictions are concentrated, problems are complex, and the threads of Party-building work are numerous. However, with the accelerated arrival of the digital era, digital technology is gradually becoming embedded in the work system of primary-level Party building, and with its precision advantage, it continuously drives primary-level Party-building work toward refinement, intelligence, and personalization.
Digital technology promotes the shift of primary-level Party building from being experience-based to being data-based. Faced with the profound changes in the governing environment and social conditions of the New Era, relying solely on existing experience makes it difficult to meet the precision requirements of primary-level Party-building work. With the assistance of technologies such as big data and cloud computing, primary-level Party organizations can acquire various types of information related to primary-level Party building from all dimensions and levels—such as the study status of Party members, the frequency and quality of their participation in organizational activities, and mass feedback on Party-building work. Meanwhile, by means of technical methods such as data mining and analysis, primary-level Party organizations can clearly grasp the actual status of Party-building work, understand the needs of different groups, and discover potential problems and patterns. On this basis, primary-level Party organizations can formulate more targeted, scientific, and forward-looking work strategies, effectively avoiding misjudgments and deviations caused by subjective assumptions. This improves the scientific nature and precision of decision-making, achieves full-lifecycle management of the primary-level Party member contingent, and provides more personalized guidance and services.
Digital technology promotes the shift of primary-level Party building from post-hoc exposure to proactive early warning. At present, China has over 5.17 million primary-level Party organizations, and the scale of the primary-level cadre contingent is massive; their words and deeds directly concern the masses' evaluation of the Party. [3] However, under traditional models, the dereliction of duty and corruption problems of some Party members and cadres are often only held accountable and disposed of after they are exposed, at which point it is already difficult to recover the losses caused to the state and the people. To address this issue, the application of digital technology can push risk warnings forward, causing the defense line for Party conduct and clean government to continuously advance. By constructing a digital risk warning system covering the entire process of primary-level Party building and meticulously building risk supervision and warning models, primary-level Party organizations can be prompted to transform from the previous passive response of "problem emerges—logical analysis—causal explanation—plan formulation" into proactive judgment based on "data collection—quantitative analysis—identifying connections—plan preparation" [4]. This ensures early warning, early discovery, and early processing, effectively preventing the expansion and deterioration of problems at the primary level.
(3) The interactive advantage of digital technology helps improve the operational effectiveness of primary-level Party building.
As the bridge and link closely connecting the Party with the masses, primary-level Party organizations are at the forefront of social governance. Faced with the diverse needs and complex contradictions of primary-level society, traditional primary-level Party-building models often struggle to accurately grasp the true demands of the masses. At the same time, the specificity and complexity of primary-level governance necessitate that Party members and cadres possess higher and more comprehensive capabilities and literacy. Regarding this issue, digital technology, by virtue of its interactive advantage, can inject new vitality into primary-level Party building and continuously improve the practical results of the work.
Digital technology promotes the shift of primary-level Party-building work from a focus on "one-way governance" to "interactive governance." Traditional governance models possess top-down, one-way characteristics, and thus fail to fully mobilize the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of diverse subjects in practical work. However, empowered by digital technology, primary-level governance models are gradually shifting toward "interactive governance." Relying on digital and internet technologies, primary-level Party organizations can establish public service feedback channels such as online opinion polls and online solicitation of suggestions, thereby intuitively understanding the demands and expectations of the masses, responding in a timely manner, and providing services that meet actual needs. At the same time, facing the "unhealthy winds" around the masses, the application of digital-intelligent technology provides a convenient supervision channel for the people. As early as 2015, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) took the lead in launching an "Anti-Four-Winds" app; with just a tap of a finger, the masses can report "Four Winds" issues around them at any time and place in the form of mobile photos, videos, and text descriptions. This "interactive governance" effectively stimulates the masses' enthusiasm for participating in anti-corruption and integrity-building work, further prompting primary-level Party organizations to continuously win the trust of the masses through exchange and interaction.
