The Chinese government banned effeminate men on television and told broadcasters on Thursday to promote “revolutionary culture,” expanding a campaign to strengthen control over business and society and enforce official morale.
President Xi Jinping has called for a “national rejuvenation,” with tighter control of the Communist Party over business, education, culture and religion. Businesses and the public are under increasing pressure to align with their vision of a more powerful China and a healthier society.
The party has reduced children’s access to online games and is trying to discourage what it considers unhealthy attention to celebrities.
Broadcasters must “resolutely end fagot men and other abnormal aesthetics,” the television regulator said, using an insulting slang term for effeminate men: “niang pao,” or literally, “girl guns.”
This reflects the concern to suppress Chinese pop stars, influenced by the sleek, youthful looks of some singers and actors in South Korea and Japan, who are not encouraging young men in China to be masculine enough.
Broadcasters should avoid promoting “vulgar Internet celebrities” and admiration for wealth and celebrities, the regulator said. Instead, programs should “vigorously promote excellent Chinese traditional culture, revolutionary culture, and advanced socialist culture.”
The Xi government is also tightening control over Chinese Internet industries.
It has launched antitrust, data security and other compliance actions in companies, including gaming and social media provider Tencent Holding and e-commerce giant Alibaba, which the ruling party worries are too big and independent.
The rules that went into effect on Wednesday limit anyone who has less than 18 to three hours a week of online gaming and prohibit playing on school days.
Game developers were already required to submit new titles for government approval before they could be released. Officials have asked them to add nationalist issues.
The party is also tightening control over celebrities.
Broadcasting agencies should prevent performers from “violating public order” or having “lost morale,” the regulator said. Programs about children of celebrities are also banned.
On Saturday, the Weibo Corp. microblogging platform suspended thousands of fan club accounts and entertainment news.
A popular actress, Zhao Wei, has disappeared from the transmission platforms without explanation. His name has been removed from the credits of movies and TV shows.
Thursday’s order told broadcasters to limit the payment of performers and avoid the terms of the contract that could help them evade taxes.
Another actress, Zheng Shuang, received a fine of 299 million yuan ($ 46 million) last week for tax evasion charges in a warning to celebrities to be positive role models.