Lin Jianhua and Zhu Jidong: The New Era Implications of Xi Jinping's Important Expositions on Socialist Ideology
Ideology refers to a system of ideas formed by the conscious reflection of social relations by a certain social class, stratum, or social group based on its own fundamental interests. Generally speaking, it belongs to the category of the superstructure and is determined by the economic base of that society. The Communist Party of China (CPC) has always attached great importance to ideological work. Since the 18th National Congress, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has assessed the situation, took measures to clear the source and rectify the roots [1], and provided scientific answers to major directional and fundamental issues in the ideological field. This rich body of thought emphasizes that "ideological work is an extremely important task for the Party," that we must "firmly grasp the leadership over ideological work," and "build a socialist ideology with strong cohesion and leading power," thereby providing a scientific guide for continuously advancing ideological work in the New Era. New concepts guide new practices. Over the past decade, the situation in our country's ideological field has undergone a comprehensive and fundamental transformation. The cultural confidence and sense of historical initiative of the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups have been markedly strengthened, and the cohesion and centripetal force of the entire society have been greatly enhanced. This has provided a strong ideological guarantee and powerful mental strength for opening new horizons for the cause of the Party and the state in the New Era.
I. "Ideological work is an extremely important task for the Party" — Highlighting the important status of ideological work in the cause of the Party and the state while rectifying deviations and errors
How to scientifically understand and correctly handle the relationship between economic construction and ideological work has consistently been an unavoidable issue since the beginning of Reform and Opening-up; it was also an issue where some Party members and cadres had blurred or even erroneous understandings prior to the 18th National Congress. In the process of Reform and Opening-up before the 18th National Congress, because some people had a one-sided or even erroneous understanding of "taking economic construction as the center," they—consciously or unconsciously—severed and opposed ideological work against economic construction. Under the banner of economic development, they slighted, ignored, or even disregarded ideological work, which led to it not receiving the attention it deserved for a long period and resulted in a series of serious problems. The Resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century, deliberated and adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, pointed out some of these problems with piercing clarity: "Erroneous trends of thought such as money worship, hedonism, extreme individualism, and historical nihilism [2] appeared from time to time; chaos was rampant in online public opinion; and some leading cadres had blurred political stances and lacked a fighting spirit, which seriously affected people's thinking and the social opinion environment." Fundamentally, the fact that some Party members and cadres did not attach enough importance to ideological work was a very important cause. Aiming at some erroneous understandings within the Party, Xi Jinping emphasized in his speech at the National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work on August 19, 2013 (the "August 19" important speech): "Economic construction is the Party's central work, and ideological work is an extremely important task for the Party." The use of the concept "extremely important" is a lucid recognition of the status of ideological work among the various tasks of the Party, a rational judgment of the ideological situation—especially the series of challenges, problems, and tests existing in the ideological field—and a reminder and correction of the erroneous understandings existing among some Party members and cadres. At the same time, it has continuously pushed the state of ideology in the New Era to achieve historical achievements and undergo historical transformations.
