No period dramas or pop idols: Chinese censors say patriotic shows must mark 70th anniversary of People’s Republic
- Broadcasters told content in August must be ‘appropriate for the whole environment’
- Sina TV survey of 783,000 people shows 39 per cent of viewers unhappy with restrictions
Chinese broadcasters must stop showing period dramas and glitzy productions that involve screen and music idols for 100 days from Thursday, and instead choose from a list of 86 “patriotic” shows to prepare viewers for the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic on October 1, state censors said.
According to a notice published on a social media account belonging to industry regulator the National Radio and Television Administration, “TV stations should put emphasis on choosing shows ... and not broadcast any period or ‘idol dramas’ that are too entertaining. [They must also] make sure the shows broadcast are appropriate for the whole environment during this period.”
The patriotic shows on the list focused on “different stages of the Chinese people’s road to independence, prosperity and strength, they praise the country, praise the people, praise the heroes and praise the times”, the notice said.
Members of the public were worried that popular shows, including The Untamed, a web series loosely based on an online homoerotic novel, would be taken offline. Others supported the list and said the deluge of period dramas needed to be regulated.
“We shouldn’t let idol dramas that are too vulgar destroy our youth’s future,” one Weibo user said.
In a survey by entertainment news outlet Sina TV published on the Weibo network on Wednesday, about 39 per cent of the 783,000 respondents said they were upset that their viewing would be limited in August, while about 26 per cent said there were shows on the patriotic list that they would be happy to watch.
