China orders advert-free dramas amid "socialist culture" drive

Nov 29, 2011, 19:28 GMT

Beijing - China has ordered television stations to remove advertising slots from drama programmes, the government said Tuesday, in a move that reflects the ruling Communist Party's drive to promote 'socialist culture.'

All broadcasters are required cancel contracted advertising for dramas scheduled to air from January 1 and must rearrange their programme schedules, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television posted on its website.

The administration urged viewers to monitor the implementation of its new regulation and said it would punish any station that violated the ban on advertising during drama broadcasts.

'In the long run, the move will help TV dramas develop in a scientific and healthy manner, and spur the TV channels to put people first and improve their public service,' the official Xinhua news agency quoted an unnamed administration spokesman as saying.

China's ruling Communist Party said last month said that it planned to reduce the number of 'low taste' television entertainment programmes, and strengthen control over social media and internet content.

The moves formed part of a plan to promote the development of 'socialist culture' following the approval of new guidelines by the party's central committee.

In an earlier notice, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television limited the nation's 34 satellite channels to broadcasting a maximum of two entertainment programmes each evening from January 1.

All broadcasters must provide at least two hours of news coverage from 6 pm to midnight and air at least one programme reflecting 'Chinese tradition and socialist core values,' it said.