China View: Beijing’s Control Over Information Limits Literary Development
sinology
Censorship has been a powerful tool for the government throughout recent Chinese history. Book censorship specifically has been prominently utilized since Chairman Mao Zedong’s regime and the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. While the period immediately following Mao’s death was marked by weaker restrictions, since 1989, the government has continued to tighten its control over the literature and publishing sector. Over the past four years, hundreds of books have been censored, altered, or outright banned. This has included books discussing topics such as Chinese history, Chinese politics, human rights, and freedom of expression. The government views these subjects as direct challenges to its narrative of history and current politics, which in turn threaten the stability of the nation.
Under President Xi Jinping, restrictions have further intensified and the government has acquired greater control over the media and publications. Those who violate these restrictions are met with strict disciplinary penalties including dismissal of authors and editors, suspension of business operations, and even detention. In addition to direct government censorship, there has been a sharp rise in self-censorship among local writers and publishers who are forced to reconsider what is deemed acceptable to discuss and circulate. There are also fears that the government’s censorship capacity extends beyond books published in mainland China. How have these regulations impacted surrounding territories?
“We don’t want to get into trouble that will affect the operation of the book fair, so we self-censor a lot this time. We read through every single book and every single word before we bring it here,” -Jimmy Pang, Hong Kong publisher
Mao’s Yan'an Forum in the early 1940s exemplified his view that literature published in the country should propagate and promote Communist ideas. During these discussions, Mao emphasized the important role that art and literature play in the preservation of Chinese culture and in the development of the country. When Mao came to power in 1949, strict censorship and prohibitions were placed on works that did not align with the government and its ideals. In addition to publishing restrictions, writers who violated these rules were arrested and their works were often destroyed.
Shortly after Mao’s death in 1976, restrictions on the publishing of novels and media were loosened. However, following the events of Tiananmen Square in June 1989, in which protesters were met with violence at the hands of People's Liberation Army, the government’s use of censorship has surged. Between the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, the government’s control over these sectors began to gradually weaken again until President Xi Jinping came to power in 2012.
The Chinese Communist Party Central Propaganda Department (CPD) plays an integral role in the government’s censorship system by “directing and supervising book publishing and other operations related to media and information production and distribution”. This agency is directly involved in overseeing and determining whether editors, authors, and journalists can publish their work. The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television (SAPPRFT) also plays an important role in censorship through the drafting of policies related to press, publication, and media. The CPD and SAPPRFT conduct quality control measures by randomly checking a limited number of publications and taking punitive actions against anyone who violates any rules or regulations.
Contemporary censorship tends to focus on targeting “sensitive topics” such as the Tibetans or Uyghurs, who are ethnic minority groups living within China’s autonomous regions. In recent years the government has also intensified efforts to suppress media labeled as ‘pornographic’. Fan fiction works and websites, for example, have been targeted because they often include pornographic content. Since June of 2024, internet censors have targeted dozens of writers of online erotic fiction across the country in an effort to crack down on this type of content.
Since 2011, Chinese authorities have consistently imposed long-standing regulations on online literature platforms, including those hosting danmei content which encompasses erotic themes and men loving men (MLM) romance. The government’s efforts led to the shutdown of numerous danmei and LGBTQIA+-related forums and websites. In 2018, a massive crackdown on online literature saw 400 websites taken down because of “lewd content, copyright infringement, and other violations”.
Independent bookstores have also been targeted by government crackdowns and it is reported that at least a dozen bookstores have been shut down this year. The crackdown has had a devastating effect on China’s publishing industry. Most bookstores in China are state-owned, and independent bookstores are governed by an intricate set of rules with strict controls now being more aggressively monitored and enforced. Printing shops and street vendors are also facing increased levels of government scrutiny. These harsh measures have forced writers to self-censor their work or risk severe consequences such as being ostracize from local publishing companies, many of which are state-owned, and imprisonment.
While the regulation of newer forms of media such as the internet and social networks have been a key focus for the government in recent decades, the censorship of the literature and publishing sector remain integral in maintaining control over information within the country. This control has even affected neighboring Hong Kong and Taiwan. In 2020, the national security law (NSL) was put in place in Hong Kong to prevent acts of dissent or succession, such as pro-democracy protests, that would weaken autonomy with mainland China. These measures have included mass arrests, changes to school curriculums, as well as crackdown on the arts and literature. This has led to the removal of political books from public libraries and business owners have removed messages of support for the democracy protest movement.
A Taiwan-based book publisher Li Yanhe was also detained in China in 2023. Li is the founder of Gusa Publishing, which is known for circulating books that are critical of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and novels that are politically sensitive, including discussions of Tiananmen Square and human rights abuses. In 2019, Iwatani Nobu, a Japanese professor of modern Chinese history at Hokkaidō University, was detained for two months on spying charges after buying 1930s books on the Sino-Japanese War from a second-hand book vendor.The government’s attempts to constrain expression and limit the discussion of certain topics is significantly hampering the development of many writers, scholars, and artists. “As a result, China is suffering a society- wide deterioration in intellectual and artistic creativity as well as academic prowess”.
