Enrich people’s spiritual and cultural life (observers say)

Cultural development plays a crucial role in fostering a sense of community among people and significantly contributes to enhancing citizens’ overall well-being. The main objective of advancing cultural growth and establishing a culturally strong nation is to address the increasing spiritual and cultural needs of the population. This involves continually enriching individuals’ spiritual lives and bolstering their inner strength. In our pursuit of building a socialist cultural powerhouse, one key focus is to “enrich people’s spiritual and cultural lives.” As we navigate this new journey, it’s essential to thoroughly understand and implement Xi Jinping’s cultural philosophies, ensuring that we provide high-quality cultural offerings that boost the public’s sense of cultural accessibility and happiness, ultimately leading to a more vibrant cultural life.

In this new era, influential documents such as the “Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party on Promoting the Prosperity and Development of Socialist Literature and Art” have emphasized a people-centered creative approach. We are continuously improving mechanisms for guiding, incentivizing, and disseminating cultural products. With the introduction of the “Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of a Modern Public Cultural Service System,” alongside the implementation of the Public Cultural Services Guarantee Law, we are making strides toward standardizing and equalizing public cultural services. Consequently, this ensures that citizens’ cultural rights and interests are genuinely protected. A national strategy for cultural digitization is also progressing, leading to a surge of contemporary works that resonate with the public. The integration of culture with tourism and technology is creating diverse and culturally rich experiences, allowing individuals to enjoy a more fulfilling and high-quality spiritual and cultural life. Moving forward, building a socialist cultural powerhouse means we must adapt to the public’s evolving expectations by continuously providing a rich array of cultural activities that cater to various needs.

Enhancing the public cultural service system is vital. Developing these services is a key avenue for safeguarding cultural rights and elevating citizens’ quality of life. By refining this service system, we can ensure that the dividends of cultural reform and development are equitably shared. The cornerstone of advancing public cultural services is understanding the cultural needs of the community accurately; we must avoid arbitrary decisions regarding content and methodologies. Thus, it’s crucial to consistently monitor and comprehend the changing cultural demands, particularly at the grassroots level. Establishing ongoing mechanisms for assessing and responding to local cultural needs will create a solid foundation for optimizing public cultural services. Additionally, creating direct channels to deliver quality cultural resources to grassroots communities is essential. This involves enhancing platforms like smart libraries, museums, and public cultural clouds to improve digital services. Encouraging participation from the public, facilitating a separation of ownership and usage rights in cultural facilities, and improving their operational efficiency are all necessary steps we must take.

Furthermore, it’s essential to refine the creation and production mechanisms for artistic works. A rich variety of cultural products is pivotal in meeting spiritual and cultural needs. Artistic works lie at the heart of these products, and we must maintain a people-centered approach in our creative endeavors. By improving the mechanisms behind artistic creation and production, we can ensure that compelling artistic pieces continue to emerge. It’s vital to nurture talent while respecting the creative process, fostering an environment where high-quality artworks and artistic minds can thrive. Strengthening the interplay between artistic creation and the cultural environment will help us build a supportive ecosystem where artistic excellence and cultural vitality mutually enhance each other. Enhancing the support and organizational structures for artistic production encourages artists to engage deeply with local communities, ultimately yielding works that resonate with cultural needs and uplift the public spirit. Additionally, refining the frameworks for arts institutions will contribute to better performance quality, management standards, and service efficiency.

We also need to establish a dynamic cultural industry and market system. In a market economy, the cultural industry is instrumental in fulfilling the spiritual and cultural needs of the populace. Creating a modern cultural industry system involves promoting the development and expansion of diverse cultural enterprises, transforming and upgrading state-owned cultural businesses, and supporting lawful private investments in the sector. Accelerating the emergence of new cultural formats like digital publishing, film, and arts is crucial. Building a high-standard cultural market system is fundamental to these efforts. We aim to construct a unified, open, efficient, standardized, and competitively ordered cultural market, set basic regulations for the system, implement a unified negative list for market access, and enhance the operational mechanisms across cultural elements, all while improving the quality of cultural market services and reinforcing governance.

Additionally, refining the systems for integrating culture and tourism is imperative. This fusion represents not just a trend but is crucial for meeting people’s aspirations for a better quality of life. Harmonizing these elements requires elevating development systems in this area. We should improve public tourism services, strengthen infrastructure, and optimize information, transportation, and emergency services. A systematic approach to the integration of culture and tourism is essential, promoting innovations in concepts, mechanisms, formats, and models. This synergy will allow culture to enhance the quality of tourism experiences, while tourism will support the dissemination and consumption of culture, continuously introducing new products and creating fresh momentum. We must fully leverage cultural heritage sites, museums, and memorials, refining mechanisms for jointly utilizing and sharing these significant resources. Innovating exhibition formats and creatively narrating the stories tied to cultural artifacts while developing culturally relevant products that appeal to modern consumers is paramount.

Lastly, exploring effective ways to integrate culture and technology is necessary. As we enter a digital and intelligent era, public demand for digital cultural experiences is rapidly growing. To cater to this demand, it’s vital to deepen the linkage between culture and technology. We must actively engage with cutting-edge fields such as generative artificial intelligence and next-generation internet technologies to encourage new cultural business models. Establishing a strong regulatory framework to promote a thriving digital culture is essential. This involves developing robust legal protections for digital cultural products, creating ethical standards for generative AI, and establishing a cohesive system for technical standards in cultural digitization. On a governance level, regulatory agencies should enhance enforcement and interdepartmental cooperation, clarifying responsibilities to ensure the healthy growth of the digital cultural landscape.

(Ouyang Xuemei, Director of the Cultural History Research Office at the Contemporary China Research Institute; Edited by Fu Zihao)