Speaking at a four-day national meeting attended by heads of publicity departments of provincial CPC committees, Ding said that the publicity departments should study the important speech delivered by Chinese President Jiang Zemin on Wednesday at the meeting, and to do a better job in the first year of the new century.

The meeting, which closed Thursday, called on the mass media to continue their efforts to serve the people, facilitate reforms and social and economic development and safeguard social stability.

The job for criticising and exposing the essence of notorious cult Falun Gong headed by Li Hongzhi should be continued, Ding said, adding that the struggle against the cult is a long-term and arduous one.

Ding, also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said that efforts should be made to expose the political nature and the danger that the cult poses to the society, and help the general public improve their consciousness of resisting the cult and safeguarding social stability.

Ding also called for efforts to promote reforms in the news media, publishing industry, film, radio and television broadcasting services.

The whole mass communications sector should continue to improve its competitiveness by increasing its strength and vigor in order to adapt itself to the socialist market economic system, said Ding.

The meeting, presided over Thursday by Liu Yunshan, executive vice-head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, was also attended by participants of the annual work conferences of the People's Daily, the State General Administration of Radio, Film and Television, the State Press and Publication Administration and the Xinhua News Agency.

(Xinhua 01/11/2001)