U.S. Covid Case Count, Jabs for Chinese Kids, Online Entertainment Crackdown

Here is today’s ranking of the 10 most-read news stories in China, in economics, finance and current affairs, to help give you a sense of what’s trending in the Chinese language sphere.

Chinese social media users have been paying close attention to the country’s crackdown on fandom culture. They are also following the investigation into deadly flooding in Central China.

1. Crackdown on fandom culture

Cyberspace Administration of China (external source, in Chinese) said Monday that its work to rectify fandom culture has achieved results, with more than 150,000 pieces of harmful information cleared, more than 4,000 accounts disposed of, and more than 1,300 problematic groups closed. It also stressed the elimination of platform features that persuade fans to work to do things that boost popularity of their idols.

2. Domestic vaccines effective against delta strain, China’s top virus expert says

China’s top respiratory disease specialist (external source, in Chinese) Zhong Nanshan said Saturday that domestic vaccines are effective against the delta variant. He said China needs a vaccination rate of 83.3% to achieve herd immunity and called for more people to get vaccinated.

3. U.S. reports more than 110,000 Covid-19 cases in one day

There were 110,107 new Covid-19 cases (external source, in Chinese) and 392 deaths from the disease in the United States in the 23 hours to 5 a.m. China Standard Time on Tuesday, according to statistics from Johns Hopkins University.

4. China approves emergency use of Sinovac shots for kids aged 3 to 17

China approved on June 12 two Covid-19 vaccines (external source, in Chinese) produced by Sinovac and Sinopharm for emergency use in children aged 3 to 17. Yang Guang, Sinovac’s chief commercial officer, said that clinical trials show the company’s vaccine is safe and effective for children.

5. Macao declares “state of prevention” after new Covid-19 cases

Macao (external source, in Chinese) reported four confirmed cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday. That afternoon, the Macau government declared an immediate “state of prevention.”

6. Beijing vows to punish any misconduct in response to deadly flooding in Central China

The State Council, China’s cabinet, has vowed to investigate and punish any misconduct in the official response to the devastating flooding in the central province of Henan, which has killed over 300.

7. South Korea on alert against delta plus variant

South Korea has detected its first two cases of the new delta plus Covid-19 variant (external source, in Chinese), the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency announced on Tuesday. The delta plus variant is an even more infectious sub-lineage of the delta variant first identified in India.

8. Academic says parents shouldn’t choose kids’ schools

With China cracking down on extracurricular education, Yao Yang, director of Peking University’s National Development Institute, called for reform to the country’s education system (external source, in Chinese). He proposes 10 years of compulsory education, up from nine at present, and removing the choice of schools from parents.

9. Stabbing near Pentagon leaves police officer dead

A Pentagon police officer (external source, in Chinese) died Tuesday after being stabbed during a violent incident at a transportation center outside the building, where a suspect was shot and killed by law enforcement officers, according to CNN.

10. China to strictly control variety shows

The State Administration of Radio and Television (external source, in Chinese) has launched a month-long rectification campaign targeting online variety shows, requiring strict control of idol-focused programs and banning paid voting by viewers.

Translated by intern reporter Chen Bingyi.

Caixin has not independently verified the veracity or accuracy of all of the headlines or stories.

The daily ranking of most-read news stories among Chinese people, about China and global affairs, is jointly provided to you by Caixin Insight and HANA Data, an artificial intelligence technology team.

The key indicators calculated on the list are based on mass data sourced from China’s mainstream social media platforms and online news websites. Click here for a detailed introduction of our methodology.