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1 Introduction

Amid the accelerating profound changes unseen in a century, the global cultural landscape has grown unprecedentedly complex, and cultural exchanges and ideological competitions have intensified at the same time. This environment makes the protection of cultural sovereignty a critical issue for national cultural security and cultural and spiritual identity. Concurrently, the people’s growing and diverse spiritual and cultural needs in the new era propel the development of new-quality cultural productivity. Therefore, a critical theoretical challenge for China’s cultural construction today is how to safeguard cultural sovereignty while actively participating in global cultural exchanges and mutual learning. This paper offers a preliminary exploration of this dynamic, drawing on Marxist classics and related cultural thought, in the hope of providing one possible perspective for understanding the theoretical logic and practical pathways concerning discussions on cultural development in the new era.

2 Theoretical Basis

In their research on the laws of human social development, Marxist classic writers have profoundly expounded the inherent connection between culture and productive forces, thus forming the Marxist cultural theory. Marxism holds that culture, as an important part of the superstructure, is determined by a certain economic base and in turn reacts on the economic base. As an important part of social productive forces, cultural productive forces are the ability of human beings to create value and meet their own spiritual and cultural needs in the field of spiritual production. Its core connotation is reflected in the creative vitality embodied in the entire process of cultural production, communication and consumption. Cultural productive forces and material productive forces promote each other and are dialectically unified, jointly promoting the all-round development of society.

Leaders of China in all dynasties have always attached great importance to cultural construction and formed a series of important expositions on cultural development. Based on the national conditions and the requirements of the times in different historical periods, these expositions have profoundly clarified the important position, objectives, tasks and practical paths of cultural construction, emphasized the important role of culture in uniting the national spirit, promoting social progress and safeguarding national interests, and provided important ideological guidance and action guidelines for the development of China’s cultural productive forces and the safeguarding of cultural sovereignty.

2.1 Core Connotations of Marxist Cultural Theory and Cultural Productive Forces Theory

Marxism holds that culture, as an important part of the superstructure, is determined by the economic base and reacts on it, and cultural productive forces, as an important component of social productive forces, are the ability of human beings to create value and meet their own spiritual needs in the field of spiritual production. Marx pointed out that “The mode of production of material life conditions the general process of social, political and mental life.”(Marx & Engels, 2009) Cultural production and material production are dialectically unified, jointly promoting social progress. Engels further emphasized that “the development of politics, law, philosophy, religion, literature, art and so on is based on economic development, but they all interact with each other and act on the economic base”, clarifying the dynamic role of cultural productive forces in social development.

In leading the socialist revolution and construction, Lenin enriched Marxist cultural theories. Lenin held that the construction of socialist culture must adhere to the guiding position of Marxism and critically inherit the outstanding cultural achievements of humanity. “Proletarian culture should be the logical development of all knowledge created by mankind under the oppression of capitalist, feudal landlord and bureaucratic societies.” At the same time, attention should be paid to the popularization of culture, making culture an important tool for mobilizing, organizing and educating the masses, which has defined the direction and principles for the development of cultural productive forces.

Chinese Communists have combined the Marxist cultural theory with China’s reality and formed a consistent ideological system of cultural construction.

Comrade Mao Zedong (1991) put forward the cultural policy of “Let a hundred flowers blossom and a hundred schools of thought contend”, emphasizing that culture should serve the people and the revolutionary war, and attaching importance to the unity of the revolutionary nature and popular character of culture. He pointed out that “revolutionary culture is a powerful weapon for the people. Before the revolution, it is the ideological preparation for the revolution; in the revolution, it is a necessary and important front in the general revolutionary front”, highlighting the important role of culture in the revolution and construction, and laying the ideological foundation for the development of cultural productive forces.

Since the reform and opening up, Comrade Deng Xiaoping has attached great importance to the coordinated development of cultural construction and economic construction, put forward the important proposition of building socialist spiritual civilization, emphasized the principle of “Grasp both hands and make both hands strong”, and advocated vigorously developing education, science and cultural undertakings while developing the economy, so as to improve the ideological and moral quality and scientific and cultural quality of the whole nation. Comrade Deng Xiaoping pointed out that “while building a high level of material civilization, we should raise the scientific and cultural level of the whole nation, develop a noble and rich cultural life, and build a high level of socialist spiritual civilization”. This exposition has clarified the dialectical relationship between the development of cultural productive forces and material productive forces, and promoted the reform, opening up and prosperity of the cultural field.

Comrade Jiang Zemin (2001) put forward the important thought of the “Three Represents”, taking “representing the orientation of the advanced culture of China” as an important content, emphasizing the need to “develop a socialist culture for modernization, the world and the future, and that is national, scientific and popular”, attaching importance to the unity of cultural innovation and cultural inheritance, promoting the coordinated development of cultural undertakings and cultural industries, and further enriching the connotations of Marxist cultural theory and cultural productive forces theory.

