Asian Studies

The Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) was a major upheaval that affected China for roughly ten years.  This was instituted by the late Chairman Mao Zedong and it almost led to Chinas self-destruction as what started out as a revolution from within degenerated into something near-anarchy and a power struggle between hard-liners and so-called revisionists within the Chinese Communist Party who were (erstwhile) comrades of Mao during the civil war.  The main effort of the Cultural Revolution was carried out by the Red Guards, made up mostly by the youths who were heavily indoctrinated by the teachings of Mao which were found in his little red book which became the bible of the Red Guards who treated everything in it as gospel truth and was used to justify their actions against those who did not agree with Mao.
The researcher made use of media sources related to the topic which came from The New York Times dated between January 1 and 10 in the year 1967, the second year of the Cultural Revolution.  The first issue viewed (January 1, 1967) was a clipping from the New York Times titled, Pekings Posters Broaden Targets.   The report said that several erstwhile associates of Mao Zedong were denounced by the Red Guards.  Among those who were denounced were Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping who were the Chief of State and the General Secretary of the Communist Party respectively.  They, along with several others had a differing view from Mao which made them targets of persecution by the Red Guards (Pekings Posters Broaden Targets, 1966).  Deng, among all others, was considered a potential successor of Mao after Liu but the Cultural Revolution somewhat scuttled his road to leadership.  His other colleagues were not that lucky as Deng was banished to the farms for reeducation.
In analyzing the media source itself, judging from the year and place where the report or story was obtained, it was in Hong Kong.  The reporters who filed this story had to rely on insider reports from those who fled China or had been able to go back and forth discreetly to deliver the news.  It can also be inferred that foreign journalists, especially Americans, were not allowed into China at this time as this was then the Cold War and communists tend to regard westerners, especially the United States, as an enemy.  It can be further inferred that the foreigners mentioned in the report would be from neutral or non-aligned countries or nationals from communist allies though this would not include the Soviet Union which China also regarded as an enemy as well.  It is also noted that the Wade-Giles system was used to write Chinese words, especially names of people and places in English long before the Pinyin system would be introduced.
The following issue (January 2) featured the story titled, Mao Urges Rivals to Return to the Fold (Mohr, 1967).  This story was a follow up to the above-mentioned story though this one emphasized that the powers-that-be, namely Mao and the hardliners were extending the hand of friendship and reconciliation to erring officials who would return to the fold, which was the hardliners faction.  It was noted here that the word revisionists was used to describe the rival faction that opposed the hardliners and further stated that this revisionist approach to communism approximates that of the Soviet Union whose animosity with China ran very deep back then.
The analysis of the story is similar to the one above though here, one can see how the propaganda machine of a totalitarian (socialist) nation like China attempted to paint a rosy or positive picture of what was going on within the country though eyewitness accounts would say otherwise.  At the same time, it took a belligerent posture against Maos opponents through the use of strong (rhetorical) language to denounce them.
Another news story dated January 6 titled, Red Guards Say Foes Ousted Mao as President in 58. From here, one can understand why Liu became the subject of persecution by the Red Guards.  The report said that Mao was removed from power by the faction led by Liu though other accounts obtained by the New York Times said that Liu persuaded Mao to step down from power (Red Guards Say Foes Ousted Mao as President in 58.).  This story hinted of a power struggle within China between Mao and the rival factions who were denounced as revisionists.
It can be inferred here that the Cultural Revolution was used as a smokescreen or a ruse to conceal the actual events in China  a virtual coup detat done in the pretext of eliminating the old ways in China.  The revisionists implicated and persecuted were not really those who subscribed to old Chinese ways but were either pro-Moscow or reform-minded Communists who had a differing opinion with Mao.  Another thing that the story presents was what was it like at that time  the Cultural Revolution was also characterized by kangaroo courts where the purported enemies of China were put on public trial by the Red Guards and paraded along the streets to further humiliate them.  This was something that happened on a regular basis during the time another thing to note that the report was filed in Tokyo, Japan.  Just like in Hong Kong, the reporter who filed this story had to rely on those who were able to go to China, in this case Japanese reporters since the hostility towards westerners was still there.  In addition to the Japanese, the sources also included intelligence services from Taiwan.  In as much as the New York Times would like to avoid being too biased, these were the only available and reliable sources of information they could get over the state-controlled press inside China which was nothing more than a propaganda machine.
