Arts group chairman faces investigation in discipline violations

China's anti-graft watchdog placed the top executive of a State-owned arts group under investigation as the national campaign against corruption turned its focus to the country's entertainment industry.

Gu Xin, 59, chairman and general manager of the China Oriental Performing Art Group, is suspected of "serious violations of Party discipline and laws", the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said on Thursday.

The announcement made headlines as the singer and conductor was the first high-ranking executive in the entertainment business to be swept up in the anti-graft campaign, which started in late 2012.