Comrade Hu Jintao (2007) put forward the Scientific Outlook on Development, emphasizing that cultural construction should adhere to people-oriented, meet people’s growing spiritual and cultural needs, and promote the great development and prosperity of culture. He pointed out that “we must adhere to the orientation of advanced socialist culture, set off a new upsurge in socialist cultural construction, stimulate the cultural creativity of the whole nation, and enhance national cultural soft power”, attaching importance to the unity of social and economic benefits of culture, and providing important guidance for the sustainable development of cultural productive forces. These theoretical achievements have laid a solid foundation for the development of new quality cultural productive forces and the safeguarding of cultural sovereignty.

While attaching importance to cultural productive forces, in terms of ideological work, Marxist classic writers and Chinese Communists have always emphasized the importance of ideology. Marx and Engels held that the ideas of the ruling class are the ruling ideas in each era. As an important part of the superstructure, ideology has a distinct class nature. It is an important tool for safeguarding the interests and consolidating the ruling position of the ruling class. Lenin emphasized that the proletarian party must firmly grasp the leadership of ideological work and consolidate the guiding position of Marxism through strengthening ideological publicity and education.

In the process of revolution, construction and reform, Chinese Communists have always attached great importance to ideological work. Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out that grasping ideological education is the central link for uniting the whole Party to carry out great political struggles, emphasizing the need to strengthen ideological and political work and consolidate the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological field. Comrade Deng Xiaoping emphasized putting ideological and political work in a very important position. In the face of the complex domestic and international situation, we must adhere to the Four Cardinal Principles and oppose various erroneous trends of thought. Comrade Jiang Zemin held that in the ideological field, if Marxism and proletarian ideas do not occupy the positions, various non-Marxist, non-proletarian ideological trends and even anti-Marxist ideological trends will do so. Therefore, he required a firm grasp of the leadership of ideological work. Comrade Hu Jintao emphasized that ideological work is an extremely important work of the Party, which needs to strengthen the guidance of mainstream ideological and public opinion, and consolidate the common ideological foundation for the unity and struggle of the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups in the country. These theoretical achievements have provided rich ideological nourishment and theoretical support for the development of new quality cultural productive forces and the safeguarding of cultural sovereignty in the new era.

2.2 Core Essentials of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture and the Guidance of Ideological Work

Xi Jinping Thought on Culture is the latest achievement of Marxist cultural theory and a comprehensive summary and innovation of the previous Marxist cultural theory. It “enriches and develops the Marxist cultural theory and is the ideological system and practical program for cultural construction in the new era”(Zhao, 2025). Based on the overall development of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, Xi Jinping Thought on Culture and General Secretary Xi Jinping’s theoretical guidance on ideological work are rich in connotation and profound in ideology, “which not only emphasizes promoting the construction of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics in the new era from the cultural level, but also reveals a new form of human civilization created by the Chinese Path to Modernization from the civilizational level”. Its core essentials are mainly reflected in the following aspects:

Uphold Cultural Confidence and consolidate the spiritual foundation for cultural development. Cultural Confidence is a more fundamental, broader and deeper confidence, and a more basic, profound and lasting force in the development of a country and a nation. “Fine Traditional Chinese Culture is the spiritual lifeline of the Chinese nation, an important source for cultivating the Core Socialist Values, and a solid foundation for us to stand firm in the turbulence of world culture.” Xi Jinping Thought on Culture emphasizes the need to deeply understand the contemporary value of the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, Revolutionary Culture and Advanced Socialist Culture, inherit and carry forward the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, inherit and develop the Revolutionary Culture, develop and innovate the Advanced Socialist Culture, enhance national pride and cultural identity, guide cultural development with Cultural Confidence, and provide correct theoretical guidance and strong spiritual motivation for the development of new quality cultural productive forces.

Guide cultural construction with Core Socialist Values and consolidate Marxist ideology. The Core Socialist Values are the concentrated embodiment of the contemporary Chinese spirit and embody the common value pursuit of all people. Xi Jinping Thought on Culture emphasizes that cultivating and practicing the Core Socialist Values should be regarded as a fundamental project for fostering the soul, gathering energy, strengthening the foundation and solidifying the roots, which should be integrated into the whole process of national education, the creation of spiritual civilization, and the creation and production of cultural products, and run through all aspects of social life. Through various ways such as education and guidance, public opinion publicity, cultural edification, practical cultivation and institutional guarantee, the Core Socialist Values are internalized into people’s spiritual pursuit and externalized into people’s conscious actions, so as to continuously consolidate the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological field and the common ideological foundation for the unity and struggle of the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups in the country.

Adhere to benefiting the people through culture and meet people’s growing spiritual and cultural needs. Putting people at the center is the fundamental stance of cultural construction. Xi Jinping Thought on Culture emphasizes that cultural development should take meeting people’s spiritual and cultural needs as the starting point and goal, “so that the people can enjoy a more substantial, richer and higher-quality spiritual and cultural life”. We must adhere to the principles of public welfare, basic-orientation, equality and accessibility, and upgrade the public cultural service system while improving its service efficiency, promote the standardization, generalization and equalization of basic public cultural services, and protect people’s basic cultural rights and interests. At the same time, we must adapt to people’s diversified, multi-level and diverse cultural needs, promote the cultural market, enrich the supply of cultural products and services, improve the quality of cultural products and services, and let the people share the fruits of cultural development.