Since the 18th National Congress, Xi Jinping has always attached great importance to the scientific understanding and correct handling of the relationship between economic construction and ideological work. While consistently upholding and advancing the Party's central work, he has raised the entire Party's emphasis on ideological work to a new height, unprecedented since the Reform and Opening-up. Xi Jinping pointed out: "Since the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee, our Party has always persisted in taking economic construction as the center, concentrating energy on boosting economic construction and improving the people's lives. As long as the major domestic and international trends do not undergo fundamental changes, persisting in taking economic construction as the center cannot and should not change. This is the fundamental requirement for upholding the Party's Basic Line for a hundred years without wavering, and it is also the fundamental requirement for solving all problems in contemporary China." Emphasizing the importance of economic construction, however, does not mean that other work is not important. While adhering to the "theory of the key point" [3], one must also adhere to the "theory of two points" [4]. Xi Jinping pointed out: "Only when both material civilization and spiritual civilization [5] are well-developed, and both the nation's material and mental strength are enhanced, and the material and spiritual lives of the people of all ethnic groups are improved, can the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics advance smoothly." Therefore, we "must not relax or weaken ideological work for a single moment while concentrating our energy on economic construction." The economic base determines the superstructure, and the superstructure in turn reacts upon the economic base. In this regard, a country's comprehensive national strength includes both hard power and soft power. Effectively advancing economic construction aims to provide a solid material foundation for ideological work. Effectively advancing ideological work aims to provide powerful ideological guidance and mental protection for economic construction; the two are complementary. We can neither weaken or ignore the extremely important ideological work because of the emphasis on central work, nor can we weaken or deviate from the central work because of the emphasis on the extremely important ideological work; the two must be organically unified and deeply integrated. This is both historical materialism and historical dialectics. It is in this sense that Xi Jinping pointed out that ideological work, represented by propaganda and ideological work, "must take centering on the core and serving the overall situation as its basic duty, keep the big picture in mind, grasp the major trends, focus on major events, find the right entry point and focus of work, and ensure that plans are made according to the situation, movements are made in response to the situation, and actions are taken following the situation." This is determined by the inherent importance of ideology itself. In this regard, we have both valuable experience and profound lessons.
Marx and Engels believed: "Consciousness can never be any thing else than conscious existence, and the existence of men is their actual life-process." Marx also said: "The mode of production of material life conditions the general process of social, political and intellectual life. It is not the consciousness of men that determines their existence, but their social existence that determines their consciousness." This means that consciousness reflects social reality and life. Ideology is the systematic reflection of human society and the external world by people. Ideological and theoretical views involving relations of production in philosophy, political science, sociology, journalism, law, historiography, literature and art, religious studies, ethics, and economics are the specific forms of expression of ideology. Ideology originates from social material life based on productive labor; it reflects the economic forms and political systems of a certain society. In class societies, it also possesses distinct class characteristics. For both the ruling class and the ruled class, ideology plays a role in guiding values, actions, and the masses. On the spectrum of class, ideology consists of the social ideals, values, political principles, programs of action, and strategies proposed and established by the ruling class to achieve its goals of consolidating its rule and transforming society and the world. Marx pointed out: "The conditions of existence of the ruling class (conditions limited by previous production developments), which find their conceptual expression in law, morality, etc., are transformed by the thinkers of the ruling class, more or less consciously, into something independent and self-existent; they are conceived as a mission, etc., in the consciousness of the individuals of the ruling class; they are put forward as rules of life by the ruling class against the individuals of the oppressed class, partly as a gloss or consciousness of their own rule, partly as the moral means for this rule." "If one considers this from a conceptual standpoint, then the disintegration of a certain form of consciousness is sufficient to bring down an entire epoch." The "form of consciousness" here refers to ideology; this discourse reveals the extreme importance of ideology. On the spectrum of political parties, ideology is the primary means used by a party to express its political beliefs and views and to mobilize the masses; it is the soul of the survival and development of the party and the state. On the spectrum of party politics, ideology is the most core political resource for the ruling class and the governing party in modern society.
Examining the dialectical relationship, status, and role of economic construction and ideological work in an integrated manner is Xi Jinping’s profound reflection and specific application of the basic principles of the historical materialist conception of history to the development of Chinese society in the New Era. As socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a New Era and Reform and Opening-up has entered a New Era, the important role of ideology has become even more prominent. Carrying out the Great Struggle, building the Great Project, advancing the Great Cause, and realizing the Great Dream [6] all require ideological work to lead the direction, gather strength, and provide protection. Xi Jinping guided the whole Party to deeply recognize that the central work of the party and the state and ideological work are complementary and integrated in a unified and consistent relationship. We must always persist in "grasping with both hands, and both hands must be firm" [7], so that the two can truly complement each other and bring out the best in each other, forming a more powerful synergy. In today’s world, amidst changes unseen in a century, to ensure that the world-class giant ship of Chinese socialism always cleaves the waves and sails along the correct course, and to continuously achieve new great victories in the new Great Struggle, we must not only strive to do the central work well—thereby truly providing a solid and abundant material foundation for ideological work—but also further vigorously do the ideological work well to provide a strong ideological guarantee for effectively doing the central work. Only in this way can the central work and ideological work truly be unified, forming a more powerful synergy to create even more brilliant achievements in sound and rapid development. It is precisely under Xi Jinping's repeated emphasis and vigorous promotion that the entire Party not only attaches great importance to ideological work, but has also realized benign interaction and deep integration between ideological work and various fields such as economic construction, political construction, social construction, ecological civilization construction, and national defense and military construction. This has led cultural construction to achieve historical success and undergo historical changes. While further highlighting the important status of ideological work in the cause of the Party and the state, it has "solved many difficult problems that had long been sought after but remained unsolved, accomplished many great things that were desired in the past but never achieved, and pushed the cause of the Party and the state to achieve historical achievements and undergo historical transformations"—achievements unprecedented since the Reform and Opening-up.
