China Announces New Rules For Celeb Endorsements After Stars Like Jing Tian, Wang Han Get Involved In Advertising Scandals

Yes, we're back with more news about fresh regulations in the Chinese media industry again. 

This time, the Chinese government is implementing new restrictions on celebrity endorsements.

On Oct 31, six government bodies, namely the National General Administration for Industry and Commerce, Cyberspace Administration of China, Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China, National Radio and Television Administration, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and State Grid Corporation of China jointly announced the "New Rules and Guidelines for Celebrities in Advertisements and Endorsements" [rough translation]. 

According to reports, the new regulations have to do with how Chinese celebrities have repeatedly gotten involved in advertising scandals.

Earlier this year, Chinese actress Jing Tian was fined 7mil yuan (S$1.35mil) for violating advertising laws. She has since been banned from endorsing products for three years.

Then there was Chinese actress Ma Yali who endorsed a milk tea brand that was part of a 700mil yuan (S$135mil) scam. 

Chinese TV host Wang Han, who was the face of money lending app 'Ai Qian Jin', was also publicly denounced by users of the app in an incident involving approximately 23bil yuan (S$4.47bil). Wang Han subsequently released a statement to make a public apology.

There are now stricter guidelines for celebrity endorsements, where artistes are expected to display more self-discipline, and have to abide the laws of honest advertising. 

Corporations are required to be responsible for advertising content by making sure that they are accurate and legal. They also have to research on the celebrities' backgrounds, and make sure that the artistes have not been punished for violating any advertising laws in the past three years. 

Persons below 10-year-old are also not allowed to be ambassadors of any products. 

Platforms similarly have to scrutinise advertising content and anything that creates hype, or vulgar content are to be avoided, while commercials featuring disgraced celebrities are to be restricted on said platforms. 

Photos: chinapress