Provisions for the Administration of Programs for Minors (Comments Draft)

Chapter I: General Provisions

Article 1: [Legislative Purpose]These Provisions are drafted on the basis of the "People's Republic of China Law on Protection of Minors", the "Measures on the Administration of Radio and Television", and other laws and administrative regulations, so as to regulate programsfor minors, protect the physical and psychological health of minors, safeguard the lawful rights and interests of minors, and to educate and guide minors' cultivation and practice of the core socialist values.

Article 2: [Scope of Application]These Provisions apply to activities engaging in the production and broadcast of programs for minors.

"Programs for minors" as used in these Provisions include radio, television, and information network audiovisual programs in which minors are the primary participants or minors are the primary audience.

Article 3: [Program principles]those engaged in activities for the production or broadcast of programs for minors shall have the objective of cultivating new people for the era of the national revival, have their core mission as the cultivation and practice of the core socialist values, pass on the exceptional traditional culture and culture virtues of the Chinese people, carry forward revolutionary culture, develop the advanced socialist culture, persist in innovation and development, strengthen innovative capactiy, and conscientiously protect the lawful rights and interests of minors, to prompt the health upbringing of minors.

Article 4: [Work principles]Efforts on the administration of programs for minors shall persist in having the correct orientation, emphasize protecting minors' privacy and personal dignity, implement education and protection equally combined with social governance, prevent the trends of commercialization, making overly adult, and excessively entertaining.

Article 5: [Competent Departments]The State Council department for Radio and Television is responsible for supervision and management efforts of programs for minors for the entire nation.

The competent departments for Radio and Television of people's governments at the county level or above are responsible for supervision and management efforts of programs for minors in the corresponding administrative region.

Article 6: [Industry Self-discipline]Radio, television, and information network AV industry organizations shall draft industry self-discipline standards on programs for minors in accordance with law together with industry traits, strengthen education of professional ethics, truly perform social responsibility, promote communication on industry operations, and protect members' lawful rights and interests.

Article 7: [Reward Mechanisms]The competent departments for radio and television are to follow relevant provisions to give commendations and awards to programs for minors that persist in the correct values, strengthen positive education, stick close to actual life, have innovative content forms, create positive social effect, or have outstanding performance in other areas; as well as to organizations and individuals who make outstanding contributions in the production and broadcast of programs for minors.

Chapter II: Regulation of Programs

Article 8: [Program Content Regulation]The State supports and encourages the production and broadcast of programming for minors that has the following content which:

(1) cultivates and practices socialist core values;

(2) carries forward the exceptional traditional culture of the Chinese people;

(3) Guides in the establishment of a correct world view, outlook on life, and values;

(4) fits the rules and characteristics of minors' physical and psychological development;

(5) protects minors feelings and embodies humanistic care;

(6) Spreads knowledge of the natural and social sciences;

(7) Other content that complies with national support and encouragement policies.

Article 9: [Program Content Regulation]Programs for minors must not include the following content:

(1) Portrays violence, gore, or terror, or that instigates crimes or conveys criminal methods;

(2) Issues, pictures, affirmations, or praise of minor's young love that involve sexuality, other than healthy and scientific sex education.

(3) Berating, distorting, or using improper methods to present the exceptional culture of the Chinese people, revolutionary culture, or advanced socialist culture;

(4) Distorting ethnic history or figures in ethnic history, disparaging, profaning, or denying the deeds and spirit of heroes and martyrs;

(5) Promoting, beautifying, or adulating countries, events or people that previously launched wars of aggression or colonial rule against our nation,

(6) Promoting cults, superstition,or decadent and depraved ideologies;

(7) Promoting or affirming negative views of family, views of marriage, and interest viewpoints;

(8) Overemphasizing or over-representing wealth, family background, and social position;

(9) Introducing or presenting suicide, self-mutilation, or other dangerous scenarios or games imitated that are readily imitated by minors;

(10) Using drugs, stimulants, or other prohibited pharmaceuticals, or presenting alcoholism, smoking, or drug abuse;

(11) Presenting negative behavior and conduct such as that which goes against social mores disrupts social order;

(12) Portrays gang or organized crime rituals of any kinds;

(13) Promotes or introduces electronic games of any kind;

(14) Other content prohibited by laws and regulations.

