China says it plans to have a “civilized” internet that is reflective of its Marxist values by implementing more regulation through tools such as a rumor “correcting” mechanism. This news comes shortly after a crackdown on the entertainment industry and fan clubs.
The new plans are outlined in a document by the State Council and Chinese Communist Party, titled “Opinions on Strengthening the Construction of Network Civilization.” The missive has not been officially made public, but verbatim versions are available on several government-run sites such as Xinhua.
On all sites where the document appears, it stated that: “The country aims to consolidate the guiding status of Marxism in the ideological cyberspace sphere, foster a common ideology among the whole Party and the Chinese people, and interiorize principle socialist values.”
It will achieve that by using the internet as a tool for spreading information on “the great achievements of [the Chinese Communist] party in each historical period of revolution, construction, and reform.”
The document also recommends a “clear-cut stand against historical nihilism.”
To clean up the internet to make it “civilized,” the document recommends the creation of a national online system to hide rumors, based on a “fact-checking” service that provides government-approved narratives called the China Internet Joint Rumor Refusal Program.
Other recommendations include regulating the use of internet slang, encouraging people to report “uncivilized” online activity, and categorizing professionally-run social media accounts.
These “civilized” internet opinions come shortly after a crackdown on the entertainment industry that saw members of celeb fan clubs punished.
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