The Washington Post published a report on Monday sharing glowing stories of Chinese youth celebrating the history of communism in their nation. Full of hope for the youth of the nation, the article built an image of the Chinese Communist Party as being full of vibrance and hope, a juxtaposition to President Trump's portrayal of China as a global threat.
"Trump views China’s Communist Party as a threat. Young Chinese see it as a ticket to a better future," the article headline promises whimsically.
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"Chinese who were complaining in February about the party’s coronavirus coverup reflect more positively on their experience now that they can see, through the American example, how much worse it could have been," the Washington Post author says of her subjects, wistfully described in front of a statue of a young Mao Zedong in Changsha.
One young member of the CCP was described by the Post as "dressed more like a pop star than a propaganda star." She excitedly described her visit to Mao's statue as a pilgrimage and right of passage for a young member of the Party.
The Post then transitions into a section of the article that could very easily be mistaken for a recruitment advertisement for the CCP, promising better housing, better lives, and even better marriage for members of the Party. Those who do not join will face hardships in the communist nation, the author wrote.
Party membership means better education prospects and better jobs, more politically advantageous marriages and nicer apartments. For many, it is a ticket to a brighter future.
“If you want an important job, or even to work in a university or a social organization, if you’re not a party member, you won’t be promoted,” said Zheng Yongnian, a Chinese political scientist who teaches at the National University of Singapore. “Plus, young people these days are quite nationalistic, so they are choosing to join the party.”
Some 80 percent of recruits last year were younger than 35, according to official party statistics.
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With only sparing criticism about how difficult membership could be to attain and how General Secretary Xi Jinping has required more ideology purity throughout his command of the CCP, the article lays out a promising future for the dutiful communists of the world's most populous nation.
Of course, the Post had plenty of criticism for the United States leadership. China, for all its flaws, had COVID-19 under control, the newspapers asserted. Secretary Pompeo and President Trump both exhibited fear of being overtaken by China on a global level, the report says, hence their harsh words against the Party.
"This just shows that they fear a stronger Communist Party and a stronger China after we showed our might in the battle against the coronavirus epidemic," Communist Party School professor Wang Wei told the Post.
Completely absent from the newspaper's glowing report of joining the CCP for the youth of China, however, was any mention of the atrocities the Party has committed on the people of China. As the controlling party of China sterilizes the Uhygur Muslims, imprisons them for their faith, and murders them, the Washington Post suggests the children of China join the ranks of the oppressors.
Nevermind that Bejing ordered the imprisonment of anyone speaking out against the agenda of the CCP and the disenfranchisement of their whole families when there's a chance to punch at the president. Forget that China lied to the world about the release of a deadly novel virus that has now taken the lives of millions and crippled the global economy.
The Washington Post was under fire in 2011 for publishing sponsored inlays of English language propaganda from the Chinese Communist Party. The embedded articles seemed carefully planted to look like they belonged on the newspaper's website as a blog called "China Watch." Only small lettering off to the side of the page noted that the alarming pro-CCP material was not published by the Washington Post, they had only taken money to make it look like they published it.
This time, the Washington Post is responsible for every word.
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