Where for the purpose of popularizing science, educating, or giving warnings, it is truly necessary to produce and broadcast programs with the content described above, a clear reminder shall be made at an appropriate time with conspicuous placement based on the program content, and appropriate processing of sound and images is to be carried out to avoid unnecessary presentation.

Article 10: [Regulation of Program Types]The following types of programs for minors must not be produced or broadcast:

(1) Non-advertisement programs that use minors of characters that are minors to advance commercial publicity;

(2) Educational or Cautionary programs that reveal minors to be criminal suspects, defendants, or victims;

(3) Contest shows where minors participate.

The production or broadcast of talk shows or reality shows for minors shall comply with the requirements of the State Council department for radio and television.

Article 11: [Consent and Safeguards]Invitations for minors to participate in program production shall first get the consent of their parents or other legally-prescribed guardians. Minors' participation in the production of programs must not be forced or induced through methods such as intimidation, enticement, or purchase.

Production of programs for minors shall safeguard the security of participating minors in their persons and property, as well as sufficient time for study and rest.

Article 12: [Privacy Protection]In the course of producing programs for minors, the private information of minors and their close relatives must not be disclosed or asked about, and minors must not be enticed to disclose it, minors must not be asked to express viewpoints that exceed their capacity for judgment.

In cases of violations or crimes by minors that truly need to be reported, the name, residence, photo, and picture of the minors involved in the case must not be disclosed, as well as any materials from which the minors might be deduced, and when there is real difficulty in avoiding its appearance, effective technological measures may be employed for shielding.

Article 13: [avoid making minors too adult or entertaining]Where minors are invited to participate in the production of programs, their apparrel and performance shall fit with the characteristics of the minors age and the features of the era, and minors must not be enticed to discuss topics such as fame, fortune, and love.

Programs for minors must not promote the child star effect, packaging and hyping interest in celebrity children.

Article 14: [Psychological Protection and Avoiding Commercialization]Programs for minors shall strictly control competitive rankings and must not set up material rewards that are too high, must not entice minors to seek votes or ask minors what it feels like to lose and be eliminated.

Emotional or conflict resolution type programs shall respect and protect the feelings of minors, and must not interview minors about household disputes and conflicts, must not request that minors participate in the program to record and on-scene mediation, and are to avoid having minors witness family conflict and emotional disputes with their own eyes.

Programs for minors must not give minors tests of character or morals in any form, magnifying negative phenomena and irrational emotions.

Article 15: [Hosts and Guests]The hosts of programs for children shall lawfully obtain professional certification, must not have words, deeds,and appearances that make minors uncomfortable, and perform their duty to guide and control during the program.

Programs for minors that have guests shall follow the State Council department for radio and television's provisions to make morals and character the primary standard, strictly selecting and strengthening training, and must not select persons with scandals and misdeeds of illegal and criminal conduct; and increase the proportion of guests from the general public.

Article 16: [Foreign Elements and Languages]Except as needed for the plot, domestically produced original programs for minors must not use foreign names, place names, clothing, images, and backgrounds.

Textual explanations, subtitles, and so forth in programs for minors shall use the common national written language.

Article 17: [Regulation of Advertisements]Advertisements played before, after, or during programs for minors shall comply with the following:

(1) Channels, frequencies, feature areas, links, and pages specially for children must not play advertisements for healthcare, medicine, health foods, medical instruments, makeup, alcohol, cosmetic surgery, and online games, as well as other advertisements not suitable for minors to watch, and the advertisements described above must not played before or after other programs for minors;

(2) Advertisements for goods or services targeting minors under 14 years-old must not include content inducing them to request their parents purchase the goods or services,or that might lead them to imitate unsafe conduct.

(3) Minors who are not yet 18 years old must not be used as advertising spokespersons.

(4) During school's winter and summer breaks, radio and television programs for minors must not have in excess of 10 minutes of advertisements per hour, and at other times must not exceed 12 minutes per hour.

