China on Wednesday slammed a comedy company with a 14.7 million Yuan ($2.13million) penalty, accusing it of “harming society’’ after a military joke made by one of its comedians drew public criticism.
The Beijing arm of China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism Bureau said it would fine Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture Media Co 13.35 million Yuan.
It said that it would also confiscate 1.35 million Yuan in “illegal gains’’ from the firm after discovering that a recent show by Li Haoshi, who performs under the name House, had breached rules.
The incident had strongly divided the Chinese public over what sort of jokes were inappropriate as performances such as stand-up comedy become increasingly popular and also highlighted the limits of appropriate content in China where authorities say it must promote core socialist values.
Li went viral on Chinese social media earlier this week after an audience member posted online a description of a joke he had made at a live stand-up set in Beijing on May 13, describing it as demeaning to China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