Promote the coordinated development of cultural undertakings and cultural industries and enhance the overall cultural strength. Cultural undertakings and cultural industries are two important aspects of cultural construction, which complement each other and are dialectically unified. Xi Jinping Thought on Culture emphasizes the need to persist in promoting the all-round prosperity of cultural undertakings and the rapid development of cultural industries. On the one hand, we should increase investment in cultural undertakings, strengthen the protection, inheritance and utilization of cultural heritage, support the development of philosophy and social sciences, press and publication, radio, film and television, literature and art, and launch more excellent cultural products with profound ideas, exquisite art and sophisticated production. On the other hand, we should deepen the reform of the cultural system, improve cultural industry policies, cultivate and expand cultural market players, promote the optimization and upgrading of the cultural industrial structure, promote the in-depth integration of culture with science and technology, finance, tourism and other industries, improve the large-scale, intensive and professional level of the cultural industry, and enhance the overall strength and competitiveness of the cultural industry.

Strengthen the construction and management of ideological positions and safeguard ideological security. Ideological security is an important part of national security. Xi Jinping Thought on Culture emphasizes the need to firmly grasp the leadership, management and discourse power of ideological work, adhere to the correct orientation of public opinion, attach great importance to the construction and innovation of communication means, and improve the communication power, guidance, influence and credibility of news and public opinion. We should strengthen the construction and management of all types of ideological positions, including news and public opinion positions, network positions and cultural positions, adhere to the Party’s leadership over publicity, ideological work and the media, and clearly oppose and resist all kinds of wrong views. We should strengthen the governance of cyberspace, create a clear cyberspace, manage the network in accordance with the law, crack down on illegal and illegitimate acts such as online rumors and cyber violence, and safeguard the ideological security of the network. At the same time, we should strengthen the construction of international communication capacity, tell Chinese stories well, spread Chinese voices, present a credible, lovable and respectable image of China, enhance the international influence and appeal of Chinese culture, and effectively respond to external ideological infiltration.

Promote the creative transformation and innovative development of Chinese culture and enhance cultural vitality. Creative transformation means transforming the connotations and forms that still have reference value according to the characteristics and requirements of the times, endowing them with new contemporary connotations and modern expression forms, and activating their vitality. Innovative development means supplementing, expanding and improving the connotations of the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture in accordance with the new progress and development of the times, and enhancing its influence and appeal. Xi Jinping Thought on Culture emphasizes the need to handle the relationship between inheritance and innovation, for cultural construction, upholding the fundamental principles ensures that we will not lose ourselves or our direction. At the same time, on the basis of inheriting the essence of the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, we should carry out cultural innovation in combination with the new requirements of the development of the times, launch cultural products and services that conform to the trend of the times and have Chinese characteristics, and continuously enhance the vitality and influence of Chinese culture.

2.3 Developing New Quality Cultural Productive Forces is the Key to Implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Culture and Consolidating the Discourse Power of Ideology

There is an inherent logical connection between developing new quality cultural productive forces, implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Culture and consolidating the discourse power of ideology, and the three promote each other and are organically unified.

New-Quality Cultural Productive Forces take scientific and technological innovation as the core driving force and digitalization, networking and intelligence as important characteristics, which is an innovative development form of cultural productive forces in the new era. Developing new quality cultural productive forces can provide strong technical support and practical carriers for the implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture. For example, the application of new technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence and virtual reality can innovate the production, communication and consumption methods of cultural products and services, enrich the content and forms of cultural products and services, improve the quality and efficiency of cultural products and services, better meet people’s diversified, multi-level and diverse spiritual and cultural needs, and promote the implementation of the concept of benefiting the people through culture. At the same time, developing new quality cultural productive forces can promote the in-depth integration and high-quality development of cultural undertakings and cultural industries, expand the scale of the cultural industry, enhance the competitiveness of the cultural industry, strengthen the overall cultural strength, and lay a solid material foundation for the cultivation and promotion of Cultural Confidence. The scientific and truthful nature of Marxism is fully embodied in the formation and advancement of the Chinese Path to Modernization.

Developing new, quality, culturally productive forces is also an inevitable requirement for consolidating the discourse power of ideology. “The essence of ideological discourse power is the ideological discourse power of Marxist ideology in the new era”, which essentially requires that the development of new quality cultural productive forces must adhere to the guiding position of Marxism. The consolidation of the discourse power of ideology lies in the attraction, appeal and influence of the mainstream ideological culture. Developing new quality cultural productive forces is an effective path and means to consolidate the discourse power of ideology. On the one hand, the development of new quality cultural productive forces can promote the innovative expression and effective communication of the mainstream ideology. Through digital, visual and interactive communication methods, the content of mainstream ideological culture such as the Core Socialist Values and the latest achievements of the adaptation of Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times is integrated into cultural products and services, and disseminated in a form popular among the people, enhancing the affinity, appeal and persuasiveness of the mainstream ideological culture, and making the mainstream ideology more easily accepted and recognized by the people. On the other hand, the development of new quality cultural productive forces can enhance the international competitiveness and influence of Chinese culture, break the monopoly of Western cultural hegemony and resist its ideological infiltration, promote the spread of Chinese culture to the world, spread Chinese voices, tell Chinese stories well, enhance the international discourse power of Chinese culture, effectively resist the infiltration of external harmful culture and ideology, and safeguard national cultural sovereignty and ideological security.

