Taiwan shuts pro-China TV channel in battle over press freedom

Taiwan’s broadcast regulator has ordered the closure of one of many island’s most ardently pro-China cable information networks following a months lengthy battle over journalistic requirements and freedom of the press.

The National Communications Commission(NCC) won’t renew the printed license of Chung T’ien News, its chairman Chen Yaw-shyang mentioned at a briefing in Taipei on Wednesday. The station had repeatedly violated broadcast laws, together with frequent failure to truth examine information objects and the community proprietor’s involvement within the editorial course of, Chen mentioned.

“The key issue is its largest shareholder Tsai Eng-meng is directly and indirectly involved in the production of news programs,” Chen mentioned. “We believe it’s unable to improve its poor operations by solving the structural problem of its shareholder’s involvement.”

Tsai Eng-meng is Taiwan’s second-richest man with a fortune value $5.6 billion, in response to the Bloomberg Billionaire’s Index. The chairman of Shanghai-based rice cracker and beverage maker Want Want China Holdings, he has lengthy been a vocal advocate of Taiwan’s unification with China.

Chung T’ien News, amongst Taiwan’s most-watched cable information stations, is extensively seen as probably the most vocal supporter of unification with China among the many primary TV information networks. It is commonly strongly important of President Tsai Ing-wen, who views the island as a de facto unbiased nation.

Chinese Influence

Wednesday’s announcement is the most recent instance of the usually fraught relationship between press freedom and issues over Chinese affect in Taiwan’s fiercely aggressive media panorama.

Taiwan is Asia’s second highest-ranking market after South Korea on Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index. Since the NCC started its evaluate strategy of Chung T’ien News, the community has claimed a failure to resume its broadcast license can be a politically backed assault.

Chung T’ien referred to as Wednesday’s ruling unlawful in a press release and vowed to pursue authorized motion to guard their workers’ rights to work and freedom of the press.

The NCC’s Chen insisted the station’s rejection was not politically motivated. Chung T’ien News was the topic of greater than 960 public complaints to the regulator final yr, accounting for about 30 per cent of all complaints about TV programming, he mentioned.

The station was on the middle of issues over Chinese makes an attempt to sway Taiwan’s public opinion within the lead as much as Taiwan’s election initially of the yr. It was the main target of a public protest final yr when tens of hundreds gathered outdoors the Presidential Office in June to voice their opposition to what they referred to as “red media.”

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Chung T’ien News, which employs 475 folks, will be capable of proceed broadcasting till its present license expires on December 11.The NCC granted its affiliated basic leisure channel permission to proceed broadcasting below the situation it will increase how a lot it invests in Taiwan and raises the share of domestically produced applications.