Digital interaction technology provides a powerful technical means for the training of primary-level Party members. As the "image ambassadors" of primary-level Party organizations among the masses, primary-level Party members and cadres shoulder the important mission of promoting primary-level causes and maintaining social stability; they are the key force for the Party to carry out work at the primary level. Given the importance of their responsibilities and the arduousness of their tasks, it is particularly important to conduct systematic and comprehensive education and training for them. Utilizing the advantages of 5G technology and the immersive, interactive characteristics of VR, rich resources of Party history and Party building can be transformed into vivid, three-dimensional virtual scenes. In the form of immersive interactive experiences, this fully mobilizes the learning enthusiasm and innovative consciousness of Party members, achieving experiential participation. Furthermore, as the specific implementers and active publicizers of Party and state policies, the level of capability of primary-level Party members directly concerns the effectiveness of policy implementation. With the help of Metaverse technology, the real scenes of primary-level Party-building work can be transposed or extended into virtual spaces, creating a sense of realism and experience for simulated training from multiple angles—visual, auditory, and tactile. This maximizes the fulfillment of the realistic needs of Party members and cadres to improve their skills and abilities, and continuously enhances the operational effectiveness of primary-level Party-building work.
II. Risks and Concerns Brought by Digital Technology to Primary-level Party Building
With the accelerated advancement of the new round of technological revolution, digital technology, with its unique advantages, has realized the comprehensive renovation, optimization, and upgrading of the organizational system and working mechanisms of primary-level Party building, becoming a key factor and important engine for promoting its high-quality development. However, beneath the efficient and convenient exterior of digital technology, there also lurk a series of risk challenges such as the "technology-first" tendency, digital formalism, data security, improper algorithms, and the digital divide.
(1) Conceptual constraints: The "technology-first" tendency triggers an emotional deficit in primary-level Party-building work.
When introducing various technical platforms and tools, some primary-level Party organizations often focus too much on the power of their functions and the improvement of efficiency, becoming increasingly deeply embedded in the entrapment of instrumental rationality. Induced by the "technology-first" tendency, technical governance gradually falls into an imbalanced state where instrumental rationality continues to expand while value rationality quietly exits, thereby leading to the de-emotionalization of technical governance. [5] For example, when promoting Party affairs management apps, some primary-level Party organizations only focus on their data statistics and analysis functions but ignore the experience and feelings of Party members and cadres during use. This leads to the app degenerating into a simple data-entry tool, unable to truly play a role in condensing people's hearts and promoting communication. Meanwhile, following the rise of the "App Fever," "WeChat Group Fever," and "Party Affairs Platform Fever," work methods that were previously easy to operate have become increasingly cumbersome during the digital transformation. To adapt to various technical platforms and tools, primary-level Party members and cadres have to invest a large amount of time and energy into learning and operation, and there has even emerged a governance tendency of excessive reliance on technology. Furthermore, traditional "face-to-face" communication is gradually being replaced by indirect human-computer interaction. Although it can transmit information quickly, it cannot completely replace the emotional warmth and depth contained in face-to-face communication. Over the long term, the emotional bond between Party members/cadres and the masses is bound to become fragile, easily leading to indifference and alienation in their relationship.
(2) The barrier of "trace-making": Digital formalism distorts the action-oriented nature of primary-level Party building.
During this process of digital transformation, formalism has quietly donned a "digital cloak," seriously disrupting the primary-level political ecosystem. Among these, phenomena such as "digital trace-leaving" and "digital burden-adding" are particularly prominent. Specifically, these manifest as numerous online polls, perfunctory replies on online government-interaction platforms, and repetitive collection of information and data. These waste the limited human, financial, and material resources at the primary level, causing primary-level Party-building work to deviate from the correct track. [6] At the same time, many primary-level Party organizations, in order to cater to inspections or evaluations from higher authorities, engage in "digital vanity projects." The websites and new media they create not only stagnate in updates and are empty in content but also lack appeal to the public. Others require Party members and cadres to sign in and "clock in" on various apps every day, setting up point rankings and online duration for announcements and evaluations. This disguised way of increasing the burden on the primary level through digital means prevents Party members and cadres from having more time and energy to do practical things for the people, and over time, they grow further apart from the masses. Furthermore, primary-level Party-building work in different regions has its own characteristics and needs. However, some localities mechanically copy and blindly imitate models from other places when introducing digital technology, resulting in a mismatch between technology and Party-building work. This not only fails to improve Party-building efficacy but instead increases operational difficulty and work burden, hindering the smooth progress of primary-level Party-building work.