At the same time, Xi Jinping Thought on Culture provides the fundamental guideline and value guidance for the development of new quality cultural productive forces, ensuring that the development of new quality cultural productive forces always moves forward in the correct direction. The consolidation of the discourse power of ideology also creates a good social environment and public opinion atmosphere for the development of new quality cultural productive forces, condenses social consensus, stimulates the cultural creativity of the whole society, and provides strong spiritual motivation and ideological guarantee for the development of new quality cultural productive forces.

Therefore, we can say that developing new quality cultural productive forces is a key measure to implement Xi Jinping Thought on Culture and consolidate the discourse power of ideology. The three are unified in the great practice of building socialist culture with Chinese characteristics in the new era.

3 Practical Problems

Against the background of the in-depth advancement of globalization and the accelerated social transformation in China, China’s cultural field has ushered in development opportunities for the exchange and mutual learning of diverse civilizations. It is also facing complex and severe challenges and in-depth development demands. The practice of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics presents distinct features of a complex and volatile external environment, a mixed picture of internal development, and an urgent and arduous development mission. Externally, Western cultural hegemony and discourse hegemony continue to expand, the means of ideological infiltration are becoming increasingly hidden and diverse, and various erroneous trends of thought are infiltrating and spreading in the launched cultural products, which pose a continuous impact on China’s cultural sovereignty, ideological security and mainstream values, and the exchanges and struggles in the cultural field present unprecedented complexity. Internally, China’s cultural productive forces have made remarkable achievements in the construction of the public cultural service system, the expansion of the cultural industry scale and the stimulation of cultural innovation vitality, laying a solid foundation for cultural development. However, there are also some problems. The supply quality and level of cultural products and services are still difficult to fully match people’s growing, diversified spiritual and cultural needs. In this context, enhancing cultural productive forces is not only an inherent requirement to respond to people’s spiritual and cultural demands and enhance the national spiritual strength, but also a strategic choice to resist external cultural erosion, safeguard national cultural security and firmly grasp the initiative of cultural development, and its practical urgency is becoming increasingly prominent. This chapter will carry out a specific analysis around the above external challenges, internal status quo and practical urgency, providing a realistic basis for the subsequent exploration of the path suggestions for developing new quality cultural productive forces.

3.1 The Increasingly Fierce International Cultural Exchanges and Ideological Struggles

With the in-depth development of globalization, international exchanges in the cultural field are becoming increasingly frequent, and the exchange and mutual learning between different civilizations are deepening. At the same time, competition in the cultural field and ideological struggles are becoming increasingly complex and fierce. “In the process of constructing and consolidating the hegemonic system worldwide, Western countries have taken competitive means represented by cultural wars as an extremely important means”, bringing many challenges to China’s cultural sovereignty and ideological security.

From the perspective of the trend of cultural exchanges, Western developed countries represented by the United States occupy a dominant position in the global cultural market by virtue of their international status and economic and technological advantages, forming the so-called “Western Discourse Hegemony”, which “squeezes the living space of non-hegemonic discourses and constantly makes them lose their voice and become marginalized”. Western cultural products such as movies, TV programs, music and books are widely spread around the world, and the values, lifestyles and ways of thinking contained in them are also infiltrated into all parts of the world. Some Western countries take cultural products as an important tool for ideological infiltration, and through cultural export, advocate Western “universal values”, attempt to judge the development paths and institutional models of all countries in the world by Western value standards, and dispel the cultural identity and ideological foundation of other countries. This kind of cultural infiltration has the characteristics of concealment, long-term and complexity, which continuously impacts China’s mainstream ideology and affects people’s value judgment and cultural identity.

In the ideological field, various social trends of thought interweave and surge, and the struggle situation is difficult and complex. Western hostile forces have never given up their attempt to carry out ideological infiltration against China, and spread erroneous trends of thought such as Historical Nihilism, Cultural Nihilism, Neoliberalism and Democratic Socialism through various channels and ways, in an attempt to shake the guiding position of Marxism in China’s ideological field and subvert China’s socialist system. Historical nihilism distorts and negates the history of the Chinese revolution, the development history of New China and the history of the CPC (CPC), smears heroes and martyrs, and confuses historical right and wrong. Cultural nihilism negates the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, Revolutionary Culture and Advanced Socialist Culture, and advocates total Westernization. Neoliberalism advocates economic liberalization, privatization and marketization, opposes state intervention, and attempts to change China’s basic economic and political systems. Democratic socialism advocates the diversification of guiding ideologies, political pluralism and economic privatization, negating the guiding position of Marxism and the leadership of the CPC. These erroneous trends of thought are spread through lectures, editorials, talk shows, films and television, animations, games and other ways, which seriously disrupt the social ideological order, erode the ideological foundation of the mainstream ideology, and pose a serious threat to China’s ideological security.

