On October 1st, various organizations such as Taiwan Public Policy and Taiwan Think Tank jointly held a symposium to discuss the topic “China’s High-Filter Image – The Truth and Illusion behind Image Engineering”. Scholars and experts were invited to participate in the discussion.
The host, Zhang Zhuqin, Director of the North American Taiwan Research Association, stated that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been putting great effort into building its image, but the actual image and the truth are vastly different, which is truly astonishing. It is crucial for people to deeply understand the purpose, tactics, and influence of the CCP’s image engineering in order to avoid being deceived.
Researcher Chen Xi’an from Taiwan Think Tank pointed out that “image engineering” refers to a country or organization systematically and intentionally creating the image they want the outside world to see. The purpose of the CCP’s image engineering is to internally maintain the legitimacy of its regime, fostering narratives of the “Chinese Dream” and the “Great Rejuvenation”, while externally attempting to downplay the threat the CCP poses to democratic systems and the world order, creating a trustworthy image of a major power. In the long term, it aims to challenge Western narratives and establish an international perspective belonging to the CCP.
Chen Xi’an analyzed that unlike other countries that mainly use cultural diplomacy and international propaganda to build their national brand image, the CCP’s image engineering is a top-down political project, integrating politics, culture, and diplomacy, sometimes mobilizing the entire country, and controlling content direction through strict censorship and punishment mechanisms.
Chen Xi’an emphasized that excessive packaging and lack of external supervision make it difficult for the outside world to discern how much truth there is in the image and information being projected by the CCP. The CCP’s image engineering carries a strong political agenda, not just for mere national brand marketing, but possibly involving information manipulation, challenging the international order, and interfering with democratic systems, which deserves high attention from the international community.
Professor Tan Weien from Sinica International Political Institute bluntly stated that the unique aspect of the CCP’s maintenance of its image is that this grand project is government-led and involves the entire nation, yet the results have been counterproductive. The immense resource investment has brought about significant opportunity costs and misallocation of resources, squeezing out other projects.
Tan Weien believes that the CCP’s efforts have been too forceful and have resulted in unintended consequences. For instance, the excessive dispatch of artists overseas by the CCP for performances has led to suspicions among overseas audiences about its motives due to their frequent appearances. Additionally, the Confucius Institutes, which could have promoted Chinese language education, have terminated cooperation with universities worldwide because the CCP has enforced the promotion of its political ideology through them.
Associate Professor Dai Yuhui from the Communication Department of Yangming University pointed out that since Xi Jinping came to power, economic growth has slowed down, and social instability has increased, necessitating the need for the “Chinese Dream” and the “Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation” to unify society. Beyond the familiar media acquisitions in Taiwan, the CCP government has also strengthened ideological governance with positive energy and patriotism, even permeating into entertainment programs, spreading from CCP-style hip-hop to CCP-style democracy, promoting Xi Jinping’s “Chinese model”.
Dai Yuhui mentioned that the CCP’s approach to narrowing the gap with Taiwan has shifted from the “bloodline China” discourse to the focus on the younger generation’s lifestyle with “cultural China”, coupled with AI elements and short video dissemination, to shape the trend of “national style”. Many short videos on Xiaohongshu—regardless of whether the theme is beauty or cooking—also incorporate patriotic and anti-Japanese information, leading viewers with different interests to unconsciously absorb the CCP government’s promoted ideology.
After the discussion, the host and the youth raised questions such as “united front tourism”, “the superiority of authoritarian systems?”, “Is representative democracy chaotic?”, “the difference between authoritarianism and totalitarianism”, with the participants deeply analyzing and answering each one.