Tuo Zhen
庹震
President of the People's Daily
Assumed office
October 2020
Preceded byLi Baoshan
Chief Editor of the People's Daily
Assumed office
April 2018
PresidentLi Baoshan→Himself
Preceded byLi Baoshan
Deputy Head of the Publicity Department of the Central Committee
In office
July 2015 – March 2018
HeadLiu Qibao→Huang Kunming
Head of the Propaganda Department of Guangdong
In office
May 2012 – July 2015
Party SecretaryWang Yang → Hu Chunhua
Preceded byLin Xiong
Succeeded byShen Haixiong
Personal details
Born (1959-09-09) 9 September 1959 (age 64)[1]
Nanyang, Henan, China
Political partyChinese Communist Party
Alma materWuhan University

Tuo Zhen (Chinese: 庹震; pinyin: Tuǒ Zhèn; born 9 September 1959) is a Chinese official, serving the Chief Editor and President of the People's Daily, the official mouthpiece of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party since April 2018. From July 2015 to March 2018 he as the deputy head of the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Tuo is the former provincial propaganda chief of Guangdong, during which he was widely known for his involvement in the 2013 Southern Weekly incident. He has also served as the vice-president of the state-run Xinhua News Agency.[2]

Biography

Tuo Zhen was born in Fangcheng County, Henan province, in 1959.[2] His family name is extremely rare. In 1978, Tuo Zhen was admitted to Wuhan University, majoring in political economics.[2] After graduating from university in 1982, he was assigned to work as an editor for the Economic Daily.[2] In 2005, he was promoted to chief editor.[2] In 2011, he was transferred to become vice president of Xinhua News Agency.[2] In May 2012, Tuo Zhen was transferred to Guangdong province, named a member of the provincial Party Standing Committee, and head of the Guangdong Propaganda Department.[2]

In January 2013, it is reported that under the command of Tuo Zhen, Guangdong liberal newspaper Southern Weekly was forced to add a provided commentary glorifying the CCP with its annual new year editorial, which was originally intended to call for proper implementation of the country's constitution.[3][4] This action provoked many Southern Weekly reporters and intellectuals (include Mao Yushi, Zhang Yihe, Li Chengpeng, Zhang Sizhi, He Weifang, Leung Man-tao, Cai Ziqiang, Jiang Mingxiu, etc.) to criticize Tuo and call for his position.[4] Over the period of a few weeks, nearly a dozen drafts were circulated between editors and propaganda officials under Tuo; ultimately the final article had evolved to look nothing like the original draft.[5]

In July 2015, Tuo Zhen was promoted to deputy head of the CCP Central Propaganda Department, serving as an assistant to Liu Qibao.[6][7]

In April 2018, Tuo was appointed as the Chief Editor of the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the CCP Central Committee.[8] In November 2020, he was appointed President of the People's Daily, replacing Li Baoshan.[9]

See also

Works

References

  1. ^ Tuo Zhen (1998). 《全天候记者怎么当》 (in Chinese). China Development Press. p. Brief introduction to the author. ISBN 9787800872624. 庹震，河南方城人，生于1959年9月9日
  2. ^ a b c d e f g 庹震同志简历. People's Daily (in Chinese). 2012-05-05.
  3. ^ "Outrage at Guangdong newspaper forced to run party commentary". South China Morning Post. 2013-01-04. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  4. ^ a b "Southern Weekly reporters confront China censors". BBC News. 2013-01-04. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  5. ^ 两岸学者联署促罢免广东宣传部长. BBC (in Chinese). Retrieved 2013-01-06.
  6. ^ 广东宣传部长庹震进京，有何玄机？. sina (in Chinese). 2015-07-18.
  7. ^ 海外网：庹震任中宣部副部长体现中央肯定 南周事件考验智慧. Sxdsb.voc.com.cn (in Chinese). 2015-07-18.
  8. ^ 李宝善任人民日报社长 庹震任总编辑. Phoenix Television (in Chinese). 2018-04-03.
  9. ^ Yue Huairang (岳怀让) (20 October 2020). 庹震已任人民日报社社长、总编辑. The Paper (in Chinese). Retrieved 14 November 2020.
Party political offices Preceded byLin Xiong Head of the Propaganda Department of Guangdong Province 2012–2015 Succeeded byShen Haixiong Preceded byLi Baoshan Chief Editor of the People's Daily 2018– Incumbent Previous:Li Baoshan President of the People's Daily October 2020 Incumbent
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