In that journey, it is impossible not to mention the role of State management of the press - the "hand" of orientation, guidance, protection and companionship with the national press to overcome each historical turning point, especially in the context of digital media development such as football, multi-dimensional information as it is today.
According to President Ho Chi Minh's viewpoint, the press is a weapon of struggle, so the Revolutionary Press must first be fighting, oriented and mass- oriented to propagate, mobilize, train, educate and organize the people, bringing them to the common goal of resistance and national construction.
In June 49, in a letter to Huynh Thuc Khang newspaper writing class, President Ho Chi Minh stated the main points of the Revolutionary Press:
The newspapers mission is to propagate, mobilize, train, educate and organize the people to bring the people to the common goal;
The purpose was to fight the resistance and fight for nationality.
The newspaper's motto is to unite the entire people in the patriotic race.
The newspaper's target audience is the majority of the population. A newspaper that is not popular with the majority of the people is not worthy of being a newspaper. To be popular with the people, consider that newspaper as one of you.
The content is that the articles must be simple, easy to understand, popular, practical, and lively.
The format is the way the articles are arranged, the way of printing must be clean and bright".
Originating from the great purpose and task of the Revolutionary Press, President Ho Chi Minh pointed out that the press profession is a special type of profession, both a political and social activity and a creative activity in which the personal mark of the creative subject plays a very important role. To be a journalist, journalists must meet certain standards of ethics, politics and professional skills.
In September 6, at the 3rd Congress of the Vietnam Journalists Association, President Ho Chi Minh emphasized: Jury officers are also revolutionary soldiers. Pencils and paper are their sharp weapons. In the way he expresses it, he believes that journalism must be very careful about form, content, and writing style and before holding a pen and writing, each journalist must ask himself: Writing for whom to read? What to write for? How to write to make it easy for the general public to understand, concise and easy to read?".
To fulfill that glorious task, the One who requires journalists to constantly study, improve their political knowledge and professional skills. First of all, journalists need to cultivate revolutionary ethics, not afraid of difficulties and sacrifices, serving the people; trying to cultivate ideology, profession and culture; focus on studying politics to grasp the Party's guidelines, the State's policies and laws, go deep into reality, and go deep into the working masses.
The person emphasized the " Soldier" role of journalists, requiring journalists to be steadfast in their stance, uphold the viewpoint of Revolutionary Press, and constantly improve their qualifications in all aspects. More than anyone else, journalists must be selfless, have broad knowledge and above all, have a clear heart; journalism is a profession, so revolutionary journalists need to be nurtured a strong revolutionary stance, regularly practice ethics, receive vocational training, and know foreign languages...
Journalists must know how to cultivate knowledge, study theory, roll in practice, get deeper into practice, into people's lives, and stick with the people. The person stated that "the duties of journalists are very important and glorious. To successfully complete that task, we must try to study politics, improve our ideology, stand firm against the position of the infertile class; must improve our cultural level, must go deep into our profession".
In addition to the efforts of each journalist and reporter, to do their duty well to the country and the working people, the Revolutionary Press also needs to have "ledging hands", a tool for orientation and guidance.
During the period of 1945 - 1975, Vietnamese press developed in special circumstances: The war lasted, the country was divided. But it is also in that difficult time that the press plays a role in cheering, motivating, communicating policies and preserving patriotism.
The State - with agencies such as the Central Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Commission (now the Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Commission), the Ministry of Culture and Information - has established a network to manage and support press agencies. Under the direct direction of the Party Central Committee, newspapers such as Nhan Dan, Cau Quoc, Lao Dong, People's Army... became information platforms, conveying the aspiration for independence, consolidating the great solidarity bloc, while refuting the enemy's false propaganda accusations.
Journalism management at that time was to accompany in war conditions, to ensure that each article was a weapon on the ideological front contributing to the great victory in the Spring of 1975.
Since 1986, the country has entered a period of comprehensive innovation. In the context of a socialist-oriented market economy and more diverse social life, the press is not only a means of propaganda, but also affirms its role as a bridge between the government and the people, a voice for criticism and construction.
