Who censored Roger Rabbit? The Communist Party of China!

China’s ancient culture has outlasted famine, Mongol hordes, the British Empire, opium wars and Japanese militarism.

So why is Beijing scared of Tinky Wink?

That’s the member of U.K. kids’ favorite Teletubbies, which aroused the ire of televangelist Jerry Falwell. Now the animated gang has fallen afoul of Communist China–although not for the preacher’s reasons.

See, Teletubbies is a mixed media show, in that it blends cartoons with live action. And that melange is now officially banned by Beijing.

The People’s Republic of China has declared verboten TV shows and movies that blend hand or computer drawings with breathing human actors, in a drive to nurture home-grown animators–and perhaps wean the nation off of foreign cartoons.

AsiaPundit doesn’t care about Tinky Wink - but surely a regime is most wretched if it bans Jessica Rabbit.

This is what AsiaPundit means when he says content-related businesses in China are at risk from political and regulatory whims.

AP was out for dinner and drinks with some fellow hacks last weekend and the Google issue was discussed. AsiaPundit mentioned that he would question any attempt to set up a content business here, noting how poorly News Corp had fared in spite of abiding by requests from authorities that it censor the BBC and not publish a biography by former Hong Kong governor Chris Patten.

A colleague agreed and said: "that’s China!‘

For more on the cartoon ban, Imagethief has some comments on the banning of ""so-called cartoons."

GZ expat notes some of the toons’ that will be banned.
Simon reveals the real reason for the ban.

Technorati Tags: asia, censorship, china, east asia, cartoons, northeast asia