II. "Firmly grasp the leadership over ideological work" — Strengthening the Party's comprehensive leadership over ideological work by clearly persisting in the Party's management of propaganda and ideology
The Communist Party of China is a proletarian and Marxist party established on the basis of ideals, convictions, and ideology. Whether it can firmly grasp the leadership over ideological work determines the future and fate of the Party. Xi Jinping emphasized at the first plenary meeting of the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee: "We must firmly grasp the leadership, management, and discourse power [8] of ideological work in our hands; they must not fall into the hands of others at any time, otherwise we will make irredeemable historical mistakes." In the report to the 19th National Congress, he specifically listed "firmly grasping the leadership over ideological work" as a standalone item and used a paragraph to systematically discuss and specifically deploy this proposition; this is rare in the reports of previous National Congresses of the Party. In his speech at the National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work on August 21, 2018 (the "August 21" important speech), Xi Jinping once again reiterated "persisting in the Party's leadership over ideological work" and highlighted it as the first of the "Nine Persists" [9]—a series of new ideas, viewpoints, and judgments put forward by the Party in the fields of propaganda, thought, and ideology. Through his repeated emphasis and personal command, he led and pushed the Party to take a series of powerful measures to clearly persist in the Party's management of propaganda and ideology. This has enabled the Party to firmly grasp the power of leadership, management, and discourse in ideological work, particularly by vigorously strengthening the Party's comprehensive leadership over ideological work, thereby truly putting "firmly grasping the leadership over ideological work" into practice.
The present era is an era of party politics. Whether in power or in opposition, political parties play an extremely important role in the political life and economic and social development of a country. A party must simultaneously have a corresponding class basis and an ideological basis. Ideology is an important ideological and political tool for a political party. The foundation of a party's existence is the ideology that occupies the dominant position within it. Especially for a proletarian or Marxist party, ideology is the Party's banner and soul. If a problem arises in ideology, it becomes a major issue concerning the future and fate of the Party. History and reality have confirmed this point many times.
Focusing on resolving the issue of the weakening of Party leadership in the ideological sphere, upholding the Party's leadership over ideological work, and firmly grasping that leadership—these are important conclusions drawn by the Communist Party of China (CPC) from the dimension and height of regime security. Xi Jinping has pointed out: "In today's world, invisible wars in the ideological sphere are omnipresent, and confrontations in the political field without the sound of gunfire have never ceased." In the report to the 19th CPC National Congress, he emphasized once again: "Struggles in the ideological sphere remain complex, and national security faces new situations." This marked the first time since the start of reform and opening up [10] that struggles in the ideological sphere were emphasized in a report to a Party Congress. Xi Jinping has repeatedly alerted the entire Party that ideological work, especially the struggle in the ideological sphere, must be understood and considered against the backdrop of this era.