In addition, with the rapid development of information technology, cyberspace has become the primary position, main battlefield and forefront of ideological struggles. Taking advantage of their advantages in network technology and special fund support, Western hostile forces spread a large amount of false information and negative public opinions, create social contradictions, incite group opposition, stir up discontent, and attempt to undermine China’s social stability and national security. The openness, anonymity and instantaneity of cyberspace make the spread of erroneous trends of thought and harmful information faster and wider, bringing huge challenges to China’s ideological security and cultural sovereignty.

Faced with such a turbulent and complex external environment, China’s cultural field is facing a severe test. How to resist the impact of Western cultural hegemony and safeguard national cultural sovereignty in the process of actively participating in global cultural exchanges; how to consolidate the guiding position of Marxism and lay a solid ideological foundation for the mainstream ideology in the fierce struggles in the ideological field have become important issues that must be faced and solved in cultural construction in the new era.

3.2 Achievements and Challenges of China’s Current Cultural Construction

Since socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, against the background of the increasingly fierce global cultural integration and competition and the upgrading of domestic spiritual and cultural needs, China’s cultural construction has made a series of phased achievements in practice. It has also exposed some problems that are not fully adapted to the requirements of the times and development needs. These problems not only affect the enabling role of cultural productive forces in economic and social development, but also, to a certain extent, weaken the practical effectiveness of China’s cultural sovereignty safeguarding and ideological security guarantee, becoming practical challenges that must be addressed in cultural construction in the new era.

3.2.1 Achievements of China’s Cultural Construction

In recent years, China has attached great importance to cultural construction, vigorously developed cultural productive forces, made remarkable achievements in cultural undertakings and cultural industries, and the level of cultural productive forces has been continuously improved.

In terms of cultural undertakings, the public cultural service system has been continuously improved. China has increased investment in public cultural undertakings, built a number of landmark public cultural facilities such as the National Library of China, the National Museum of China, cultural centers and art galleries. The network of grass-roots public cultural facilities has been continuously improved, realizing full coverage of the three-level public cultural service system at the county, township and village levels. The content of public cultural services has been continuously enriched, the number of free open public cultural venues has been increasing, and various cultural activities have been booming, such as mass cultural and art festivals, reading festivals, and opera going to the countryside, meeting people’s basic cultural needs. Important progress has been made in the protection, inheritance and utilization of cultural heritage. A great deal of cultural and intangible cultural heritage has been effectively protected and rationally utilized, and the inheritance and influence of Chinese culture have been continuously enhanced.

In terms of the cultural industry, the industrial scale has been continuously expanded, and the industrial structure has been continuously optimized. The added value of China’s cultural industry has maintained steady growth, making the cultural industry a key growth driver of the national economy. The categories of the cultural industry have become increasingly complete, forming an industrial system covering press and publication, radio, film and television, literature and art, cultural tourism, cultural creativity, digital culture and many other fields. The integrated development of culture with science and technology, finance, tourism and other industries has been continuously deepened, and the Digital Cultural Industry has risen rapidly, such as online games, online literature, online film and television, and digital music, becoming new highlights in the development of the cultural industry. Cultural market players have been continuously strengthened, a number of powerful cultural enterprise groups with strong competitiveness have emerged, and the level of intensification and large-scale operation of the cultural industry has been continuously improved. The export scale of China’s cultural products and services has been continuously expanded, the international influence of Chinese culture has been continuously enhanced, and its share in the global cultural market has gradually increased.

In terms of cultural innovation, the innovation capacity has been continuously improved and innovative achievements have emerged one after another. China has vigorously promoted the reform of the cultural system, broken the institutional and institutional obstacles restricting the development of cultural productive forces, and stimulated the cultural creativity of the whole society. The innovation capacity of cultural products and services has been continuously enhanced. A number of excellent cultural works with profound ideas, exquisite art and sophisticated production have emerged, such as the movies The Wandering Earth, The Battle at Lake Changjin, Nanjing Photo Studio, the TV dramas The Age of Awakening, The Three-Body Problem, the book A Brief History of the CPC, and the animation Ne Zha. These works not only have a high artistic level, but also convey the Core Socialist Values, and are loved and praised by the general public. The ways of cultural communication have been continuously innovated. By using new technologies such as the Internet, big data and artificial intelligence, a number of new cultural communication platforms have been built, such as short video platforms, live broadcast platforms and social media platforms, which have broadened the channels of cultural communication and improved the efficiency and effect of cultural communication.

3.2.2 Challenges in China’s Current Cultural Construction

Although China has made remarkable achievements in the development of cultural productive forces, compared with the high requirements of cultural construction in the new era and people’s growing spiritual and cultural needs, there are still some aspects that need to be optimized and improved.

In terms of the supply of cultural products and services, although the quantity has continued to grow, the supply of high-quality cultural masterpieces with core competitive strength is still insufficient. Some products and services have problems such as homogenization and superficial connotation, and their ideological depth and artistic appeal need to be strengthened, making it difficult to fully meet people’s diversified and high-quality spiritual and cultural needs. The backward concepts implied in individual products also have a potential impact on public cognition. At the same time, the overall competitiveness, brand influence and communication of China’s cultural products in the global market are still effective.

