BEIJING – China's satellite broadcasters have eliminated more than two-thirds of prime-time entertainment programming such as dating and reality shows to comply with tough new government restrictions, as Beijing increasingly seeks to rein in cultural trends it finds problematic.
The state-run Xinhua news agency said Tuesday that satellite broadcasters have winnowed the number of entertainment shows aired during prime time to 38 from 126. A new rule that came into effect on Sunday limits the number of entertainment programs the broadcasters air to two each week and a maximum of 90 minutes daily between 7:30pm and 10:00pm.
The rule, first announced in October, is targeted at what Chinese regulators have called "excessive entertainment and a trend toward low taste," to address the rise of talent shows, dating shows and other such programming aired by China's tightly regulated, but increasingly competitive, regional satellite broadcasters. Authorities also encouraged broadcasters to air more news and educational programming.
"Satellite channels have started to broadcast programs that promote traditional virtues and socialist core values," Xinhua on Tuesday cited China's broadcasting regulator as saying.
The rule is part of a broad government effort to take firmer control of China's media landscape, an effort that also includes the nation's freewheeling internet culture. The internet aspect marks a recognition by policy makers of the web's rising power in a country with few other public national forums for discussing issues of the day. The media part, while targeting low-brow trends, also shows China's rising interest in developing its own soft power -- in the arts, media and culture -- to compete with the likes of Hollywood as the nation looks to take on a broader global role.
At the end of an October gathering, Chinese officials publicly called for stricter control of social media, which has challenged the Chinese government's traditional hold on the nation's information channels. Since then, Chinese internet companies have announced efforts to crack down on "rumors" -- a term often understood to mean information that the Communist Party finds undesirable -- while city governments are enacting new rules that would require users of Twitter-like microblogs and other services to register their real names with the companies before posting.
