Photo:VCG

Following an official campaign launched by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) on Saturday to combat "irrational" efforts of Chinese fans to support their idols, more than Chinese 200 fan clubs of celebrities such as singer Jackson Wang, actor Wang Yibo and actress Ouyang Nana and several entertainment companies published initial written proposals outlining changes that should be implemented for the long-term sustainability of China's idol industry.

The contents of these proposals, which were posted on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo, were roughly similar, covering topics such as respecting the privacy of celebrities, ending cyberbullying and supporting idols through rational means.

Most fans who read the proposals expressed their support.

Fen, a fan of Wang Yibo since he starred on the hit drama The Untamed in 2019, told the Global Times on Wednesday that she stood behind the proposals. 

"The Chinese fan community has been thrown into chaos by everyone trying to compete against each other in collecting more and more funds from fans. Strict regulation is needed," Fen said.

Wang, a fan of actor Gong Jun, agreed with Fen, saying that he is tired of the various squabbles that happen among various fan factions. 

Wang said he hopes that the new campaign and the resulting actions being taken by the entertainment industry can return the fan community to a healthy state. 

Some entertainment companies such as Wajijiwa and Yue Hua Entertainment followed in the footsteps of the fan clubs by posting their own proposals on Sina Weibo to answer the national campaign.

Some celebrities' fans seem to be more rational than their idols. Chinese singer Huo Zun commented a 16-year-old student's death at a school in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, which has stirred a huge online response from the public, before the case was still in investigation, saying that someone should be punished severely.

When one of his fans told him that he should more carefully make comments as the truth has not be cleared, Huo did not take the suggestion as seriously and continued to condemn the school.

One of Huo's fan clubs that opened in 2019 was closed because of Huo's speeches about the case on Wednesday. The announcement said that the reason why to close the fan club is fans were hurt by Huo's irresponsible behaviors.

"As a public figure, he should be more rational and responsible for his behaviors, but he made comments before the truth is clear and might mislead more people," the announcement said.

The decision of Huo's fans won applause from other Chinese netizens.

The CAC's "Clear and Bright" campaign aims to crack down on illegal online behavior, including the irrational behavior of fan clubs and the resulting chaos in the entertainment industry. Regulations concerning the online activities of institutions or official fan groups behind entertainment celebrities will be introduced and cyberbullying will be cracked down upon.

The campaign comes after hit variety show Youth With You Season 3 became involved in scandal in which fans were encouraged to scan QR codes inside the caps of milk bottles to vote for their favorite trainees on the show, resulting in fans buying whole crates of milk to get caps and then dumping the contents.