--- description: A popular Chinese broadcaster has generated backlash on Chinese social media for changing the phrase "gay man" in Malik's Best Actor speech. title: Chinese TV Censors 'Gay Man' From Rami Malek's Oscar Speech image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf54daaaa66663283/698945d2e76ad26d406343c5/rami-malek-lady-gaga-bowtie-oscars-2019.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [celebrities](/tag/celebrities/) ## celebrities Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # A Chinese Broadcaster Censored the Phrase 'Gay Man' from Rami Malek's Oscar Speech by [Amy Gunia](/author/amy-gunia/) ## Amy Gunia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gunia was a reporter for TIME based in Hong Kong. Feb 27, 2019 3:04 AM CUT  Rami Malek accepts his award for Best Actor during the 91st Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Feb. 24, 2019. Rami Malek accepts his award for Best Actor during the 91st Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Feb. 24, 2019.Craig Sjodin—ABC/Getty Images by [Amy Gunia](/author/amy-gunia/) ## Amy Gunia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gunia was a reporter for TIME based in Hong Kong. Feb 27, 2019 3:04 AM CUT A popular Chinese broadcaster is facing criticism for censoring an LGBT reference in a replay of Best Actor [Rami Malek’s](http://time.com/5536953/rami-malek-bowtie-oscars/ "undefined") acceptance speech at Sunday’s [Academy Awards](http://time.com/5517545/everything-to-know-2019-oscars/ "undefined"). The BBC reports that censorship by Mango TV, a popular broadcaster in China, has generated [significant backlash](https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-47370948 "undefined") on Chinese social media sites like Sina Weibo. “We made a film about a gay man, an immigrant, who lived his life unapologetically himself, Malek said while accepting his [award](http://time.com/5534976/oscars-2019-winners/ "undefined"). Mango TV’s webcast of the event reportedly replaced “gay man” with the phrase “special group.” It’s not the first time Mango TV has been in the spotlight for censorship. In 2018, the Chinese broadcaster blurred out images of audience members waving rainbow flags during the popular Eurovision Song Contest. The European Broadcasting Union [banned](https://eurovision.tv/snippet/ebu-terminates-this-year-s-partnership-with-mango-tv "undefined") Mango TV from showing the popular Eurovision Singing Contest. Chinese authorities often crack down on content they deem immoral on social media and [television](http://time.com/4247432/china-tv-television-media-censorship/ "undefined"). Sina Weibo faced a flood of protest from users in early 2018 after it suggested that gay content might be suppressed. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5539590/china-censor-rami-malek-oscar-speech/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5539590/china-censor-rami-malek-oscar-speech/"},"headline":"A Chinese Broadcaster Censored the Phrase 'Gay Man' from Rami Malek's Oscar Speech","datePublished":"2019-02-27T03:04:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T22:52:44.502Z","description":"Mango TV reportedly replaced the phrase \"gay man\" with \"special group\"","url":"https://time.com/5539590/china-censor-rami-malek-oscar-speech/","keywords":["celebrities","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf54daaaa66663283/698945d2e76ad26d406343c5/rami-malek-lady-gaga-bowtie-oscars-2019.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Amy Gunia","jobTitle":"Gunia was a reporter for TIME based in Hong Kong.","url":"https://time.com/author/amy-gunia/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf54daaaa66663283/698945d2e76ad26d406343c5/rami-malek-lady-gaga-bowtie-oscars-2019.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"rami-malek-lady-gaga-bowtie-oscars-2019","caption":"ABC's Coverage Of The 91st Annual Academy Awards – Show","creditText":"Craig Sjodin—ABC/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/celebrities/","name":"celebrities"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5539590/china-censor-rami-malek-oscar-speech/","name":"A Chinese Broadcaster Censored the Phrase 'Gay Man' from Rami Malek's Oscar Speech"}}]}] ```