(3) Security Concerns: Technical Security Vulnerabilities Induce Data Security Risks in Grassroots Party Building Digital technology possesses a dual nature; while its rise has brought a series of positive transformations to the field of grassroots Party building, it has also introduced numerous potential security risks. First, in the operational process of grassroots digital Party building, the centralized storage and processing of sensitive data—including personal information of Party members, organizational activity arrangements, and intra-Party decision-making processes—has become a universal phenomenon. However, the construction and maintenance of current digital Party building platforms primarily adopt a model of commissioned R&D and outsourced maintenance. If the developers or maintenance providers have loopholes in their data security management, or if internal personnel engage in irregular operations, this sensitive data is highly likely to face the risk of leakage, which in turn would exert a serious negative impact on grassroots Party building work. Second, within the operations of grassroots digital Party building, tasks such as information transmission, archives management, document exchange, and leadership instructions all carry information confidentiality requirements. Whether a robust information security guarantee system can be constructed at the technical level is a matter concerning the interests of the Party and the state [7].
Currently, some grassroots digital Party building platforms have defects in key links such as information encryption, access control, and security auditing, resulting in weak security defense capabilities. Once the digital systems of grassroots Party building suffer an attack, it will not only lead to data loss and system paralysis—affecting the continuity of Party building work—but may also cause the leakage of confidential intra-Party information, bringing incalculable losses to the Party and the state. Third, with the continuous iterative updating of digital technology, digital equipment and systems in the field of grassroots Party building also face challenges of technical obsolescence and compatibility issues. Some early-stage digital Party building platforms frequently experience system crashes and data loss due to backward technical architecture and aging equipment, posing a serious threat to the stability and security of grassroots Party building work.
(4) Value Anomie: Algorithmic Bias Causes Deviations in the Value Orientation of Grassroots Party Building As a core element of digital technology, algorithms are also the important engine driving the efficient operation of grassroots digital Party building. However, as a complex technology and professional knowledge with high barriers to entry, algorithms are difficult for the general public to understand and master. Particularly because most current digital grassroots Party building platforms adopt the model of commissioned R&D and outsourced maintenance, algorithmic bias—arising from the cognitive limitations of designers, the partiality of data samples, and biases in the training process—has caused negative impacts on the value orientation of grassroots Party building that cannot be ignored. On one hand, algorithmic bias can trigger unfairness in grassroots Party building decision-making. When algorithms are applied to such decisions, these latent biases will gradually erode the service efficacy of grassroots Party organizations, causing decision outcomes to favor specific groups while ignoring the legitimate demands of others, thereby producing inequitable decision-making conditions. On the other hand, algorithmic bias may mislead the formulation and implementation of grassroots Party building policies. As the key "raw material" for the training and iteration of algorithmic models, data quality directly determines the reliability of algorithmic output. If the data samples used for training are partial or unrepresentative, the algorithmic model will generate biased policy recommendations based on flawed data, thus misleading the formulation and execution of grassroots Party building policies. Furthermore, algorithmic bias may exacerbate the "information cocoon" effect in grassroots Party building. Although digital technology provides a massive volume of information for grassroots Party building, the recommendation mechanisms of algorithms may cause grassroots Party members and officials to be exposed long-term to information that conforms to their original cognitions, forming an information closed-loop. Under the influence of the "information cocoon" effect, Party members and officials are prone to rejecting or ignoring dissenting voices, gradually losing the ability to accept new viewpoints and information with an open mind.
