Starting with titanium tri-ethanolaminato isopropoxide, a molecular titanium precursor containing nitrogen and carbon, anion-doped TiO2 photocatalysts were synthesized by a simple solvothermal method. Nitric acid was used to control the extent of anion doping and subsequently adjust the photoresponse of anion-doped TiO2 materials. The synthesized materials were characterized by different techniques and were tested in the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue under visible light illumination. The results indicate that the molecular titanium precursor possesses intrinsic advantages for fabricating anion-doped TiO2 materials as visible light photocatalysts. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.