In modern socio-political life, hostile forces often choose the ideological sphere as the initial breakthrough point when attempting to throw a country into chaos or subvert a regime. In this regard, socialist countries have learned profound lessons. The drastic changes in Eastern Europe and the collapse of the Soviet Union are typical examples. Xi Jinping pointedly noted: "Why did the Soviet Union disintegrate? Why did the Soviet Communist Party fall? An important reason was that the struggle in the ideological sphere was extremely intense. They completely denied the history of the Soviet Union and the Soviet Communist Party, denied Lenin and Stalin, and engaged in historical nihilism [11]. Their thinking became confused, the Party organizations at all levels became almost useless, and even the military was no longer under the Party's leadership. In the end, a party as large as the Soviet Communist Party scattered like birds and beasts [12], and a socialist country as large as the Soviet Union collapsed and disintegrated." In conjunction with the history of the world socialist movement, Xi Jinping emphasized: "Ideology concerns the banner, the path, and national political security... we must never allow anyone to eat the Communist Party's rice while smashing the Communist Party's pot [13]." This means that a country and a political party must establish a solid defensive line in ideology and must never relinquish the dominant power over ideology; otherwise, it will inevitably lead to its own decline and fall. It is in this sense that Xi Jinping clearly stated: "Whether we can do a good job in ideological work concerns the future and destiny of the Party, the long-term stability of the country, and the cohesion and centripetal force of the nation."
"The world is in a period of great development, great change, and great adjustment," and "the world we live in is full of hope and also full of challenges." During an inspection of the Liberation Army Daily [14], Xi Jinping pointed out: "At present, various hostile forces have been attempting to manufacture a 'color revolution' [15] in our country, vainly hoping to subvert the leadership of the Communist Party of China and our country's socialist system. This is a realistic danger facing our regime's security. One breakthrough point they have selected is the ideological sphere, attempting to throw people's thinking into chaos, and then fish in troubled waters [16] to achieve victory through chaos. Under the new situation, the struggle in the ideological sphere is complex and sharp. Both history and reality warn us that once the ideological and public opinion positions are breached, other lines of defense will be difficult to hold. In the struggle in the ideological sphere, we have no room for compromise or concession; we must achieve total victory." This serves to alert the entire Party to deeply realize that in the complex struggle where various hostile forces compete with us for territory, for hearts, and for the masses, if an ideological crisis appears for the CPC in its governing position, it would fundamentally constitute the greatest crisis of governance. Therefore, in the still complex and sharp struggle in the ideological sphere, we cannot relax or weaken ideological work for a single moment; otherwise, we will make an irredeemable historical mistake.
Since socialism with Chinese characteristics entered the New Era, the situation and landscape facing our country's ideological sphere—along with the risks and challenges—remain severe, and the confrontations and struggles are sometimes even quite intense. Lenin pointed out: "The absolute demand of Marxist theory in analyzing any social problem is that the problem be placed within a definite historical framework." Historically speaking, the struggle between the two paths of capitalism and socialism, and between their two systems, did not just begin today; it has never ceased in the 170-plus years since the founding of scientific socialism. Fundamentally, the struggle in the ideological sphere reflects the struggle and confrontation between two paths, two systems, and two sets of values. The posture of this struggle and confrontation is long-term, complex, and sharp, and it will accompany the entire process of China fully building a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful. Therefore, for the foreseeable future, safeguarding security in the ideological sphere is a constant proposition.
To uphold and firmly grasp the Party's leadership over ideological work, we must vigorously strengthen theoretical arming and take a systematic mastery of the basic theories of Marxism as our "housekeeping skill" [17]. Sublime faith, firm convictions, and a tenacious fighting spirit do not arise spontaneously; a "body of indestructible gold" [18] cannot be easily forged. Only with theoretical clarity can there be political firmness. Xi Jinping emphasized that ideological work, exemplified by publicity and ideological work, "must consolidate the guiding status of Marxism in the ideological sphere and consolidate the common ideological basis for the united struggle of the whole Party and the people of the whole country." In this regard, the most important thing is that we must always adhere to the basic principles of Marxism, uphold the scientific spirit of Marxism, and use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era—the latest achievement in the Sinicization of Marxism—to guide ideological work in the New Era. This is because every step forward in theoretical innovation must be followed by a step forward in theoretical arming. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era possesses the distinct character of upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground. This is not only an inevitable requirement for carrying out the great struggle, building the great project, advancing the great cause, and realizing the great dream [19], but also a requirement for the coordinated advancement of the Five-Sphere Integrated Plan and the Four Comprehensives. In the New Era, new ideas are needed to guide the new journey, new mission, new tasks, and new practices, which requires us to firmly grasp the Party's leadership over ideological work.