Recognizing the growing role of the press, the State has gradually completed the legal corridor and press management institutions: Press Law 1989, Press Ordinance 1999, Press Law 2016... Each stage reflects the spirit of adaptation and improvement, so that management work can both ensure political orientation and encourage innovation of press content and forms.
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In the " revolution" on streamlining the apparatus, press management has also changed. At
Conclusion No. 126-KL/TW of the Politburo and the Secretariat on a number of contents to continue to reorganize and streamline the apparatus of the political system in 2025. One of the notable contents in the conclusion is the arrangement of press agencies.
According to Conclusion 126-KL/TW, the Central Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Committee is assigned to preside over and coordinate with the Central Organizing Committee, the Government Party Committee, Party committees and organizations at all levels to study and orient the arrangement of local press agencies in the direction of merging radio and television agencies under the provincial People's Committee into press agencies of the Party Committees of provinces and centrally run cities.
Assign the Party Committee of the Fatherland Front, Central organizations to coordinate with the Central Organizing Committee, the Government Party Committee, the National Assembly Party Committee and the Party Committees of socio-political organizations and mass organizations at the Central level assigned by the Party and State: Lead and direct a general review of the functions, tasks, and organizational structure of affiliated agencies and organizations, especially press agencies, to ensure unified management and operational efficiency in the direction of maximum streamlining, only maintaining units that are really necessary, reporting to the Politburo in the second quarter of 2025.
The arrangement of the apparatus of Party newspapers and local radio and television stations needs to overcome the overlapping situation in terms of functions and tasks; streamline the apparatus; focus resources on investment to ensure the goal of press agencies after merger and consolidation to operate better, and perform more effectively the task of information and propaganda.
Regarding the model and governing body, operating according to the model of public service units under the provincial and municipal Party Committees. Regarding the name of press agencies, closely follow relevant regulations, Press Law 2016; inherit and promote the familiar traditional brand value of local Party newspapers, unify the name of the newspaper associated with the name of the local administrative unit.
The Politburo and the Central Committee request: "Do not let the arrangement and consolidation affect the implementation of local political, information and propaganda tasks".
It can be said that implementing the Party's correct policies is also a major turning point for the country's Revolutionary Press to meet new requirements.
Along with that, Decree No. 43/2025/ND-CP dated February 28, 2025 stipulates the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Accordingly, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is a Government agency, performing the function of State management of culture; family; physical education, sports; tourism; journalism; radio and television; news; publishing, printing, and distribution; electronic information; grassroots information and foreign affairs information nationwide.
Thus, since the Decree takes effect, the State management function of the press will be assigned by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
One of the first things that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism must do is continue to inherit,
revisions to draft the Press Law (amended).
In the context of the global press facing strong changes in the digital age, amending and perfecting the Press Law is not only an urgent and topical requirement, but also a core driving force to create new development space for the Vietnamese Revolutionary Press.
The 2016 Press Law was once considered an important milestone in the process of improving the effectiveness of State management, while creating a legal foundation for press development. However, after nearly a decade, new trends in technology, digital media and the shift in the press organization model have caused many regulations in the law to show their outdatedity and are no longer suitable for practice.
From the inadequacy of distinguishing between newspapers and magazines, to the lack of strict regulations on cyberspace activities, the 2016 Press Law is no longer enough to cover the rapid movement of modern press life. In particular, the press economic model faces many difficulties due to the lack of a clear legal framework, making it difficult for many press agencies to be autonomous, creative and innovative.
The current draft of the Press Law (amended) is expected to be a necessary "push" to pave the way for Vietnamese press to enter a stage of professional, modern and integrated development. Accordingly, the new Law not only adjusts the contents of organization and operation, but also proposes models of organizing multimedia mainstream press - in line with the digital transformation process and streamlining the apparatus.
One of the key contents that experts and journalists are particularly interested in is the legal corridor for the press economic model. For a long time, the press has operated as a revenue-generating public service agency but must operate according to market mechanisms, while there are no specific regulations for press agencies to be autonomous and develop a diverse ecosystem.
