The People’s Daily (Rénmín Rìbào) is the largest newspaper publisher in China. With a global circulation of three million copies, the paper is published in Chinese as well as in more than a dozen foreign languages.
Media assets
Publishing: People’s Daily (Renmin Ribao), People’s Daily Oveseas Edition, People’s Daily Tibetan Edition, Global Times
State Media Matrix Typology: Captured Public/State Managed/Owned Media (CaPu)
Ownership and governance
People’s Daily is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. The primary objective of the newspaper is to disseminate information regarding the policies of the Chinese Communist Party. The newspaper is managed directly by the Communist Party.
Source of funding and budget
People’s Daily generates revenue from advertising but also receives a sizable subsidy from the Chinese government, according to local journalists and industry experts interviewed for this report in May 2023 and June 2024. The People’s Daily does not make detailed financial information available to the public.
Local journalists with knowledge of the newspaper’s operations interviewed for this report in May 2023 and June 2024 have indicated that People’s Daily generated revenues of CNY 2.2bn (US$ 345m) from its online operations in 2021. The same year, the company generated a total income of CNY 12.1bn (US$ 1.9bn). Additionally, the company’s shares are listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
In 2023, the People’s Daily publisher reported an operating income of CNY 2.115bn (US$ 289m), representing a 6.95% increase compared to the previous year. Advertising revenue amounted to approximately CNY 1.1bn, with the second largest source of revenue being CNY 538m, according to data collected from the company by the Media and Journalism Research Center (MJRC).
Editorial independence
The People’s Daily is a propaganda channel that adheres to the editorial line set by its owner, the Chinese Communist Party. The newspaper utilizes so-called ‘writing task groups’ whose objective is to highlight the party’s official views in their respective pieces.
According to various sources, The People’s Daily is one of the Chinese state-controlled media outlets that enjoys a certain level of editorial freedom.
There is currently no legislation in place, nor an independent assessment or oversight mechanism, to validate the independence of The People’s Daily, which is an official publication of the Chinese Communist Party.
September 2024