(5) The Digital Divide: Differences in Digital Literacy Hinder the Balanced Development of Grassroots Digital Party Building Amidst the current vigorous rise of the digital wave, the digital literacy and skills of Party members and officials have become core elements for the steady advancement of grassroots digital Party building. However, influenced by factors such as uneven levels of regional economic development, varying degrees of investment in digital construction by local government departments, technical application barriers, and the differing sensitivity of Party building information resources, there are disparities in the process of digital transformation and the cultivation of digital literacy. This has resulted in poor overall digital capabilities in some grassroots Party organizations, seriously constraining the balanced development of grassroots digital Party building [8].
It is noteworthy that the long-existing digital divide between urban and rural areas is also an important factor causing significant differences in the digital literacy levels of Party members and officials. Although the number of rural internet users is on an upward trend, the construction of digital infrastructure for Party organizations in rural areas remains insufficient compared to urban areas; problems such as unstable network coverage and aging equipment are quite prominent. Meanwhile, rural Party members and officials have limited opportunities for digital skills education and training, which greatly restricts the improvement of their digital literacy and further widens the gap in digital capabilities between urban and rural Party members and officials. Furthermore, in the long-term process of development, some Party members and officials have formed fixed cognitive patterns and working methods; they are reluctant to make timely adjustments or reforms and harbor resistance toward learning new things and integrating them into existing work methods. Influenced by this mentality, they lack the enthusiasm and initiative to improve their digital literacy, thereby creating obstacles to the balanced development of grassroots digital Party building.
III. Strategies for Advancing Digital Technology to Empower Grassroots Party Building At present, the rapid development of digital technology and its wide application in the field of grassroots Party building is "not only a technological revolution, but more importantly a revolution in decision-making and governance; it is opening a new unknown space and may bring about a social transformation" [9]. Faced with the opportunities and challenges brought by digital technology, we must both face the application risks inherent in digital technology and, more importantly, make full use of its unique advantages, correctly guiding and making good use of digital technology to explore effective paths for promoting the high-quality development of grassroots Party building.
(1) Adhere to the People-Centered Value Philosophy and Deeply Root Humanistic Care in Technical Applications As an emerging governance tool, digital technology has been widely applied in grassroots Party building. However, in the specific practices of some grassroots Party organizations, there has been a one-sided emphasis on the instrumental value of technology. To a certain extent, this has neglected value goals such as the diverse needs and lived experiences of the masses, deviating from the starting point of enhancing social well-being. Technology should be a service tool based on the people, rather than backfiring and diverging from the Party's original aspiration and founding mission. To this end, to evoke an emotional return in technical governance, we must deeply integrate the people-centered value philosophy into our concepts of technical application and constantly root humanistic care within those applications. On one hand, we should continue to optimize the way digital technology intervenes. The process of technological empowerment does not mean absolutely discarding traditional governance tools and methods, nor does it mean advocating the supremacy of technology as the sole means of solving problems; on the contrary, one should fully consider traditional experience and actual conditions, utilizing digital technology scientifically so that it complements traditional working methods to jointly improve the efficacy of grassroots Party building. Therefore, Party members and officials should continuously strengthen their understanding and application of digital technology, actively explore integration paths between digital technology and traditional grassroots Party building, promote the organic combination of technology and humanistic care, and continuously alleviate the sense of alienation and mechanized work modes brought about by human-computer and network interactions. On other hand, the value philosophy of "putting the people first" should be integrated into the design and application of technology, continuously increasing the "human warmth" of technological empowerment [10]. In the process of technical design, development, and improvement, R&D personnel should fully consider the practical needs and psychological feelings of both the enforcers and targets of technical governance to ensure the value-rationality of the technology application itself. At the same time, in the process of product design and application, diversified participatory innovation should be encouraged so that R&D personnel can better communicate and interact with the masses, understand their needs and expectations, and make technology closer to the people and more capable of serving the people.
