Forced closure of liberal magazine harms China’s image
Yanhuang Chunqiu had a readership of only 200,000 and was backed by Communist Party elders, yet its editorial team has been purged
Amid a sustained crackdown on dissent on the mainland and an increasingly conservative ideological tone, enduring exceptions stand out. One has been the magazine Yanhuang Chunqiu, a platform for liberal voices. Founded 25 years ago by party elders and backed by retired senior officials, it has wielded influence beyond its 200,000 readers.
Now one of its founders, 92-year-old Du Daozheng, has announced its closure after being sacked as publisher in a sweeping reshuffle initiated by its state overseer, an academy of the Ministry of Culture. He said he did this because he and other executives were worried the new team would depart from the magazine’s core value – to uphold the spirit of reform and opening up advocated by late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平). This will dismay many who see Yanhuang Chunqiu as a steady flagship of liberal views regardless of official tolerance of dissenting voices from time to time. No reasons were advanced for the reshuffle, just that Du was “too old”, which suggests it was well planned and endorsed by higher authorities.