To uphold and firmly grasp the Party's leadership over ideological work, we must enhance our "position consciousness" (zhèndì yìshi) and ensure we are "observing our responsibility, taking our responsibility, and fulfilling our responsibility for the territory" [20]. Positions (zhèndì) are the basic reliance of ideological work. If we do not occupy the ideological positions, various erroneous ideas will. If we do not lead the direction of public opinion, it will be controlled by those with ulterior motives. On the stage of international communication, if we lose our voice, we will be scolded. This requires that we firmly grasp the power of leadership, management, and discourse in ideological work. Xi Jinping once severely criticized the prominent problems that existed for a period in the ideological sphere, such as weak political sensitivity and sense of responsibility, and a blurring of Party consciousness, emphasizing that all Party members and cadres must unequivocally uphold the principle of Party spirit. Upholding the principle of Party spirit means raising one's political stance: "Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we must strengthen the 'Four Consciousnesses' [21], firm up the 'Four Confidences' [22], resolutely uphold General Secretary Xi Jinping’s core status in the Party Central Committee and the whole Party, and resolutely uphold the authority and centralized, unified leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core." Strengthening the sense of responsibility means scientifically grasping the connotation and essence of ideology, correctly mastering the laws and requirements of ideological work, vigorously strengthening the ideological capacity-building of the broad masses of Party members and cadres, earnestly strengthening the management of ideological positions, and striving to implement the responsibility system for ideological work. We must attach great importance to embryonic and lingering issues, dare to grasp and manage, dare to "draw the sword" [23], be clear-cut in upholding the truth, stand firm in refuting fallacies, and build a solid defensive line for ideological security.
To uphold and firmly grasp the Party's leadership over ideological work, we must attach great importance to the internet as the new main battlefield of the struggle for public opinion. Xi Jinping pointed out: "The internet is a massive platform for social information. Hundreds of millions of netizens obtain and exchange information on it, which has an important impact on their ways of acquiring knowledge, their modes of thinking, and their values; in particular, it has an important impact on their views of the country, society, work, and life." "To achieve the 'Two Centenary Goals' [24], we need all aspects of society to work together with one heart, and the people of all ethnic groups across the country to think in one direction and channel their energy toward the same goal. If a society lacks common ideals, a common goal, and common values, and is in a state of chaos all day long, nothing can be accomplished." Therefore, "the issue of security risks in internet ideology deserves great attention. The network is already the foremost front of the current ideological struggle. Controlling the dominant power over internet ideology means safeguarding the country's sovereignty and political power." Xi Jinping also pointed out: "On the battlefield of the internet, whether we can hold our ground and win is directly related to our country's ideological security and regime security." Regarding the issue of the struggle for internet ideology, Xi Jinping emphasized: "If we cannot pass the test of the internet, we cannot pass the test of long-term governance." This judgment indicates that the Party's understanding and mastery of the laws governing ideological work have been raised to a new level and reached a new realm. It is precisely under the guidance of Xi Jinping's series of important speeches that the Party has attached great importance to internet ideological work in the New Era. Xi Jinping personally served as the head of the Central Leading Group for Cyberspace Affairs and the Director of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, chairing several meetings of the group and commission and delivering important speeches. The Central Committee not only issued the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Responsibility System for Internet Ideological Work by Party Committees (Party Leadership Groups), but also revised them in a timely manner according to new problems and challenges encountered during implementation. The entire Party is required to always take winning the "online struggle" as a primary task. Strict accountability is resolutely applied to regions, departments, and units with serious problems, while those who dare to "draw the sword" are vigorously supported, protected, and placed in important positions. Efforts are made to create a clean and upright cyberspace, reversing the passive situation—such as the "chaos in online public opinion"—that had appeared before the 18th National Congress, and effectively grasping the Party's leadership over internet ideological work.
