Though Shanghai comedian Zhou Libo has made a name for himself with his uniquely styled talk show, the foundation he and his wife established for universities has recently been boycotted by some professors who accuse the talk show of being "vulgar."

According to Shanghai Youth Daily, someone claimed winners are required to promote Zhou's talk show.

"This foundation aims at finding, cultivating, and shaping elite students, and at being a public charity leader," Chen Haosheng, the administration director of the foundation, told the Global Times.

Lu Gusun, a professor at the College of Foreign Language and Literature at Fudan University, complained on his microblog that Zhou was using college students to advertise and this would taint the academic atmosphere on campus. "Now that Fudan has accepted the invasion of our campus by the entertainment industry, I think it may be time for scholars like us to leave," Lu said on his Sina microblog Sunday.

Zhou, 44, has gained wide popularity for his "Hi-Pipe Talk Show", which mixes Putonghua and Shanghai dialect to comment on major current affairs in a humoristic and sarcastic way. The 50-minute talk show has been a regular program on Shanghai Dragon Television.

In December 2010, Zhou and his wife set up the Hi-Pipe Talk Show Foundation with 40 million yuan ($6.3 million) and planned to annually award elite college students each with 20,000 yuan. So far, Fudan University, Shanghai Normal University (SNU) and the Shanghai Conservatory of Music have accepted the foundation. The foundation will first present awards to 30 SNU students on Thursday and 15 Fudan students on Friday, Chen said.

Gu Xiaoming, a professor of sociology at Fudan University, strongly rejects the donations. "It's not a wise decision for Fudan. Zhou can closely connect himself with the university by only spending petty thousands of yuan every year. As a prestigious university, Fudan boasts huge intangible assets, which should not be taken advantage of by someone so easily," Gu told the Global Times yesterday.

"People wise enough will see clearly that this is Zhou's trick, and that it satisfies his own interests under the banner of charity," Gu added.

The first 15 Fudan prize-winners cover a wide range of majors like journalism, medicine, physics, and archaeology. One award winner, Wang Binglei, a senior student who majors in Chinese language and literature at Fudan, welcomed the award. "It's an honor to receive this award. The foundation hopes we will also donate part of our scholarship to charity, but it is totally optional."

"Elite students are not only those with high academic performance, but those with broadened horizons. We will bring winners to attend social activities like art exhibitions, or to assist in disaster-affected areas." Zhou Libo said at a press conference in Fudan University in April.

Professor Feng Wei with the department of history at Fudan said the foundation is acceptable. "The foundation supports education by selecting excellent students. What's more, the talk show is welcomed among audiences." said Lu.