A very short article dated January 7 was titled, Bloody Conflicts Reported.  This was filed by Robert Trumbull who obtained the story through a Japanese correspondent who was in China when it happened.  The story talked about a clash between opposing groups of railways workers and several Red Guard cadres in Beijing.  This conflict would be repeated in other parts of China.
This conflict underscored that the Cultural Revolution was degenerating into chaos.  What was supposed to be an upheaval to effect sweeping changes and reforms to modernize China was bringing China into the brink of anarchy as some Red Guard cadres, were under the command of local party bosses instead of being under Mao and used to take on their rivals.  This was revolution at the grassroots level as compared to earlier stories showing high-level officials in Beijing being ousted from power.  If the top showed a coup, the fighting below would lead one to infer China was heading towards another civil war.
A related story also featured in this issue was titled, Mao Concedes Mistake.  The article said Mao admitted that he considered himself accountable for appointing his enemies which later on made him launch the Cultural Revolution.  The story further said that this was something very unusual for someone like Mao to say this kid of thing.  During his leadership, he was highly regarded by most people in China and the adulation he had received was almost to the point he was revered as the new emperor of China   where his word was law and it was above question and reproach (Mao Concedes Mistake, 1967).  In other words, Mao had been considered to be infallible by many. This story came through Japanese correspondents who were in China during the time. 
The January 8 issue featured  small story on the recall of most of the Chinese embassy staffers from several European countries (Red China Recalls 36 Aides in Britain, 1967).  From this story, it can be inferred that these officials were out of touch with what was going on in China and were recalled to either be reoriented or persecuted if they were found to be associated with Maos enemies or heavily influenced by the foreign culture where they worked.
One thing to note here was the language used in the article.  The article used the word Red China to describe the Peoples Republic of China.  This underscored the kind of jingoism practiced by the west at the time at the height of the Cold War where the color rd would always be associated with communism and became the least favorite color if take from a political perspective.  Nowadays, it would be politically incorrect to use Red China, especially when referring to present-day China which had put the Cultural Revolution behind them and was able to successfully modernize and develop economically thanks to the leadership and drive of Maos successor (and former Cultural Revolution victim) Deng Xiaoping.
In a story taken from the issue dated January 9 titled, China Counterrevolution, it told about the outbreak of violence in Nanjing.  This was the result of Maos efforts to bring the cultural revolution into the factories and farms after starting it in the higher echelons of government.  The information for this story was obtained from the correspondents who were allowed into China, mainly Japanese and Eastern Europeans.  Another thing worth nothing in this article was that the Propaganda Minister Tao Chu, the one responsible for inciting the clash at Nanjing was subsequently being denounced by the Red Guards alongside the very same people he had persecuted (Mohr, 1967).
In a related story, Peking Reports Shanghai Strike Over Mao Policy, workers in Shanghai rose up to challenge the Red Guards.  This was an example of a scene being repeated all over China such as the previously mentioned incident in Nanjing.  The story also told of the counteroffensive staged by the pro-Mao faction urging the workers to return to their work with the assurance that they would not be punished.  Mao and his followers believed that these workers were manipulated by their enemies and made to turn against them especially after Mao announced that he wanted to extend the Cultural Revolution to the factories to remove old practices and infuse new ideas based on his teachings (Peking Reports Shanghai Strike Over Mao Policy, 1967).
In a story from the January 10 issue, State Department Aides Doubt China is on the Verge of a Civil War, the United States Department of State had been monitoring the developments in China very closely though the material and information they used to base their findings were either limited or not credible enough.  They saw this more as a power struggle between Mao and the lower party officials who appear to be setting up their own fiefdoms in their respective locales which Mao was trying to dismantle.  Rather than consider it a civil war, there was a likelihood that anarchy would reign if the Red Guard, Maos primary vanguard would exceed its mandate and commit wanton acts of violence and mayhem that would be reminiscent of the Reign of Terror that followed the French Revolution and if that happened, Mao would be compelled to deploy the army to put down the monster he created in the Red Guards (Finney, 1967).