(2) Establish a Correct Outlook on Political Achievements and Evaluation Mechanisms to Enhance Compatibility Between Technology and Institutions In the final analysis, the frequent appearance of "digital formalism" is caused by a misalignment of the outlook on political achievements due to the unsound evaluation orientations of some Party organizations, which overemphasize "leaving digital traces" [11] and simplistically use technical application as an evaluation metric for Party members and officials. Therefore, to break free from the trap of "technology supremacy" and avoid the proliferation of digital formalism, the key lies in establishing a scientific, rational, pragmatic, and efficient outlook on political achievements and evaluation mechanisms. First, Party members and officials should be educated and guided to establish a correct outlook on political achievements. The emergence of digital formalism was not built in a day; only by recognizing the harm of digital formalism from the depths of one's thoughts can such problems be eliminated at the source. To this end, through thematic education and training, Party members and officials should be made to deeply understand that digital technology is merely an auxiliary tool; the core of grassroots Party building work lies in serving the masses and consolidating public support, ensuring that the application of digital technology always revolves around improving the quality and effect of grassroots Party building. Second, a diversified and scientific evaluation system should be constructed. Currently, the problem of digital formalism occurs frequently in some areas primarily because the existing evaluation mechanisms excessively favor digital indicators such as the number of "check-ins" on apps or time spent online, causing a deviation in evaluation orientation and turning "digital empowerment" into a "digital burden." In view of this, higher-level leading units and management departments need to construct scientific and clear evaluation standards, cycles, and mechanisms to circumvent tendencies toward simplification, digitalization, over-quantification, and excessive frequency in the evaluation process. They must put an end to phenomena such as repetitive evaluations and "passing the buck" [12], guiding grassroots Party organizations to focus their energy on solving practical problems. Finally, a mechanism for allowing and correcting errors should be established to encourage grassroots Party organizations and officials to be bold in innovation and active in exploration regarding digital technology applications. For problems arising from immature technology or improper application, one must distinguish their nature and degree, provide space for error tolerance, and protect the enthusiasm and creativity of grassroots Party members and officials. Meanwhile, experiences and lessons should be summarized in a timely manner to establish error-correction mechanisms, ensuring that existing problems are rectified and the effectiveness and level of digital technology application are continuously improved.
(3) Construct a Security Prevention and Control System for Technical Risks to Build a Protective Shield for Technical Safety The wide application of digital technology in grassroots Party building, while bringing efficiency and convenience, also hides various technical risks. Therefore, constructing a complete security prevention and control system for technical risks is a matter of great urgency. First, data security management must be strengthened. Grassroots Party organizations should strictly control every link—including data collection, storage, transmission, and usage—and formulate safe operating specifications. When cooperating with commissioned R&D and outsourced maintenance providers, their data security management capabilities must be strictly assessed and supervised, and detailed data security responsibility agreements should be signed to clarify the rights and obligations of both parties. At the same time, periodic diagnostics of data security should be conducted to discover hidden hazards in time. Second, system security defense capabilities must be enhanced. Investment in security protection technologies for digital Party building platforms should be increased to construct a network security architecture with defense-in-depth; security vulnerability scanning and remediation should be performed regularly to prevent systems from being attacked. Furthermore, an emergency response mechanism should be established with detailed contingency plans so that when systems are attacked or security issues like data loss occur, a rapid response can be initiated and effective measures taken to minimize losses. Finally, attention must be paid to technological compatibility and upgrades. When introducing digital technology, full consideration must be given to its compatibility with existing Party building digital equipment and systems to avoid system crashes and data loss caused by technical mismatches. Meanwhile, close attention should be paid to the developmental trends of digital technology, and digital Party building equipment and systems should be updated in a timely manner to ensure they remain in an advanced and stable state, providing a solid digital technology guarantee for the smooth implementation of grassroots Party building work.
