China banned reality talent programs Thursday and ordered broadcasters to promote more masculine representations of men, in a wide-ranging crackdown on “immoral” pop culture Beijing believes is leading young people astray.
Talent shows that put hundreds of aspiring young performers through rigorous boot camps and subject them to public votes have become massively popular in China, sparking criticism over obsessive fans and poor role models.
“Broadcast and TV institutions must not screen idol development programs or variety shows and reality shows,” China’s broadcast regulator, the National Radio and Television Administration said, in a raft of new regulations.
The regulator ordered broadcasters to resist “abnormal aesthetics” such as “sissy” men, “vulgar influencers”, stars’ inflated pay and performers with “lapsed morals”.
Faced with falling birth rates, Chinese authorities have tried to instill traditional masculine values in the country’s youth by ramping up gym classes and criticizing male entertainers who model the effeminate looks of Korean pop idols.
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