The Chinese Government will battle the irrational celebrity fandom in their country.
The Chinese Communist Party's Central Internet Safety and Information Committee's Office of the People's Republic of China has announced a plan to "solidify the management of disorderly fandom," according to reports from different Chinese newspapers last August 27.
The new plan states that it is forbidden to release celebrity popularity charts, and it will also control the spending of money by minors to support their favorite celebrities. Particularly, fighting between fan clubs of celebrities online by swearing or spreading rumors is strictly prohibited.
The online platforms that fail to manage the fanclubs will be penalized.
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Furthermore, entertainment agencies will also be held responsible for managing the fan club properly. Paid voting by fans in different entertainment programs is also prohibited. It should not induce the fans to purchase celebrity-related products in order to win charts.
The fandom management plan demanded that each region should increase its sense of responsibility, mission, and urgency to protect online political and ideological security. One analysis suggests that China is broadening its crackdown on popular culture in recent years because the fan clubs are criticizing each other and spending a lot of money on idol competition programs for their favorite stars. It has become a social problem.
The Chinese government wards off 'irrational idol worshipping'
For instance, after the news sparked that the popular actor Zhao Liing will appear in a drama with Wang Yibo, Zhao Liing's fan club attacked Wang Yibo online. And because of this, over 2,000 related accounts were closed on Weibo, a Chinese social media, last August 25.
Last May, fans bought a huge amount of intact milk to give numerous votes to their favorite idol trainees.
As a response, the founder of iQiyi attended a conference about professional ethics for Chinese broadcasting artists on August 25 and stated that he will withdraw his hands from producing audition programs for the next several years to cultivate high morals and comply with the rules of the broadcasting industry.
On August 25, the Chinese boy group "Panda Boys," all of which aged 7 - 11 years old, was disbanded five days after their debut because of the criticisms of "child exploitation."
This is because of the criticism from the netizens that "they use children to make money" against Cheonbu Boys, whose oldest member is 11 years old and the youngest is just seven years old. China Central TV pointed out that children should not debut before they find their way in life.
K-Pop industry in China
K-Pop's popularity in China is expected to spark again because of its strong restrictions on the entertainment industry by the Chinese government.
Weibo has already deleted posts about 10 accounts that "irrationally supported idols" after the milk hoarding of "Youth Uni 3" last May and also banned their postings for 30 days. Around seven out of 10 accounts that were halted were accounts created by BTS fans. Weibo explained that the ban has been issued in response to the authorities' request to regulate the idol industry and also establish a healthy fan culture.
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Written by Annie Barmaine.
