Guo Degang, China’s best-known comic, was accused of violating public morals after he improvised his own lyrics to a famous Chinese revolutionary song during a performance in Wuhan at the end of July. He was reported to the city’s Culture and Tourism Bureau by a complainant who said he had “not only distorted and vulgarized a classic revolutionary work, but also violated public morals and accepted standards of conduct,” according to a screenshot of the letter published by state-affiliated media thePaper.
Guo’s trouble underscores the delicate line comedians must tread in highly censored China, especially as its ruling communist party steps up its ideological drive.