The "three falsehoods" must be cracked down hard, and the problems still need to be thoroughly investigated

Li Yuchen

On December 7, the office of the National Working Group on "Eliminating Pornography and Cracking Down on Illegal Activities" exposed 12 typical cases of fake media, fake journalist stations, and fake journalists (referred to as "three fakes") infringing on the interests of the masses and interfering with grass-roots social order. These cases were screened from the cases seized by the "Autumn Wind 2021" special campaign against news extortion and fake news across the country, with the intention of exposing illegal acts and demonstrating the effectiveness of the crackdown.

News extortion and fake news represented by the "three falsehoods" are social public nuisances. The departments concerned have always maintained a high-pressure posture in view of some collective or individual illegal acts such as opening media organizations in violation of the law, operating in violation of regulations, carrying out news extortion in the name of public opinion supervision, and maliciously creating and speculating for economic benefits; they have checked every clue discovered by monitoring and reported by the masses one by one, used administrative punishment and criminal accountability and other means to severely crack down on it according to law, promptly investigated and dealt with a number of "three false" cases, formed a powerful deterrent, and maintained the normal order of news publication and dissemination.

Among the typical cases exposed this time, from the "Direct Connection to Hainan Case", "Dandong Case" and "2.26 Case" in Suzhou, which impersonated regular media to engage in news interview activities, to the so-called "Supervision and Reporting" of Shuozhou "4.30 Case", the "China Record Case" in Huangshi, and the "6.12 Case" in Hancheng, the operation methods are all similar. Taking advantage of people's full trust in news organizations and journalists, the relevant personnel have seized the psychological needs of some localities, units, and enterprises that are eager to publicize a positive image and are anxious to deal with negative public opinion, as well as the practical needs of some individuals seeking expressions and even solutions to urgent and difficult problems.

Take the case of Henan Lu Mouyou and others relying on fake media extortion as an example: since 2017, criminal suspect Lu Mouyou has created self-media network platforms such as "Golden Eagle Express", gathered Tian mouyou and others to impersonate journalists, published negative articles on the Internet on the grounds of reporting and exposing relevant enterprises to damage the environment and illegal production, and used the need to pay fees for deleting articles as a means to carry out 28 news extortion crimes, involving an amount of 551,000 yuan. The "three falsehoods" target problems, deficiencies, or relevant illegal problems in the work of grass-roots governments and enterprises, blackmail and extort money by exposing and publishing negative news, tarnish the purity, authority, and credibility of news propaganda, seriously interfere with grass-roots work, and undermine social order and good customs.

The results of the relevant departments in cracking down on the "three falsehoods" are obvious to all, which fully demonstrates the zero-tolerance attitude toward this social repercussion that is strong and the public deeply hates chaos. At the same time, we must also realize that in order to fundamentally eliminate this stubborn disease, it is also necessary to treat both the symptoms and the root causes in many ways.

In their daily work, leading cadres at all levels should adhere to the work style of seeking truth from facts and facing difficulties head-on, persist in doing practical things for the masses of the people sincerely, unremittingly do good deeds, and do their best to solve difficulties. Only by not avoiding the shortcomings and problems that arise in our work and not prevaricating in the face of the masses' urgent difficulties and anxieties can we make the "three falsehoods" have no room to exploit. In view of all kinds of problems that may arise in government work and enterprise operations, it is necessary to smooth the channels for reporting and reporting the situation, speed up the speed of improving work and investigating and handling problems, and increase the intensity of making up for loopholes and holding people accountable according to law, so that the "three falsehoods" have no advantage to take advantage of.

At the same time, it is necessary to further enhance the media literacy of the whole society. Through a more perfect information disclosure inquiry system, the public can easily identify the truth and falsity of the media and their reporters. Through flexible and diverse training and guidance, the public has the ability to obtain true and effective information in the media environment, so that the "three falses" cannot fish in muddy waters.

People applaud the results of the relevant departments in cracking down on the "three fakes, and they hope to see that the relevant problems involved in the "three fakes" can be properly resolved. Only by eradicating the soil for the survival of the "three falsehoods" can the interests of the masses and the social order at the grass-roots level be more effectively guaranteed.