Mao Meets Madison Avenue

Chinese consumers will be deluged in September with advertisements urging them to practice thrift, respect the elderly and uphold other traditional virtues.

The government is ordering more public service announcements in a campaign that appears to be part of an effort to halt what Communist Party officials see as a slide in social values as China embraces capitalistic reforms.

China’s advertising industry grossed $3.3 billion last year, the state-run China Daily said Monday in reporting the new campaign.

The month-long campaign for traditional values will be the first of several ordered by the regulators to promote public service announcements, the newspaper said.

Chinese leaders and state-run media have criticized advertisers for making outlandish claims.