Current location:Earthly Echo news portal > politics
Chinese comedy group punishment sends chills through arts sphere
Earthly Echo news portal2024-05-22 02:21:54【politics】9People have gathered around
IntroductionBy Matthew Walsh and Rebecca BaileyChina’s recent punishment of a comedy studio has sent a chi
By Matthew Walsh and Rebecca Bailey
China’s recent punishment of a comedy studio has sent a chill through the country’s cultural sphere — a striking reminder of the increasingly limited public space for artistic expression under President Xi Jinping.
Authorities last week fined Xiaoguo Culture Media millions of dollars and suspended their performances indefinitely after a comic made an oblique joke about the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
‘Scare the monkeys’
The penalty “was clearly issued in line with the old Chinese practice of ‘killing a chicken to scare the monkeys'”, said Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute.
“Most cultural workers and comedians are likely to act on the deterrence effect,” he added.
The days after the announcement saw a spate of last-minute cancellations of musical and comedy performances nationwide.
Subscribe to HKFP's twice-weekly newsletter for a concise round-up of local news and our best coverage. Unsubscribe at any time - we will not pass on your data to third parties.
Processing… Success! You're on the list. Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.In some cases “force majeure” was blamed, but others gave no reason and did not say whether the performances would take place in the future.
Japanese musician Kanho Yakushiji, whose Buddhist choral group’s shows in Hangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing were nixed, said on Instagram he didn’t understand the cancellations.
A staff member at a venue in the southern city of Shantou said a rock show had been postponed while “a new application was made for (official) approval” but that they did not know the exact reason why.
Multiple performers contacted by AFP would not comment on the current climate, fearing it would worsen the backlash.
Stand-up may be particularly risky as it is a relatively new form of comedy in China and “it is difficult to know the appropriate boundaries”, SOAS’ Xiaoning Lu told AFP.
It is also seen by some nationalists as a Western import undermining Chinese “cultural confidence”, she said.
‘Appropriate laughter’
The Communist Party has historically kept a tight rein on the arts — coopting them for political propaganda and quashing anything verging on dissent.
Leader Mao Zedong once said there was “no such thing as… art that is detached from or independent of politics”.
“Censorship and self-censorship have always been present, although the intensity may vary from time to time,” said Hong Kong Baptist University’s Sheng Zou.
In recent years the government has published new “moral guidelines” demanding that performers embody positivity and patriotism.
It has also taken aim at “abnormal aesthetics” in media, including “sissy men” — a pejorative term for men with an effeminate look.
Xi last week wrote to staff at the National Art Museum of China, urging them to “adhere to the correct political orientation”, according to state media.
Announcing the comedy studio’s fine, authorities said they hoped “all literary and artistic workers (would) comply with laws and regulations, correct their creative thinking, (and) strengthen moral cultivation”.
“The boundaries of appropriate laughter have always been elastic in China, contingent upon political climate,” said SOAS’ Lu.
With the Xiaoguo incident, a new red line has been set, said Oxford’s Shue.
“The military establishment is to be regarded as ‘sacred’ — there is to be no public laughter whatsoever, even tangentially, at the expense of the PLA,” she explained.
Public nationalism
The new boundaries are an extension of the muscular, hardline nationalism Xi has personally promoted since coming to power.
He has frequently used the slogan referenced in Li’s joke, and extolled the strength of the armed forces in domestic information campaigns.
That fierce nationalism has trickled down — Li was investigated after a complaint from a member of the public, authorities said.
His transgression was the topic of heated discussion, with hundreds of millions of hits on social media platform Weibo.
The widespread attention had created “mounting pressure… demanding serious treatment”, said Zou.
Many online comments supported Li’s punishment, although Weibo is heavily censored.
“In China, anything that involves insults to national dignity and pride is no trivial matter,” Baptist University’s Zou said.
“It is where the state’s interest and public opinion most likely converge.”
Address of this article:http://turkey.lochsaege.com/content-19d899977.html
Very good!(3721)
Related articles
- Insider Q&A: CIA's chief technologist's cautious embrace of generative AI
- Chicago shooting kills 7
- Feature: China's top
- Children visit Beijing Auto Museum during winter vacation
- Target starts price war with Walmart by slashing the cost of 5,000 popular items
- 2024 Chang'an Light Show starts in Xi'an
- The truth behind Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont's off
- Advantage Man City in the Premier League title race after losses for Arsenal and Liverpool
- Sarah Jessica Parker divides opinion with enormous hat on set of And Just Like That
- I am a neurologist but was still diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in my 40s
Popular articles
Recommended
Kate Hudson hits the stage to debut songs from her new album Glorious at star
Kyrou, Schenn and Walker score in 3rd period, send Blues past Kraken 4
Wife of ex
2024 Chang'an Light Show starts in Xi'an
Macron is making a surprise trip to New Caledonia amid deadly unrest and indigenous frustration
Wife of ex
2024 Chang'an Light Show starts in Xi'an
People celebrate upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year across world
Links
- China firmly opposes latest groundless accusations in Philippine media reports
- China aid welcomed by developing world
- Xi Focus: Xi Calls for Striving to Realize Economic Goals in 2023
- Tourism festival spurs consumption in Shanghai
- Sanya optimizes processes of nucleic acid testing amid latest COVID
- Xi Extends Congratulations to Cambodia's Hun Sen on Election Victory
- Global Digital Economy Conference 2022 held in Beijing
- Xi Stresses Establishing New Systems for Higher
- Across China: Volkswagen Anhui rolls out targeted strategy to meet booming Chinese NEV market
- Chinese culture experience week held in Brazil