China Bans Minors From Idol Groups, TV Talent Shows, Fan Club Events

What’s new: The Communist Party department that oversees China’s strict controls on content issued a notice Thursday prohibiting minors from participating in idol groups, talent contest shows and offline fan club activities.

The notice from the Publicity Department comes as part of a broader government morality drive, and follows a similar one issued by the National Radio and Television Administration on the same day banning “unpatriotic” and “unethical” stars.

The notice (link in Chinese), carried by the official Xinhua News Agency, said that the entertainment industry remained plagued with problems including excessively high salaries paid to stars, tax evasion, an excessive focus on viewership and traffic, and “chaotic” fan culture.

It added that some in the entertainment sector with “poor political literacy, low legal awareness and low moral values” are a bad influence on young people and “severely pollute social morality.”

It also called for more severe punishment for actors who engage in illegal or unethical behavior, as well as requiring online platforms to better manage registered accounts and fan communities and prevent web traffic fraud.

The background: From celebrities to fan groups, the Chinese government has been ramping up control over the entertainment industry following a series of scandals involving stars.

The clamp down on online celebrity fan clubs follows state media criticism of their influence on minors, as well as harassment and verbal abuse that take place among fan groups.

Meanwhile, high-profile scandals have led to popular celebrities including Kris Wu, Zhang Zhehan and Zheng Shuang losing endorsement deals and their work being taken down on various platforms.

Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for fast news you can use.

Contact reporter Kelsey Cheng (kelseycheng@caixin.com) and editor Flynn Murphy (flynnmurphy@caixin.com)

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