The Children's Channel of China Central Television (CCTV) is launching a promotion campaign today to mark International Children's Day.

By the end of next year, all public TV channels and cable TV channels at provincial, regional and prefecture levels across China, will carry unabridged programs produced by CCTV's Children's Channel.

This is an aggressive move backed up by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television to help enrich the extracurricular life of Chinese children, according to Yu Peixia, director of the CCTV Program Production Center for Children Viewers.

The massive campaign features the screening of five 100-part TV special programs and 10 special events.

Among the special TV programs are documentaries about historical sites, thought-provoking stories of outstanding children, family sitcoms aimed at presenting such issues as proper parental guidance for growing children and how to deal with parent-child relations.

Among the 10 special events is the "Joy Express," a series of variety shows being staged in provincial capitals, most recently in Guiyang, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Jinan, in an attempt to attract more local audiences. Then there is the screening of non-profit TV advertisements aimed to raise the young audiences' awareness of moral codes, a nationwide cartoon story creation and design competition, as well as a children's talent competition.

Also on the agenda are a weekly TV show recommending books and a monthly TV book review writing competition for young readers and TV viewers, and a weekly screening of 100 selected films for young Chinese TV viewers, the number of whom is estimated at 367 million according to official statistics.

(China Daily June 1, 2004)