In terms of cultural innovation capacity, although phenomenal works emerge from time to time, the overall original capacity and innovation level still need to be improved. In the current creative ecology, the phenomenon of imitation and following the trend is still common, and there is a relative lack of pioneering ideas and content. There is a shortage of interdisciplinary cultural innovation talents, particularly high-end professionals with expertise in culture, science and technology, marketing and management. In addition, the innovation incentive mechanism and the intellectual property rights protection system need to be improved, which objectively affects the full release of innovation vitality.

At the level of cultural industry development, its level of intensification, specialization and internationalization needs to be improved, and the industrial structure needs to be further optimized. The problem of unbalanced regional development still exists, and the industrial foundation in the central and western regions is relatively weak. The coordination of the industrial chain is not close enough, and the added value needs to be improved. There are not enough leading cultural enterprise groups with international competitiveness, and China’s discourse power in the high-end links of the Global Cultural Value Chain, rule-making and value communication are not fully matched with China’s large economic volume and cultural resources.

In terms of the development environment of cultural productive forces, some restrictive factors still need to be paid attention to. The cultural market system and order need to be further improved and standardized, and the accuracy and effectiveness of policy implementation can be continuously strengthened. The construction and service capacity of public cultural infrastructure, especially in rural and remote areas, still need to be improved in quality and efficiency. In addition, the maturity of the cultural consumption market, people’s cultural consumption concepts and capabilities also need to be further cultivated and improved.

3.2.3 The Urgency of Developing New-Quality Cultural Productive Forces

Developing new quality cultural productive forces is an urgent need to meet people’s growing spiritual and cultural needs. With the rapid development of China’s economy and society, people’s material living standards have been continuously improved, and their spiritual and cultural needs have also been growing and showing the characteristics of diversification and high quality. People not only need basic public cultural services, but also pursue higher-level cultural products and services, such as high-quality literary and artistic works, personalized cultural experiences and international cultural exchanges. Therefore, developing new quality cultural productive forces, increasing the supply of high-quality cultural products and services, and improving the quality and level of cultural products and services are an inevitable requirement to meet people’s spiritual and cultural needs.

Developing new, quality, culturally productive forces is an important way to enhance the national spiritual cohesion. Culture is the spiritual home of a country and a nation, and an important source for uniting the national spirit and enhancing national cohesion and centripetal force. Strong spiritual strength is an important part of a country’s comprehensive national strength, providing an inexhaustible spiritual driving force for the country’s development and national rejuvenation. Developing new quality cultural productive forces can create more cultural products and services with strong ideological appeal and spiritual inspiration, promote the main theme, spread positive energy, cultivate and practice the Core Socialist Values, enhance people’s national pride, self-confidence and identity, and gather a strong spiritual force for the unity and struggle of the whole society. At the same time, developing new quality cultural productive forces can promote the spread of Chinese culture to the world, spread Chinese voices, tell Chinese stories well, enhance the international influence and appeal of Chinese culture, and strengthen the country’s cultural soft power and comprehensive national strength.

Developing new quality cultural productive forces is a strategic measure to safeguard national cultural security. In the context of globalization, cultural security has become an important part of national security, and competition in the cultural field and ideological struggles are becoming increasingly fierce. Western developed countries have carried out continuous cultural infiltration and ideological invasion against China by virtue of their cultural advantages, in an attempt to shake China’s cultural foundation and ideological security. Developing new quality cultural productive forces is not only to meet people’s spiritual needs, but also to enhance the international competitiveness and influence of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics, break the monopoly of Western cultural hegemony, and resist the infiltration of harmful cultural and ideological trends. In short, we need to develop new quality cultural productive forces, innovate the content and forms of cultural products and services, enhance the attraction and appeal of Chinese culture, consolidate the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological field, lay a solid common ideological foundation for the unity and struggle of the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups in the country, and safeguard national cultural sovereignty and ideological security.

China is in a critical period of realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, facing a complex international and domestic situation. Developing new quality cultural productive forces is of great urgency for meeting people’s spiritual needs, enhancing spiritual strength and safeguarding cultural security. We must prioritize the advancement of culturally productive forces, implement targeted measures to continuously elevate their development level, and thus provide a solid underpinning for the development of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics and the advancement of ideological work in the new era.

4 Practical Discussion

At present, China’s cultural productive forces are in a critical period of transformation from scale expansion to quality improvement, facing both internal challenges such as insufficient supply of high-quality cultural products, weak original capacity and to-be-improved international competitiveness, and also needing to meet the new requirements of safeguarding cultural sovereignty and ideological security in the external environment. Therefore, the author believes that developing new quality cultural productive forces needs to be driven by scientific and technological innovation and content innovation, optimize the development ecology through institutional reform and talent construction, expand the development space relying on industrial integration and opening up and cooperation, and firmly hold the bottom line of ideological security in the whole process, and finally systematically construct a development path that unifies cultural prosperity and sovereign security.

4.1 Strengthen Scientific and Technological Innovation and Content Innovation to Develop New Quality Cultural Productive Forces

At present, China’s cultural products still face problems such as insufficient high-quality supply, prominent homogenization and weak original capacity. To break through the above bottlenecks, we must firmly grasp the core links of cultural production, take scientific and technological innovation as the engine to improve production efficiency and expression forms, and take content innovation as the support to consolidate the ideological depth and artistic value of cultural products. The two drive together to inject an inexhaustible driving force into the development of New-Quality Cultural Productive Forces.

