BEIJING—The Chinese regime banned effeminate men on TV and told broadcasters Thursday, broadening a campaign to tighten control over business and society.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has called for tighter Chinese Communist Party (CCP) control of business, education, culture, and religion. Companies and the public are under increasing pressure to align with the CCP’s vision.
The CCP has already reduced children’s access to online games and is now trying to discourage what it sees as unhealthy attention to celebrities.
Broadcasters must “resolutely put an end to sissy men and other abnormal aesthetics,” the National Radio and TV Administration said, using an insulting slang term for effeminate men—“niang pao,” or literally, “girlie guns.”
The CCP is also tightening control over Chinese Internet industries.
It has launched anti-monopoly, data security, and other enforcement actions at companies, including games and social media provider Tencent Holding and e-commerce giant Alibaba Group.
Rules that took effect Wednesday limit anyone under 18 to three hours per week of online games and prohibit play on school days.
Game developers already were required to submit new titles for authorities’ approval before they could be released. Officials have called on them to add nationalistic themes.
The CCP is also tightening control over celebrities.
Broadcasters should avoid performers who “violate public order” or have “lost morality,” the regulator said. Programs about the children of celebrities also are banned.
On Saturday, microblog platform Weibo Corp. suspended thousands of accounts for fan clubs and entertainment news.
A popular actress, Zhao Wei, has disappeared from streaming platforms without explanation. Her name has been removed from the credits of movies and TV programs.
Thursday’s order told broadcasters to limit pay for performers and to avoid contract terms that might help them evade taxes.
Another actress, Zheng Shuang, was fined $46 million last week on tax evasion charges.