(5) Where hosts or animated characters are used in advertisements targeting minors, they must not shown during the relevant program or cartoon;

(6) Advertisements must not be inserted or displayed in online audiovisual programs for minors or during the pause function, and the length of advertisements between content must not exceed 30 seconds.

Chapter III: Broadcast Regulations

Article 18: [Online Areas and Self-made Programs]Information network A/V program service units shall establish conspicuous special areas for the programs for minors that they broadcast, and specially broadcast programs suitable for minors to hear and watch that t

Special channels or frequencies for minors shall persist in independent innovation, increasing self-produced high quality programming, and satisfying minors' listening and viewing requirements.

Special channels, frequencies, and web areas for minors must not broadcast programs that are not suited for minors to hear or watch.

Article 19: [Pre-broadcast Review and Requirements for Live Broadcasts]Radio and television broadcast establishments and information network A/V service units shall follow relevant provisions to perform obligations to conduct pre-broadcast reviews of all programs for minors that are broadcast or uploaded by users; and for live programs shall employ necessary technical measures such as standby program substitutions to ensure that the programs for minors that are broadcast do not contain the content prohibited by article 9 of these Provisions.

Article 20: 【Break Reminders】Radio and Television broadcast institutions and information network A/V service units shall put reminders to take a break in a conspicuous position at least once every thirty minutes during the broadcast of programs for minors.

Article 21: [Assessment Committees]Radio and Television broadcast institutions and information network A/V service units shall establish a assessment committee for programs for minors comprised of experts on the protection of minors, parent representatives, teacher representatives, and others, to periodically conduct assessment of programs for minors before, during, and after they are broadcast. The assessment opinions shall be a major basis for the continued broadcast or adjustment of the programs, and the departments reviewing relevant programs shall make a written explanation of decisions to accept or reject assessment opinions.

Article 22: [Protection Commissioners]Radio and Television broadcast institutions and information network A/V service units shall establish a system of Commissioners for the Protection of Minors, arranging for personnel with relevant work experience or education backgrounds to be responsible for efforts to protect minors, responsible submitting review opinions on whether relevant programs and advertisements are suitable for minors to hear and watch, and for issuing recommendations that programs and advertisements not suitable for minors to hear or watch be revised or not broadcast.

Article 23: [Collection of Assessments by Production and Broadcast Bodies]Radio and Television broadcast institutions and information network A/V service units shall establish systems for collecting public assessment of programs for minors, and promptly disclose in an appropriate manner any situations of programs improved.

Article 24: [Annual Reporting]Radio and Television broadcast institutions and information network A/V service units shall submit a report annually on protection of minors to the local people's governments' department for radio and television.

The assessment committee's work, the commissioner for the protection of minor's performance of their duties, and public assessment solicitation shall be the major content of the annual reports.

Article 25: [Broadcast Time and Ratios]Broadcasts of programs for minors should comply with the following regulations:

(1) The programs broadcast by radio and television broadcast establishments between 8:00-23:00 each day during legally prescribed holidays and schools' winter and summer breaks, and from between 15:00-22:00 each day when it is not a legally-prescribe holiday or schoo's winter and summer breaks, shall be suitable for all groups to hear and watch, and programs for minors broadcast at other times that might cause minors physical or psychological discomfort shall have conspicuous visual or audio reminders before their broadcast;

(2) Special channels or frequencies for minors shall broadcast domestic cartoons or programs for minors between 17:00-22:00, and must not broadcast narrative-based or foreign programs, where it is truly necessary to broadcast an exceptional series during this time, it shall meet the requirements of the State Council department for radio and television.

(3) The proportion of domestic and foreign cartoons broadcast or provided by special channels, frequencies, or online ares for minors shall fit with the provisions of the State Council's department for radio and television.

(4) Other requirements provided by laws or regulations.

Chapter IV: Oversight and Management

Article 26: [Government Supervision and Management]The competent departments for radio and television shall establish and complete systems for monitoring programs for minors, using routine monitoring, special inspections, onsite spot checks, and other such methods to strengthen supervision and management of programs for minors.

Article 27: [Warnings Records for Unlawful Conduct]The competent departments for radio and television shall establish a system of warning records for programs for minors; promptly disclosing program production establishments, radio and television broadcast establishments, and information networks A/V program service units to the public, and expanding the extent of enforcement and inspections.