Empower cultural production with scientific and technological innovation. Scientific and technological innovation is the primary driving force leading the development of new, quality, culturally productive forces. Its practical optimization path should be systematic: at the R&D level, it is necessary to “increase financial investment and social financing in cultural science and technology R&D”, build a diversified and coordinated investment mechanism, and carry out concentrated research on key core technologies such as digital content production technologies, VR/AR and artificial intelligence to master independent intellectual property rights. At the production level, it is necessary to comprehensively promote digital transformation, deeply integrate digital technology into literary and artistic creation, press and publication, heritage protection and other fields, innovate creation tools and expression forms, and improve production efficiency and artistic expression. At the communication and consumption level, a precise and interactive communication system based on big data and new media platforms should be built, and new consumption formats such as online literature, digital music and immersive cultural experience should be actively cultivated to expand the breadth and depth of cultural consumption with science and technology.

Stimulate the vitality of cultural products with content innovation. No matter how technology evolves, excellent content is always the soul of cultural products. In the practice of developing new quality cultural productive forces, content innovation must adhere to the guidance of Marxism, firmly grasp the direction of advanced socialist culture, draw nutrients from the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, Revolutionary Culture and Advanced Socialist Culture, and create masterpieces that show the spirit of the times and spread mainstream values. To this end, it is necessary to build an ecosystem conducive to originality, establish and improve an incentive mechanism for original cultural creations, and stimulate the enthusiasm and creativity of creators through rights and interests protection and resource inclination. At the same time, we should promote the diversified development of cultural products and services in themes, genres and forms, meet people’s multi-level and high-quality spiritual needs with precise supply, continue to strive to build brands with profound cultural connotation and extensive market influence, and enhance the ideological guidance, artistic appeal and international competitiveness of China’s cultural products.

4.2 Deepen Institutional Reform and Strengthen Talent Training to Optimize the Basic Environment for Cultural Development

The development of new quality cultural productive forces is restricted by factors such as the to-be-improved market system and the relative shortage of outstanding talents. To optimize the development environment, we need to strive to break institutional and institutional obstacles and build a sound modern cultural market system; at the same time, we must put talent training in a priority position, build a high-quality talent team, and provide a solid institutional guarantee and human resource foundation for the sustainable development of new quality cultural productive forces.

Deepen the reform of the cultural system and mechanism. A good development environment is the key to the release of new, quality, culturally productive forces. To further optimize the development environment, we must adhere to the principle of “the Party’s leadership over ideological and cultural work”, improve the cultural management system and transform government functions; build a unified, open, competitive and orderly modern cultural market system, break barriers and promote the rational flow of factors; strengthen the construction of the credit system for the cultural market and maintain a fair and honest market order. At the same time, we should deepen the reform of state-owned cultural enterprises and public institutions, stimulate the vitality of various subjects, and strengthen the combined policy support of finance, taxation, land, and so on.

Build a high-quality cultural talent team. In practice, efforts should be made to integrate interdisciplinary cultural talents who understand both culture and science and technology, both domestic and international markets, both creation and operation and management, and both professional knowledge and ideological awareness. Ideological education should be provided to cultural practitioners to ensure that they are cultivated to serve the Party and the people, and to prevent ideological infiltration in education. At the same time, we should actively introduce high-level cultural talents, establish and improve a talent evaluation and incentive mechanism that puts morality first and focuses on practical achievements, and create a good environment where people can make the best of their talents.

4.3 Expanding Development Space through Industrial Integration and International Cooperation

China’s cultural industry has structural problems such as unbalanced regional development, weak coordination of the industrial chain and low added value. The key to expanding the development space and releasing new industrial driving forces lies in expanding the industrial chain and actively promoting the in-depth integration of culture with science and technology, finance, tourism and a wider range of real economy fields. Through the extension of the industrial chain, new growth points can be effectively cultivated, the comprehensive strength and competitiveness of the cultural industry can be comprehensively enhanced, and the further spread of Chinese culture to the world can be promoted.

Promote the coordinated development of culture and related industries. We should deepen the integration of culture, science, and technology, and cultivate emerging business forms. Promote the cooperation between culture and finance, innovate financial services and broaden financing channels. Promote the in-depth integration of culture and tourism, and create tourism products and new business forms rich in cultural connotation. At the same time, we should actively promote the integration of culture with agriculture, industry, service industry and other industries, develop creative agriculture, industrial tourism, cultural exhibitions and so on, and enhance the cultural added value and brand influence of the industries. “We will strengthen the integration of the digital economy and the real economy, interactive content co-creation and full-scenario experiential design, and effectively improve the communication efficiency of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture.”

Strengthen international cultural exchanges and communication, and enhance international competitiveness in opening up. In practice, build a multi-level system of international cultural exchanges and cooperation, and actively host and participate in international cultural events. Encourage and support cultural enterprises to “go global”, expand the export of cultural products and services, and cultivate internationally famous cultural brands. Strengthen the exchange of international cultural talents, strive to enhance the international communication capacity, innovate communication methods, tell Chinese stories well, spread Chinese voices, present a credible, lovable and respectable image of China, and enhance the international community’s understanding and recognition of China.

