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China has cut three out of four widely watched Spring Festival galas sponsored by ministries and state media, as the ruling party has stepped up efforts to cut pomp and fight corruption.
The three galas to be hosted by the ministries of public security, culture, and civil affairs respectively have been canceled, leaving only the Spring Festival Gala of China Central Television aired on the Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve.
The move came amid a broad campaign launched by the party to cut extravagance and reduce red tape after the election of a new party leadership in November 2012.
The party launched campaigns to reduce waste and promote frugality as well as ban party officials from pomp, ceremony and bureaucratic visits and meetings.
In August 2013, the Publicity Department of the Party Central Committee, along with another four government organs, issued a circular requiring fewer galas to be held and promoting frugality in this sector.
China's media watchdog, the State General Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, has required that copycat galas on regional TV stations over the Spring Festival should not exceed three per day.
CCTV has called off 17 gala programs since the Middle Autumn Day, which fell on September 19 last year, accounting for half of the broadcaster's gala programs.
The CCTV gala, which lasts more than four hours and features music, dance, witty skits and crosstalk comedy, has become an annual fixture for millions of Chinese worldwide on the eve of Chinese New Year since the early 1980s.
However, its popularity has declined in recent years as Internet users have scorned the gala as rigid, outdated, and lacking a grassroots foundation.
This year, the state broadcaster has employed well-known film director Feng Xiaogang as the general director of the gala and well-known comedian Zhao Benshan as deputy general director in charge of the gala's comedy programming.
