BEIJING, March 4 (Xinhua) -- Chinese media should play an important role in spreading advanced culture and promoting social harmony in the country, a senior leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC) said here Sunday.

　　New media, such as the Internet, should serve as an important platform to help create a favorable public opinion environment for the upcoming CPC National Congress, said Luo Gan, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, when attending a panel meeting of the country's political advisors who convened in Beijing for their annual session.

　　Supervision on the government and the Party through public opinion should be strengthened while an healthy Internet culture should be promoted, Luo told a group of members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) from media circles.

　　He said more efforts should be made to push forward the reform of the distribution system in the publishing sector, set up more libraries in the countryside to enrich farmers' cultural life, and crack down on pornographic and illegal publications.

　　The fifth session of CPPCC's Tenth National Committee started on Saturday afternoon in the Great Hall of the People and is scheduled to end on March 15.