III. "Building a Socialist Ideology with Strong Cohesion and Leading Power"—Pushing Ideological Work in the New Era to a New Level by Seizing the Most Critical Breakthrough Points and Important Stress Points
Adhering to a problem-oriented approach and strengthening "problem consciousness" (wèntí yìshi) are distinct characteristics of the New Era, particularly so in the ideological sphere. In the New Era, regarding the major subject of what kind of socialist ideology to build and how to build it, Xi Jinping pointed out: "Ideology determines the direction and development path of culture. We must promote the Sinicization, modernization, and popularization of Marxism, build a socialist ideology with strong cohesion and leading power, and ensure that all people are closely united in their ideals, beliefs, values, and moral concepts." Under the leadership of General Secretary Xi Jinping, the Party has seized the most critical breakthrough points and most important stress points, pushing ideological work in the New Era to a new level in the process of striving to build a socialist ideology with strong cohesion and leading power.
Socialist ideology takes Marxism as its guiding ideology and the primary content of Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, and the system of theories of socialism with Chinese characteristics—especially Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. It reflects the interests, demands, and value orientations of the broadest masses of the people, conforms to the development requirements of the New Era, and is a systematized and theorized system of ideas that evolves with economic and social development, thereby constituting the ideological superstructure that reflects and serves the economic base. In this sense, if economic construction is not managed well, major problems will arise; similarly, if ideological work is not managed well, major problems—or even greater problems—will arise. Xi Jinping not only explicitly noted "building a socialist ideology with strong cohesion and leading power" in the report to the 19th CPC National Congress, but also emphasized in his "August 21" speech [25] that "building a socialist ideology with strong cohesion and leading power is a strategic task that the whole Party, especially the publicity and ideological front, must undertake." The "primary standards for judging whether socialist ideology possesses strong cohesion and leading power lie in whether it always takes the people's standpoint as the fundamental standpoint, the pursuit of happiness for the people as the fundamental mission, and wholehearted service to the people as the fundamental purpose; and whether it builds a development consensus for comprehensively deepening reform and all-round deep opening up, a public opinion consensus on the mainstream ideology, a discourse consensus on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a New Era, and a content consensus on socialist core values." In the final analysis, it depends on whether it can build a long-term mechanism for safeguarding and consolidating our country's ideological security.
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the ideological situation in our country has manifested a dual character. On the one hand, Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era has been written into the Party Constitution and the Constitution, increasingly taking root in the hearts of the people; Socialist Core Values are being continuously practiced through cultivation, showing increasing effectiveness; the communication power, credibility, and influence of mainstream media have strengthened, with "positive energy" [26] being increasingly stimulated; positive international public opinion toward China has markedly increased, and China's international discourse power has significantly risen. On the other hand, the infiltration of Western culture, the overflow of erroneous social trends of thought, and the lack of regulation in new media—particularly in cyberspace—threaten, endanger, and erode ideological security and even overall national security from different dimensions and to varying degrees, resulting in a complex and intricate ideological ecosystem in our country. Social trends such as historical nihilism [27], Western constitutional democracy, neoliberalism, "universal values," civil society, Western freedom of the press, "anti-globalization," and populism rise and fall in succession; moreover, the "two doubts" [28] regarding Reform and Opening-up are highly deceptive. The core of these erroneous social trends is the negation of the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics from an ideological perspective. Ultimately, they aim to negate the Party's leadership, challenge the guiding status of Marxism, and contend for ideological discourse power—which is to say, they contend for the battlefield and the hearts of the people.
