What do teenage romance, extra-marital affairs, reincarnation and homosexuality have in common? They’ve all been banned from Chinese television dramas.

Crime shows that reveal police strategies and tactics have also been banned so that criminals can’t use the information to ‘up their game’.

The government’s ‘General Principle of Television Drama Production Content’, released in December, serves as a “professional guideline” for industry experts, according to Li Jingsheng, chief of television drama under the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television. Read more