The competent departments for radio and television shall conduct random spot checks for radio and television broadcast establishments and information networks A/V program service units annual reports, and when necessary conduct inspections, and include relevant units with illegal conduct in the warning records.

Article 28: [Joint Disciplinary Action for Untrustworthiness]The competent departments for radio and television, together with the relevant departments, are to establish and complete joint disciplinary action mechanisms for violations and untrustworthiness, and carry out joint disciplinary action against establishments that seriously violate these Provisions in producing or broadcasting programs for minors.

Article 29: [Societal Oversight]The competent departments for radio and television shall establish systems for reporting illegal conduct in programs for minors, announcing telephone numbers, addresses, and other contact information for reports.

All units and individuals have the right to report programs for minors that violate these Provisions. Competent departments for radio and television that receive reports shall record them and promptly conduct and investigation and handling in accordance with law; where they are not within the scope of that department's duties, they shall promptly transfer it to the relevant departments.

Article 30: [Association Duties]Based on these Provisions, national industry associations for radio, television, and information network A/V, shall draft specific standards for reviewing the content of programs for minors, strengthening training of practitioners, and reporting on the training situation to the State Council department fro radio and television.

Chapter V: Legal Responsibility

Article 31: [Responsibility for Program Content and Category Violations]Where these Provisions are violated by the production or broadcast of programs for minors that contain content prohibitted by the first paragraph of article 9 of these Provisions; or by producing programs for popular science, education, or cautionary purposes contain content that is prohibitted in the first paragraph of article 9 but have not put up a clear reminder or carried out technical processing; or where producing or broadcasting types of programs for minors that are prohibited by article 10 of these Provisions, punishment is to be given in accordance with article 39 of the "Regulations on the Administration of Radio and Television."

Article 32: [Responsibility for Broadcast Ration Violations]Where these Provisions are violated by the broadcast of domestic and foreign cartoons in proportions not compliant with the provisions of the State Council department on radio and television, punishment is given in accordance with article 50 of the "Regulations on the Administration of Radio and Television."

Article 33: [Responsibility for other Violations]Violations of articles 11-20 and the first two items of article 25 of these provisions are to be ordered corrected within a certain time or given warnings by the competent departments of radio and television on people's governments at the county level or above, and may be given a concurrent fine of up to 30,000 RMB.

Article 34: [Relevant Competent Departments and Units with Authority's Responsibility to Cooperate]Where establishments producings programs for minors, radio and television broadcast establishments, information network A/V program service units violate these provisions, the regulatory department for that unit or a unit authorized for handling, shall give punishments or sanctions to the responsible managers or directly responsible personnel in accordance with law; where a serious socia impact was caused, the competent departments for radio and television may send notice to the regulatory department or unit authorized for handling and submit a recommendation for punishment or sanctions of the responsible managers and directly responsible personnel, and may follow up as to subsequent consequences.

Article 35: [Concurrent Legal Responsibility]Where violations of these Provisions simultaneously violate other laws and regulations, and the other laws or regulations have clear legal responsibility for that unlawful conduct, follow those provisions.

Article 36: [Responsibility for Violations by the Staff of Competent Departments for Radio and Television]Where employees of the competent departments for radio and television abuse their authority, derelict their duties, twist the law for personal gain, or fail to perform their duties in accordance with these provisions, the responsible managers and directly responsible personnel are to be given sanctions in accordance with law.

Chapter VI: Supplementary Provisions

Article 37: [Definitions] 'Information network A/V program service units" as used in these Provisions refers to internet A/V program service units and private networks, private network service units directly transmitting A/V programs.

School's winter and summer breaks as used in these provisions refers to the periods designated by the competent departments for education administration for the location the radio or television broadcast establishment or the location where information network A/V program services are registered.

Article 38: [Regulation of Programs that are not for Minors]For programs that do not constitute programs for minors as referred to in these Provisions, but that have content such as images or information on minors, content regulations and legal responsibility are to be implemented with reference to these Provisions.

Article 39: [Effective date]These Provisions take effect on ___,___ 20__.