According to Study Times, news media are not only the mouthpiece of the Party but also the Party’s eyes and ears. If what media present are all good news, the CCP Central Committee will be deaf and blind.
For a long time, the opaque information has “taught” the people that the news from the government controlled media has no credibility. In many places, "maintaining social stability" equals "Maintaining stability in newspapers (or on the TV screen)." With the development and popularity of the Internet, SMS and other new communication technologies, the limits of this self-deceiving way of covering up can be seen.
Open and transparent public information can not fundamentally solve any problems, but can discover and diagnose the problems. It can also ease people’s discontent.
Source: Study Times, November 2, 2009
http://www.studytimes.com.cn/WebPage/ny1.aspx?act=0&id=3028&bid=12