In a related story, Struggle in China for Power is Seen at a Critical Stage, analysts were trying to see how Mao was faring as the Cultural Revolution threatened to degenerate into a turmoil so big that Mao might not be able to contain it because of the lack of credibility of their sources of information, it was nearly impossible to draw a plausible conclusion on the outcome of the Cultural Revolution.  The Americans, from State Department officials to news correspondents depended on whatever information was obtained by foreign reports allowed into China, in this case, they relied heavily on Japanese correspondents.  Yet, despite the information provided, some questioned their credibility as some of the information such as the news posters were nothing more than crude propaganda material rather than facts that they seek (Mohr, 1967).
By way of conclusion, the reporters of the New York Times lived in interesting times as the ancient Chinese would say.  They were trying to cover an event in what would become part of Chinas history which was a challenge in terms of getting reliable information from China.  Owing to the anti-western stance of China, they could not enter the country and had to rely heavily on Japanese correspondents to share their information with them.  Today, readers of Chinese history have the benefit of hindsight to know more about the Cultural Revolution than what the people of the 1960s were not able to get.  The current generation benefited from the openness of China following Maos death and the ascension of Deng and it would be here that the truths about the Cultural Revolution would finally come to light.
The Cultural Revolution could be said, nearly led to the breakdown of order in China.  Mao, the unifier of China and the founder of the Peoples Republic, ironically became the man who nearly caused its (self) destruction in his bid to recreate China the  same way the Chin Emperor Shih Huangti did centuries ago.  He wanted to eliminate the old ways of thinking in China because (in his understanding of Chinas history), these led to Chinas decline and to be subject to a hundred years of humiliation before the foreign powers.  Mao not only wanted to recreate China, he wanted to restore it in its place as a powerful nation in Asia which would be revered by her neighbors just like in the olden days.
Apparently, it can be seen here that Maos philosophy, which became dogma during the Cultural Revolution, turned out to have flaws.  Maos desire to start and perpetuate revolutions in various levels of life proved to be counterproductive and clashed with his other aim of making China great as the Cultural Revolution pulled it down instead of pulling it up.  This was seen when intellectuals and reform-minded leaders like Deng were persecuted because of either holding on to traditional values or being western-educated which were anathema to communist proletariat values.  Educational institutions were closed as most students were drafted into the Red Guards and were heavily indoctrinated or brainwashed by Maos teachings which led several of them on a frenzy to eliminate anything opposed to Maos teachings.  Maos Little Red Book became the badge of their authority and made them above the law.  They even persecuted their teachers and professors.  The problem here was not all the Red Guards were bright and intelligent.  Several of them came from the countryside and their simple-mindedness made them susceptible to the teachings and guidance of Mao and other communist leaders and they were used (or misused) in accordance to their whims.  Subsequently, the Red Guards became too much to handle that Mao was compelled to kill his creation by dispatching the army to put them down.
The Cultural Revolution was also seen as a ruse to hide the power struggle among the prominent officials of the Chinese Communist Party.  The reports showed Mao stepped down to give way to the next crop of leaders who would take China forward (Liu and Deng) but when he found out they intended to take a different direction that was opposed to his, he launched the Cultural Revolution.  This was Maos attempt to bring China back into the direction he wanted it to go but later on when the Red Guards were becoming reckless, he saw there was no way to reverse the process.
China, after the death of Mao in 1976, was able to recover from the destructiveness of the Cultural Revolution.  The only loose end left to tie up was to round up the Gang of Four where one of them was Maos second wife Jiang Qing.  They were poised to continue the Cultural Revolution after Mao especially when Zhou Enlai (who also died in 1976) and Deng were rising in prominence in the communist party leadership.  Fortunately, Maos successor, Hua Guofeng precluded their plot and had them arrested, tried and imprisoned.  Deng eventually succeeded Hua and was able to successfully make China take the Great Leap Forward.  From here on in, China was on its way in putting behind the hundred years of humiliation and reestablishing herself as a world power.