To truly build a socialist ideology with strong cohesive and leadership power, we must vigorously strengthen the construction of discourse power and discourse systems, particularly the construction of "discourse dominance" (话语支配力). Discourse dominance means directly facing the current problems in discourse power construction such as the "Foreign Stereotyped Writing" (洋八股), "Party Stereotyped Writing" (党八股), and "Local Stereotyped Writing" (土八股). Under the fundamental premise of upholding Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought, we must further strengthen theoretical arming, firm up the "Four Confidences," and use the latest achievements of the Party’s theoretical innovations to guide ideological work. We must truly grasp the correct political direction, value orientation, and public opinion guidance; effectively manage orientations, battlefields, and teams; further enhance the communication power, guidance, influence, and credibility of the mainstream ideological field; and better create new concepts, new categories, and new expressions that integrate Chinese and foreign elements, improving our ability to tell China's stories well and spread China's voice well. Discourse dominance is the key to ideological capacity and a vivid demonstration of socialist ideology facing the world, providing strong support for building a socialist ideology with strong cohesive and leadership power. In his "August 19" important speech [29], after pointing out that the current international public opinion landscape remains one where the West is strong and we are weak—with major Western media dominating world opinion, leading to situations where we often have the truth but cannot speak it out, or even if we speak, it does not spread—Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must meticulously perform external propaganda work, innovate external propaganda methods, strive to create new concepts, new categories, and new expressions that integrate Chinese and foreign elements, tell China's stories well, and spread China's voice well." In his speech at the Symposium on the Party's News and Public Opinion Work, he specifically emphasized the need to enhance international discourse power, elaborating that communication power determines influence and discourse power determines the initiative. He noted that to be voiceless is to be "scolded" (挨骂); at present, the problem of "being scolded" has not been fundamentally resolved. China's image in the world is still largely "sculpted by others" rather than "self-sculpted." Internationally, we are sometimes in a position where we have the truth but cannot speak it, or speak it but it does not spread; there exists a "deficit" in the inflow and outflow of information, a "contrast" between China's true image and Western subjective impressions, and a "gap" between soft power and hard power. He further proposed that we must make great efforts to strengthen international communication capacity building, accelerate the enhancement of the international influence of Chinese discourse, and let the whole world hear and clearly understand China's voice. In the report to the 19th CPC National Congress, Xi Jinping further emphasized the need to "constantly enhance dominance and discourse power in the ideological field." In his "August 21" important speech [30], he once again explicitly required: "Advance international communication capacity building, tell China's stories well, spread China's voice well, present a true, multi-dimensional, and panoramic view of China to the world, and improve the country’s cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture." This shows that the Party Central Committee has deeply recognized the problems existing in China's current discourse power construction and is making great efforts to solve them, aiming to focus on building discourse systems and enhancing China's international discourse power, thereby greatly increasing the influence and dominance of its discourse worldwide.
Firmly opposing erroneous tendencies such as "Foreign Stereotyped Writing," "Party Stereotyped Writing," and "Local Stereotyped Writing" is an important issue that must be faced and resolved in the process of building a socialist ideology with strong cohesive and leadership power. Based on a deep analysis of the enormous harm caused by the long-standing prevalence of "Foreign Stereotyped Writing"—which involves worshiping the foreign and fawning over the West—we must profoundly recognize that in the New Era, we must never use Western capitalist discourse systems to measure our theoretical innovations, never use Western capitalist value systems to trim our exploratory practices, and never use Western capitalist evaluation systems to measure the gains and losses of our country's development. Instead, we must strive to thoroughly break through Western capitalist discourse, value, and evaluation systems, and accelerate the construction and perfection of China's own systems. For many years, some leading officials have been accustomed to using "big, empty, formulaic, and useless talk" (大话、空话、套话、废话) in both speeches and articles; while containing no technical errors, such content is unreadable and even annoying. This kind of "Party Stereotyped Writing" has occupied a large amount of space in some Party newspapers and academic journals, with the result that the broad masses of Party members and the public have developed misunderstandings or even aversions toward the Party's ideological work; rather than enhancing discourse power, this has greatly weakened it. We must face the enormous harm