Together with Nhan Dan Newspaper and the Communist Review, these five key media outlets form a core information axis, playing a leading role in guiding the flow of official information, contributing to strengthening social trust, and firmly protecting the ideological foundation of the Party. This is a strategically significant step, demonstrating the long-term vision of our Party and State to elevate revolutionary journalism in the new development stage.
The policy of streamlining the apparatus and improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the political system has been persistently implemented by the Party and State for many years, and the field of journalism and media cannot stand outside this requirement for reform.
In practice, the dispersion of resources, overlapping functions, and lack of effective coordination mechanisms in some periods have weakened the overall strength of the press system, causing resource waste and directly affecting the ability to guide information. This has resulted in the official voice sometimes not being strong or fast enough to dominate the media space. Reorganisation towards a more centralised and professional direction is both an internal need and an objective requirement.
However, as is often the case with major policies, this reorganisation was immediately exploited by some extremist and ill-intentioned individuals to distort and misrepresent the situation.
On the Internet, arguments emerged claiming this was a “step backward for press freedom,” a manifestation of “tightening information control,” and even interpreted as an “internal purge.” These speculative arguments deliberately separate the decision to reorganise media outlets from the overall strategy of reforming the political system, ignoring the fact that the reorganisation of the press had been planned for many years, following a clear roadmap with cautious and consistent steps.
Today, every individual can become a “source of information” in the digital environment, and media activities are undergoing profound changes in both structure and operation. Without a unified guiding mechanism, the press is very likely to fall into a state of fragmentation, even engaging in unethical competition.
When resources are fragmented, the power of direction diminishes, information gaps appear, and this becomes fertile ground for fake news and harmful information to spread, disrupting social perception and negatively impacting public trust.
Given this situation, transferring key media outlets to the direct control of the Central Party Committee should be seen as a fundamental solution to overcome existing limitations and create conditions to maximise their combined strength.
Unified coordination enhances communication effectiveness, ensures consistency in information direction, and minimises news delays that create loopholes for misinformation to infiltrate and spread. Therefore, this is a step aimed at increasing the leadership capacity of the press, not narrowing its operational space as falsely claimed.
From the practical experience of leading and managing the press, it is clear that the core issue is not whether or not there is leadership, but rather how to lead in a way that best promotes the role of the press in social life.
Misconceptions often deliberately equate “leadership” with “imposition,” and “direction” with “control,” aiming to create misunderstandings. However, looking broadly at the world, no press operates entirely outside the framework of the law and political institutions.
In Viet Nam, revolutionary journalism was born and matured during the struggle for national liberation, building and defending the Fatherland. From this nature, besides reflecting reality, journalism also performs the function of guiding, promoting positive values, fighting against wrongdoing and evil, and contributing to building social consensus.
In Viet Nam, revolutionary journalism was born and matured during the struggle for national liberation, building and defending the Fatherland. By its very nature, the press, in addition to reflecting reality, also performs the function of guiding and promoting positive values, fighting against wrongdoing and evil, and contributing to building social consensus.
Currently, as hostile forces increasingly use cyberspace to undermine our Party and State, strengthening the Party’s direct leadership role over key media outlets becomes even more necessary. This helps the press effectively fulfil its functions and duties, avoid being swept along by deviant trends, and possess the courage to perform its role of social critique in a constructive and responsible manner.
Nguyen Thanh Lam, Member of the Party Central Committee and Director General of Viet Nam Television, emphasised that transferring key media agencies to the direct control of the Party Central Committee is not only a change in management model but also reflects innovation in leadership thinking regarding ideological and communication work in the new situation; at the same time, it requires upholding fundamental principles and promoting the role of connecting the Party with the people.
Vu Viet Trang, Secretary of the Party Committee and Director General of the Viet Nam News Agency, affirmed that this is a strategic transformation in the position, role, and function of key media agencies to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of information and propaganda work, meeting the requirements of the tasks in the new period. The unity in understanding among the leaders of media agencies reflects a high political determination in building a strong, capable, and competent system of key media agencies to fulfil their mission in the new context.
However, organisational restructuring is only a necessary condition; the sufficient condition lies in the ability to transform the organisational model into practical capabilities. Specifically, leading media outlets must truly become strategic content production centres, places where intellect, technology, and political acumen converge. This requires a comprehensive transformation from journalistic thinking to operational models, from production processes to content distribution methods.
In the fierce competition of modern media, there is a growing risk of chasing speed, competing for views and likes, and pursuing sensational and superficial content. Without maintaining high standards, journalism can easily lose its identity and credibility, and erode public trust.
Therefore, media outlets, especially leading ones, must simultaneously deliver information faster and more engagingly, while also ensuring accuracy, depth, and upholding the responsibility of journalists. Building a team of journalists with strong political convictions, impeccable professional ethics, modern thinking, and multi-faceted operational capabilities should be recognised as a key factor in ensuring the sustainable development of the main press system.
Along with that, the relationship between the press and the public needs to be strengthened on a foundation of trust. The press cannot stand outside of life, and even less can it be detached from the issues that concern the people. Each journalistic work must truly be the culmination of social responsibility, of listening and understanding.
When the press truthfully reflects the pulse of life, accompanying the legitimate concerns and expectations of the people, it will create persuasive power and build solid trust in society. Placed within the overall strategy of reforming the political system, building a streamlined, centralised, and modern system of main press agencies aims to create a solid “ideological infrastructure” in the digital age, contributing to the sustainable development of the country.
