Maoists print newspaper to spread views after Utopia website shut

Faced with the shutdown of leading leftist websites earlier this year, supporters of the late Mao Zedong are spreading their views the old-fashioned way: printing a newspaper.

A small but dedicated group of Maoists have for the past six months printed and distributed an eight-page monthly newsletter to promote the ideas of the Communist Party patriarch. Its circulation remains small - about 100 copies - but is still likely to worry authorities jittery about any re-emergence of hardline party ideology.

The newspaper, China Maozedong Paper, which began free delivery to retired cadres and military personnel in May, is attempting to pick up where mainland-based Maoist websites, such as Utopia and Maoflag, left off.

The websites were abruptly shut down in the wake of Bo Xilai's removal as Chongqing party boss in March amid a sprawling murder and corruption scandal. Bo's promotion of Mao-era culture, such as his controversial "red songs" campaign, had made him a darling of party hardliners, and some in Beijing feared he might attempt to harness that support in a play for power.

Unlike the now defunct websites - which would publish articles critical of the business-friendly central government - the new newspaper eschews contemporary politics and focuses on the life, history and philosophy of Mao.

One recent issue featured a piece summing up Mao's achievements and claimed there was no corruption, prostitution or drug trafficking during his 27-year reign. Another article said China suffered a "great loss" when the party turned against Mao after his death in 1976.

"The media does not convey a correct perception of Mao," said a source close to the newspaper. But he added: "There would be a lot of trouble for the paper if we did things like Utopia did. We will not use Mao to comment on the current government."