caused by the serious problem of "Party Stereotyped Writing" and require all Party members and officials to use less or ideally no "big, empty, formulaic, and useless talk" when writing or speaking. Instead, they should strive to popularize profound theories and difficult truths, using language that the masses can understand, like to hear, and are willing to believe. This will lead more people to further identify with and firm up the lofty ideal of Communism and the common ideal of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and further firm up the "Four Confidences." The typical manifestation of "Local Stereotyped Writing" is that some people deliberately distort or misread Xi Jinping's speeches on inheriting and promoting excellent traditional Chinese culture, excessively elevating or even fetishizing Confucian culture and other traditional cultures. They even believe the direction of contemporary Chinese cultural construction should be the restoration of Confucianism, advocating for "Confucianizing Marxism," "replacing Marxism with Confucianism," "discarding Marxism for Confucianism," or "total Confucianization." They preach that Socialist Core Values should simply be Confucian moral norms like benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness, while negating the revolutionary culture and advanced socialist culture nurtured during the great struggles of the Party and the people. We should firmly oppose "Local Stereotyped Writing," always adhering to the principle of "making the past serve the present" (古为今用) and "using the past as a mirror for today" (以古鉴今). We must never "value the ancient and disparage the modern" (厚古薄今) or "use the past to criticize the present" (以古非今). We must firmly discard the erroneous practice of superstition and mechanically copying the ancients, and promote the "creative transformation and innovative development" of excellent traditional Chinese culture.
The cohesive power and leadership power of socialist ideology are both distinct and interconnected, with cohesive power being the foundation and leadership power being the key. On the one hand, "it takes a good blacksmith to forge good steel" [31]; socialist ideology must possess strong cohesive power to truly play the role of "consolidating the heart and capturing the soul." On the other hand, as the mainstream ideology, socialist ideology must occupy a dominant or even frontier position in the exchanges, integration, and confrontations with various non-mainstream ideologies—especially erroneous social trends or worldwide ideological and cultural currents—playing a leading role.
To truly build a socialist ideology with strong cohesive and leadership power, specifically: First, we must scientifically summarize the successful experiences and regular understandings of our country's ideological construction, especially "maintaining the Party's leadership over ideological work." Second, we must "consciously shoulder the mission and task of hoisting the banner, gathering the people's hearts, nurturing new people, flourishing culture, and presenting a good image in the New Era." In particular, we must profoundly understand the principle that "telling China's stories is a proposition of the era, and telling China's stories well is the mission of the era"; in this regard, we must not only increase the volume but also improve the "sound quality." Third, we must unremittingly explore realistic paths and propose targeted measures to promote socialist ideology taking root, sprouting, and flourishing in the environment and soil of the New Era, so that mainstream ideological public opinion is continuously consolidated and strengthened. Fourth, we must "adhere to the correct political direction, work hard on basic and strategic tasks, work hard on key and vital points, and work hard on the quality and level of work." We must take the unification of thought and the gathering of strength as the central link, the principle of Party spirit as the fundamental principle, and the promotion of the fine tradition and political advantage of the Party's management of propaganda and ideology as a critical component of upholding and strengthening the Party’s overall leadership in the New Era. At the same time, we must adhere to the principle of "priority on construction" (以立为本) and "simultaneous construction and destruction" (立破并举), continuously consolidating the guiding status of Marxism, further expanding the "red zones," transforming the "gray zones," and containing the "black zones" [32]. We must use Marxism and socialist ideology to rectify and lead diverse social trends of thought, providing more "positive energy" for advancing the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics, building a modern socialist powerful country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious, and beautiful, and realizing the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
(Funding: This article is a phased result of the National Social Science Fund Key Project "Research on the Basic Experience and Enlightenment of Socialist Ideological Construction since the Founding of New China" [Project No.: 20AKS020])
(Author Descriptions: Lin Jianhua, male, native of Shenxian, Shandong, is the Vice President of the Institute of Marxism Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor; Zhu Jidou, male, native of Dongming, Shandong, is a Researcher and Doctoral Supervisor at the Institute of Marxism Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.)
Network Editor: Tong Xin Source: Journal of China Executive Leadership Academy Pudong, Issue 3, 2022