4.4 Adhere to the Bottom Line of Ideology to Ensure the Security of Cultural Sovereignty

“Ideological work is about fostering the soul of the country and the nation.” The ability to do ideological work well is related to the future and destiny of the Party, the long-term stability of the country, and the cohesion and centripetal force of the nation. To make the development of new quality cultural productive forces truly play a role in safeguarding national cultural sovereignty, it is more necessary to adhere to the bottom line thinking in the development process. Against the background of the fierce collision of global ideological and cultural trends, the development of new quality cultural productive forces must always maintain a clear head in opening up and cooperation, adhere to the guiding position of Marxism, resist external infiltration, run the safeguarding of cultural sovereignty and security through the whole process of development, and ensure that cultural construction always moves forward in the correct direction. The author believes that attention should be paid to the following aspects in practice:

Adhere to the guiding position of Marxism. Firmly grasp the Party’s leadership over cultural work and ideological work, adhere to the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological field, and arm the mind, guide practice, and promote work with the latest achievements of the adaptation of Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times. We should strengthen the research, dissemination and education of Marxist theory, consolidate its guiding position in the ideological sphere, and forge a shared ideological foundation for the unity and endeavor of the whole Party and all Chinese people of all ethnic groups.

Strengthen the construction of an early warning and prevention system for cultural security. Establish and improve a cultural security early warning mechanism, strengthen the monitoring, analysis and evaluation of risks in the cultural field, and timely detect and handle hidden dangers of cultural security risks. Strengthen the supervision of the cultural market, severely crack down on all kinds of illegitimate and irregular cultural activities, and prevent the spread of harmful culture and information. Strengthen the management of network cultural security, create a clear cyberspace, and guard against cyber cultural security risks. “The Internet has become the main battlefield”(Xi, 2017), so we must firmly grasp the leading power of network ideology and resist the infiltration of harmful culture.

Resist the infiltration of external harmful culture and ideology. Enhance Cultural Confidence, carry forward the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, Revolutionary Culture and Advanced Socialist Culture, enhance the attraction and appeal of Chinese culture, and resist the infiltration of external harmful culture and ideology. strengthen the management of the import of Western cultural products and services, strictly examine the introduced cultural products and services, and prevent Western erroneous trends of thought and values from infiltrating into China through cultural products and services. Strengthen the management and standardization of international cultural exchanges and cooperation, and safeguard national cultural sovereignty and ideological security.

Strengthen the whole nation’s awareness of cultural security. Strengthen the publicity and education of cultural security, and improve the whole nation’s awareness of cultural security and prevention capacity. Popularize cultural security knowledge through various channels such as school education, media publicity and social publicity, enhance the whole nation’s cultural identity and pride, and consciously resist the erosion of harmful culture and information. Encourage the whole nation to participate in the construction of cultural security and form a strong joint force to safeguard cultural security.

5 Conclusion

In the critical period of building a strong cultural country, developing new quality cultural productive forces and upholding cultural sovereignty are important issues of cultural construction in the new era. New quality cultural productive forces provide technical support, material foundation and communication guarantee for the safeguarding of cultural sovereignty, and cultural sovereignty delimits the correct direction and creates a safe environment for the development of new quality cultural productive forces. The two are dialectically unified and promote each other, both rooted in the Marxist cultural theories and the practice of developing socialist culture with Chinese characteristics, with profound theoretical and realistic logic.

At present, China’s cultural field is facing dual challenges at home and abroad, and developing new quality cultural productive forces to defend cultural sovereignty is extremely urgent. Therefore, in practice, it is necessary to effectively activate the innovative vitality of new quality cultural productive forces, enhance the competitiveness and influence of Chinese culture, and firmly grasp the initiative in global cultural exchanges and mutual learning and competition through systematic measures such as strengthening the drive of scientific and technological innovation, adhering to the guidance of content innovation, deepening institutional reform guarantee, strengthening talent team construction, promoting industrial integration development, expanding international exchange and cooperation, and adhering to the bottom line of sovereignty.

Standing at a new historical starting point, we must always adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture, base ourselves on China’s reality, inherit the Fine Traditional Chinese Culture, absorb the outstanding civilizational achievements of humanity, and constantly explore effective paths for the development of new quality cultural productive forces and the safeguarding of cultural sovereignty in practice. We should not only enhance cultural strength through technological innovation, content innovation and model innovation, but also adhere to the bottom line of cultural sovereignty, resist external harmful infiltration, so that new quality cultural productive forces can truly become a powerful force for empowering cultural development, defending cultural sovereignty and uniting the national spirit, and provide a solid cultural support for realizing the Chinese Dream of National Rejuvenation.

Acknowledgments

Upon the completion of this humble paper, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Professor Xu Fangping（徐方平）. At the same time, I would like to extend my gratitude to the editorial office for providing invaluable comments on my paper and for sparing no effort in helping me standardize it. Without your assistance, the writing of my paper would not have been so smooth.

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