「The untamed」 , a costume martial-arts drama, is one of the most-watchedtelevision series in China. Since its online release last year it has been viewed8bn times. Its heart-throb star, Xiao Zhan (pictured), has gained a legion of fans.In October so many of them crowded an airport in Beijing to see him that they delayeda flight.
In February Mr. Xiao’s devotees flooded the internet with complaints abouta website hosting raunchy fiction about him. The government shut it down. In Maya video went viral of a classroom full of primary-school students chanting:「Brother Xiao Zhan, you are very good!」 The teacher who filmed them wassuspended.
Mr. Xiao’s millions of admirers belong to what are known in Chinese asfanquan, or 「meal circles」 (because the word for meal sounds like the Englishword 「fan」). These’re passionate and sometimes combative online groups devotedto particular celebrities. The Chinese government has long demanded patriotismand good behavior from stars, but it has placed few limits on fans. On theinternet, where debate and organizing are usually tightly controlled, fanquanenjoy rare freedom to do both.
But as fanquan have grown, so toohas official scrutiny of them. State media have criticized their 「irrational」 behavior.Aviation authorities have pleaded with them not to stalk stars at airports.(Some fans buy information about their idol’s movements.) In May a member ofChina’s rubber-stamp parliament called on the government to 「strictlyrectify」 fanquan because of the threatthey posed to the 「inheritance of red culture」. Mr. Xiao, who is 28, has askedhis fans to calm down. 「I hope everyone puts their studies, work and life beforechasing stars,」 he said.
Members of fanquan are mainly women in their 20s. Some teenagers join thefun, too. A government report shows that 12.8minternet users under 18 frequentlyengaged in 「fan-support」 activities. These include posting praise, attackingcritics and insulting devotees of other stars. After Mr. Xiao’s fans turnedtheir guns on the sexually provocative fiction website, the site’s supportersboycotted brands he represented and filled their social-media pages with furiousabuse. Among defamation cases that were heard by the Beijing Internet Court betweenJanuary and November last year, nearly 12% were filed by celebrities, often againstfans of rival stars.
Fandom also entails spending. Nearly15% of fans born since 2000 lavish atleast5,000 yuan ($707) on their favorite stars each month—about 40% more thanthe average urban disposable income. Sometimes they crowdfund shows ofaffection, such as adulatory billboards in New York’s Times Square. More oftenthey help celebrities ascend online charts. Take Mr. Xiao’s latest single—he isalso a singer— 「Spot of Light」. In the first 48 hours after its release, itnotched more than 25m downloads, a record. His fans reportedly helped by buyingan average of nearly 66 copies each.
Despite the unruliness of fanquan,the government may see occasional benefit in their ability to organize. AfterWuhan, the city where covid-19 cases first soared, went into lockdown on January23rd, fan Quan raised and helped todistribute more than7.4m yuan in relief money within about tendays. Last year,during prodemocracy unrest in Hong Kong, the mainland’s state media urged fanquan to praise 「brother China」 againstcritics abroad. They duly complied, and launched tirades against the protesters.The Communist Youth League called it #thefangirlscrusade.
But the fanquan are not always biddable. This year the League tried invain to encourage their members to praise animated idols named after MaoZedong’s writings. The idea was scrapped within hours.
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