(4) Establish an Algorithmic Ethics Review and Correction Mechanism to Uphold the Value High Ground of "Technology for Good" As algorithms are widely applied in the field of grassroots Party building, the resulting algorithmic bias not only tends to affect the fairness of decision-making but may also mislead the value orientation of grassroots Party building work. To effectively respond to this issue, an algorithmic ethics review and correction mechanism must be established to ensure that algorithms operate in an orderly manner on a track that aligns with the correct value orientation. First, strict algorithmic ethical guidelines must be formulated. Grassroots Party organizations need to deeply analyze the core principles of ethical norms for digital technology—including aspects such as respecting personal privacy, guaranteeing data security, promoting fair competition, maintaining social justice, and protecting the rights and interests of vulnerable groups—to provide clear and explicit guidance for the formulation of specific regulations [13].
Building upon this foundation, primary-level Party organizations should further refine the content of their guidelines and strictly require research and development teams to follow ethical requirements throughout every link of algorithmic design, development, and application, ensuring that algorithms operate on the basis of the principles of fairness, justice, and transparency. Second, a dynamic monitoring and rectification mechanism for algorithms must be established. During operation, algorithms may deviate from their preset value trajectories due to factors such as data updates or changing conditions. To this end, it is necessary to construct a set of real-time, sensitive monitoring mechanisms to continuously track and evaluate the operational status and outputs of algorithms. Once signs of value deviation are detected, a rectification procedure should be immediately activated to ensure that the algorithm always operates along the correct value orientation. Third, an accountability mechanism for algorithmic supervision must be established. On one hand, the responsible subjects in each link—design, development, and application—must be clearly identified, and those who violate ethical guidelines for algorithms must be held strictly accountable. On the other hand, external supervision channels should be smoothed, encouraging Party members, cadres, the masses, and third-party institutions to supervise algorithmic applications. Problems discovered during supervision should be reported promptly, and responsible parties must be handled strictly according to regulations to effectively guarantee the fairness and correct value orientation of algorithmic applications in primary-level Party building.
(V) Enhancing the digital literacy of Party members and cadres to solidify the human resource foundation for technological empowerment. Along with the continuous advancement of the digitalization of primary-level Party building, the importance of the digital literacy of Party members and cadres has become increasingly prominent. As the promoters and implementers of the digital transformation of primary-level Party building, the level of digital literacy among Party members and cadres directly relates to the effective exertion of the efficacy of primary-level digital Party building. Currently, the insufficient digital application capacity of Party members and cadres seriously affects the high-quality development of primary-level digital Party building. Therefore, it is urgent to improve the digital literacy of primary-level Party members and cadres to build a solid talent foundation for the deep advancement of primary-level digital Party building. On one hand, it is necessary to construct a complete and systematic digital literacy training system. Primary-level Party organizations should design layered and categorized training courses for Party members and cadres at different levels and in different positions, covering multiple dimensions such as basic digital technology, data analysis capabilities, network information security, and the application of digital governance tools. Simultaneously, training methods can adopt a mode that combines online and offline approaches. By providing flexible and convenient learning resources online and organizing centralized training, workshops, and practical exercises offline, we can ensure that Party members and cadres can comprehensively master digital technology knowledge and skills. On the other hand, a long-term incentive mechanism for improving digital literacy must be established. Primary-level Party organizations should, based on the needs of primary-level digital Party building, establish an evaluation and assessment system for the digital literacy of Party members and cadres that conforms to actual conditions and emphasizes practical application. The digital literacy of the cadre team should be regularly evaluated through methods such as physical inspections and work reports, using evaluation to promote learning and application, thereby creating a strong atmosphere for the comprehensive improvement of digital literacy among Party members and cadres. Furthermore, Party members and cadres who show significant improvement in digital literacy should be commended and rewarded. Excellent practices should be distilled and summarized in a timely manner to form replicable and promotable experiences, stimulating the enthusiasm of Party members and cadres to explore the use of digital technology in their work.
About the Authors: Gao Qi is a Professor at the School of Marxism, Shandong University. Nie Hongna is a Doctoral Candidate at the School of Marxism, Shandong University.
Source: Theoretical Horizon (Lǐlùn shìyě), Issue 11, 2025. Editor: Huihui