NEW YORK — China’s wildly popular music idol talent shows are facing a government crackdown, after rampant commercialism and the extreme behavior of fans attracted the attention of the authorities.
The competitions, where about 100 young contestants compete for a spot in a new pop group, have generated generous profits for their backers, including streaming giants Tencent and iQIYI.
But the National Radio and Television Administration, the media regulator, has launched a monthlong review of online variety shows and promised reforms, including “strictly restraining idol trainee shows.”
The bureau said earlier this week that it plans to prohibit overhyped publicity stunts and activities that spread values such as “money worshipping” or “idol worshipping.” Platforms need to guide fans in a more positive direction, it said.
Among the dozens of talent shows popular in China, such as “The Voice China” and “The Big Band,” the idol trainee survival shows are the most notorious for the ardor of their fans.
iQIYI’s “Youth with You” and “Idol Producer” and Tencent’s “CHUANG” and “The Coming One” are the biggest idol competitions, modeled after South Korea’s popular show “Produce 101.” The contestants mostly come from a slate of entertainment agencies in China, and many already have a fan base before appearing on the show.
A contestant’s progress can depend not only on fans’ votes but on their willingness to spend money. Sometimes viewers have to buy a beverage from a sponsoring brand and scan a QR code inside the bottle cap to register their support. Fans often fundraise for their idols and use the money to promote them, from donating to charities in the name of the star to purchasing a billboard for them in Times Square in New York City.
In March, fans of an idol trainee on Tencent’s “CHUANG 2021” raised roughly 3.68 million yuan (about $570,000) within six hours, according to a state media report. By the end of the finale, the top 11 trainees’ fans had spent over 100 million yuan supporting their idols.
The format has been on the government’s radar since earlier this year, when a controversy involving spilled milk in May prompted it to take action.
In “Youth with You 3,” viewers were asked to buy a yogurt drink sold by Mengniu, which sponsored the show, in order to vote for their favorite idol. With fans organizing and fundraising to buy Mengniu drinks in bulk, many ended up pouring them down the drain, prompting an online outcry about the waste.
iQIYI apologized after the incident and canceled the show’s finale, as requested by the government. Soon after, all other talent shows in China were asked to pause auditions.
A group photo of contestants from iQIYI’s “Youth with You 3.” Idol trainee shows often have roughly 100 contestants compete for a spot in a boy or girl group that debuts after the grand finale.
© Screenshot by Marrian Zhou
From 2007 to 2017, about 130 idol groups debuted in China, according to media analyst EntGroup. While only a handful became household names, the Chinese idol market is worth over 100 billion yuan, according to an EntGroup report cited by Chinese media, thanks to income from variety shows, online performances, music streaming, concerts, idol merchandise, movies, video games and brand endorsements.
Some idol fan groups organize to purchase products represented by their star to show their loyalty and to increase his or her chance of grabbing more brand ambassador deals. Members who do not contribute can get thrown out of the group.
The government’s review will examine the use of bots and hired “anti-fans,” who hate and sabotage a celebrity. It is also the first time the government has directly tackled toxic fan behavior, or “simping” — going too far for an idol.
A Monday opinion column in state media blamed the situation on “money hungry” entertainment companies.
Companies use the marketing tactic of convincing fans they “share the same emotion, reputation, fame and victory” as their idol to “emotionally manipulate” them into voting, fundraising and fighting online against idols represented by rival companies, the article in the Guangming Daily argued. It criticized companies for making fandom a tool to rake in instant profits and disrupting the entertainment industry and social order.
Tencent and iQIYI did not respond to a request for comment.
Eve Ng, a media studies professor at Ohio University who researches fan culture, said idol fandoms are not unique to China, but the scale of obsessive behavior is.
“[Young people] have so little agency and choice in other domains — no political voting, [they] just have to make a good career the way [their] parents and society tell them,” Ng told Nikkei Asia. “Maybe this is the one domain that is about choosing and doing everything that you actually want and feel really excited about.”
If simping is suddenly restricted, “what are people going to do if they can’t pursue these kinds of passions and interests in the entertainment world?” Ng asked. “It has to go somewhere.”