China Warns on 'unhealthy' Websites

Chinese websites are being urged to suppress material that could harm state interests or damage social morality.

Separately, broadcasting authorities in China have told radio, TV and film producers to get clearance for controversial dramas and to avoid using foreign content in news programming.

The country's official internet industry association, the Internet Society of China, has called on members to keep a watch on the content appearing on websites.

"We should run our business in a civilized way. We should not produce, disseminate and spread information that harms state security, social stability and information that violates laws and regulations and social morality," the ISC said in a statement.

The society said "unhealthy information" on websites had harmed Chinese children and threatened social stability.

It wants its 2,600 members to supervise content and delete "unhealthy" information that appears on websites.

The move is in line with efforts by the Chinese government to censor the content available to China's 110 million internet users.

Among the forbidden subjects for Chinese web users are Tibet, the country's pro-democracy movement, human rights and the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement.

The BBC's news website is one of the most high-profile western sites blocked by Chinese censors. Websites featuring sex are also subject to government crackdowns.

Western companies such as Google and Yahoo! have faced criticism for agreeing to censorship of their services as they attempt to crack the potentially lucrative Chinese market.

The Chinese government has been making it harder for foreign companies to invest in media.

Earlier this month the Chinese government said it would not enter into any further partnerships with foreign publishers wanting to launch titles in the country.