Chinese stand-up comedian Li Haoshi was placed under investigation and his management company was fined nearly $2 million after he told a joke mocking a 2013 speech by top leader Xi Jinping that critics said likened feral dogs to People's Liberation Army soldiers. Li, who goes by the stage name House, canceled all his performances after the backlash, which observers believe may have triggered a wave of last-minute cancellations of music festivals, rock concerts and other gatherings. Some organizers cited “force majeure,” suggesting high-level political pressure to scrap the events.