This revised law proposes expanding autonomy in finance, human resources and cooperation - allowing press agencies to develop a model of corporate and business linkages but still ensuring no separation from political mission and professional ethics. This opens up new opportunities for the press to not only survive but also develop strongly in the current fiercely competitive media environment.
cyberspace is becoming a major information front. The draft law mentiones strengthening the management of digital content channels, requiring press agencies to register and connect with the State's monitoring system, but at the same time also opening up a flexible mechanism for content such as livestream, hot news - in line with the characteristics of social networks.
More than just a management tool, the Press Law (amended) needs to become a catalyst for innovation, creating a modern, healthy, competitive media ecosystem and protecting the key role of the Revolutionary Press in social life.
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State management of the press - if implemented consistently and strictly - is not only a "gatekeeper" for information security, but also a " keeper of the rhythm" for the official flow to spread positive values.
Through a system of guided and guided press agencies, the State has effectively organized many communication campaigns: From preventing the COVID-19 pandemic, propagating the sea and islands, protecting sovereignty, to preventing corruption and negativity...
In the current context, the press is also responsible for propagating the Party's major orientations such as the Resolutions also known as the "four pillars" including: Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW dated December 22, 2024 of the Politburo on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation; Resolution No. 59-NQ/TW dated January 24, 2025 of the Politburo on "international integration in the new situation"; Resolution No. 66-NQ/TW on innovation in law-making and enforcement to meet the requirements of national development in the new era; Resolution No. 68-NQ/TW dated May 4, 2025 of the Politburo on private economic development.
As General Secretary To Lam said: The four Resolutions above are the four pillars to help us take off. Therefore, I call on the entire political system, the entire Party, the entire people and the entire army to join hands, be united, overcome all difficulties, turn aspirations into actions, turn potential into practical strength, to together bring our country into a new era - the era of development, prosperity and strength of the Vietnamese people".
The press itself, under proper management, has contributed to strengthening people's trust in the Party and the State, creating an information platform for people to participate in policy making and national development. In particular, the work of censoring, handling violations and at the same time protecting honest journalists is a measure of management capacity.
Looking forward, press management needs to continue to innovate and adapt quickly to technological and social changes.
There needs to be a mechanism to manage cross-border platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, X... while building a "digital shield" to protect mainstream press from being dominated by commercial algorithms. On the other hand, it is necessary to create a legal corridor for the press to exploit big data, use AI responsibly, towards a transparent, quality, and humane press.
It is necessary to focus on protecting information sources, journalism ethics, and especially financial mechanisms - treatment for journalists - so that they can feel secure in their creativity, dedication and maintaining their professional qualities.
Let's look back at 100 years of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Press and look forward to the future, the press has brought the breath of life and the people to the Party and State leadership agencies, to the public to encourage and spread the spirit of great solidarity and creativity in production labor. Thereby contributing to the successful completion of the tasks set out in the past time with the entire Party, the entire people and the entire army.
In a recent meeting with press leaders, Politburo member and Chairman of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front - Do Van Chien emphasized: "The great national unity cause of our Party and people is an extremely precious tradition, which has been built by many generations of Vietnamese people with perseverance and hard work and sacrifice. It can be said that the bones of the children of Vietnam have merged into the mother earth to become gold bricks, built into the bronze city of the Fatherland of Vietnam. The Vietnam Fatherland Front and its organizations and people have a very heavy responsibility and mission of being a solid bridge "Party for the People - People trust the Party" and will certainly build the great national unity bloc of Vietnam to last forever".
Therefore, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front - Do Van Chien hopes that in the coming time, press agencies will continue to strengthen coordination with the Fatherland Front in propaganda and mass mobilization work, promptly reflect the people's thoughts and aspirations, and create social consensus.
To fulfill that glorious mission, the Revolutionary Press continues to need the guidance and support of management agencies to maintain the role of mainstream press and create social consensus, for a strong Vietnam in the future.
