A retired soldier celebrated by Chinese state media as a witness to the good deeds done by model Communist figure Lei Feng died on Tuesday while marking the country's 50th annual 'Learn From Lei Feng Day.'

Zhang Jun, a photographer credited with producing more than 200 images of Lei Feng, suffered a sudden heart attack after speaking at a military conference on the study of Lei Feng in Shenyang, capital of the northeastern China province of Liaoning, according to China's state broadcaster. He was 82 years old.

CCTV gave the story prominent play Tuesday evening, airing footage that showed Mr. Zhang giving a spirited presentation to a room full of military personnel, then cutting to a shot of him slumped in his chair. The report went on to show the elderly man on the ground receiving CPR from medical staff and, finally, lying on an operating table draped in a red flag with a yellow hammer and sickle.

Mr. Zhang's death comes at a time when China's new leadership, beset by concerns over a growing wealth gap and signs of discontent among the country's have-nots, is eager to tap into the values of obedience and generosity embodied by the figure whose wholesome image he helped disseminate. Ideological chief Liu Yunshan, among the new crop of Communist Party leaders, on Friday echoed Mao Zedong in urging the country to study Lei Feng as a way to improve socialist morality.

According to Communist Party lore, Lei Feng was a soldier stationed in northeast China who was killed in 1962, at age of 21, when a fellow soldier backed a truck into a telephone pole. After his death, a diary was supposedly discovered in which the Good Samaritan documented his love of helping others and his dedication to Mao Zedong. The diary, which some say is forged, was later disseminated by Lin Biao, a People's Liberation Army general who was a close ally of Mao's, and 'study Comrade Lei Feng' became a common refrain throughout the country.

While the party has periodically tried to revive the spirit of Lei Feng in the recent past, it has appeared to put extra effort into the 50th anniversary commemorations, which coincide with the opening of the country's annual parliamentary session. Commemorative Lei Feng stamps have been issued, while Beijing's Lei Feng Primary School recently announced that it would open a new Lei Feng museum.

Stories trumpeting the Lei Feng spirit have run in print, on TV and on the radio. Even the Financial News, a daily paper published by the central bank and typically filled with dry commentary on repo rates and open-market operations, ran a front page editorial on Tuesday reminding readers of Lei Feng's 'moving story.' Celebrations were held at a bank in the city of Fushun where the model soldier deposited 100 yuan in 1961, which has since been renamed in his honor, the Financial News said. 'The entire bank was plunged into incomparable grief when the sad news of Lei Feng's sacrifice reached them,' the paper added.

It's not clear how receptive contemporary Chinese people are to the Mao-era propaganda. The English-language website of the state-run Global Times tabloid reported Wednesday that in an informal survey of 20 people, 70% said they didn't know Tuesday was Learn From Lei Feng Day. Meanwhile, the Yangtze Evening news cited an employee at a movie theater in the city of Nanjing saying not a single person bought tickets for four showings of a new Lei Feng biopic called 'Youthful Days' on Tuesday. Calls to the theater rang unanswered on Wednesday.

Mr. Zhang's work has been held up repeatedly by propaganda officials in defending themselves against claims that Lei Feng was made up. According to CCTV, the photographer spent 19 days with Lei prior to his death, snapping pictures of his fellow soldier cleaning trucks, studying Mao's works and helping children with their studies. Mr. Zhang traveled around the country spreading the Lei Feng spirit. Mr. Zhang publicly testified to his comrade-in-arms' accomplishments on more than 1,260 occasions, according to the official People's Liberation Army Daily.

'Old Zhang Jun, rest in peace,' the CCTV anchor said at the conclusion of broadcaster's report Tuesday. 'Long live the spirit of Lei Feng.'

本周二是中国第50个“学雷锋纪念日”，一名被中国官方媒体宣传说见证过模范共产党员雷锋所做好事的退役士兵在这一天去世。

这张照片的拍摄者就是张俊。这位名叫张俊的摄影师曾经给雷锋拍过200多幅照片，据中国国家广播电台说，他周二在辽宁省会沈阳一个军方举办的学雷锋大会上作报告后因突发心脏病去世，终年82岁。

中国中央电视台(CCTV)在周二晚间的节目中突出报道了这件事，电视画面先是显示张俊在给全都为军人的听众作生动报告，接着切换到的一个画面则显示张俊倒坐在椅子上。报道还显示，这位老人在报告会现场接受了医务人员的急救，他最终躺在了手术台上，身上覆盖着中国共产党党旗。

张俊去世之际，中国新领导层正急于发扬光大雷锋身上体现出的那些服从和慷慨大方的品质，中国人对贫富差距不断扩大的担忧以及显示中国低收入阶层对社会现实种种不满的迹象困扰着中国领导人。中国新任政治局常委之一、主管意识形态的最高官员刘云山上周五呼应了毛泽东关于向雷锋学习的号召，敦促中国人学习雷锋，以提高社会主义道德水平。张俊的努力帮助了雷锋事迹在中国传播。

据中国共产党的官方说法，雷锋生前是在中国东北服役的一名士兵，他1962年因一名战友在倒车时撞倒一根电话线杆被砸身亡，去世时只有21岁。据说在雷锋死后人们发现了他的一本日记，雷锋在日记里记录了他助人为乐的事迹以及他对毛泽东的忠诚。这本日记后来受到了人民解放军高级将领林彪的宣传，他当时是毛泽东的亲密盟友，此后“向雷锋同志学习”成为整个中国的一句常用语。但也有人说雷锋日记是伪造的。

虽然过去这些年里中国共产党每隔一段时间就试图在中国社会复兴雷锋精神，但中共似乎对第50个“学雷锋纪念日”格外重视，这一纪念日到来之际中国全国人大正在召开一年一度的全体会议。中国今年发行了雷锋纪念邮票，北京的雷锋小学宣布将新开一座雷锋纪念馆。

中国的纸媒、电视和广播中纷纷刊载和播送宣传雷锋精神的故事。甚至由中国央行出版、通常只登载回购利率和公开市场操作方面干巴巴评论的《金融时报》周二也在头版发表了一篇社论，帮助读者重温雷锋那些“动人故事”。《金融时报》说，抚顺市一家银行举行了雷锋纪念活动，雷锋1961年在这家银行存了100元钱，后来为纪念雷锋这家银行被命名为雷锋支行。该报说，当雷锋牺牲的消息传来时，这家银行上上下下都陷入了巨大的悲痛之中。

不过，当今中国人对毛泽东时代那些宣传的接受程度如何还不好说。国营媒体《环球时报》的英文网站周三报道说，一项针对20 人的非正式调查显示，70%的受访者说他们不知道本周二是学雷锋日，而南京《扬子晚报》援引该市一家电影院工作人员的话说，新拍摄的雷锋传记片《青春雷锋》周二放映的四场无一人买票观看。记者周三打往这家影院的电话无人接听。

中国宣传官员不断以张俊的摄影作品为证据来反驳有关雷锋事迹系人为编造的说法。据中央电视台说，雷锋生前张俊曾与他一起待过19天，其间拍摄了一系列反映雷锋洗车、学习毛主席著作和辅导儿童学习的照片。张俊后来前往中国各地宣传雷锋精神。据中国官方的《解放军报》报道，张俊曾先后在1,260多个场合证明雷锋的事迹都是真实的。

中央电视台的新闻节目主持人周二在结束有关张俊的报道时说，张俊老人，安息吧，雷锋精神万岁。