Editorial: Journalistic integrity rare in Taiwan

Since TVBS anchorwoman Kelly Hsueh (薛楷莉) started making headlines, Taiwan's media embarked on a feeding frenzy similar to that sparked by the Chu Mei-feng (璩美鳳) sex scandal. It has been almost impossible to avoid seeing or hearing something about Hsueh on a daily basis. Even though TVBS suspended Hsueh indefinitely on Wednesday, her story refuses to die.

Before TVBS announced it would suspend Hsueh, there was a joke going around that now would be the perfect time for the cable TV station to do some housecleaning. Wouldn't it be great, the joke continues, if other news anchors and broadcast journalists would launch a boycott -- demanding that only ethical and virtuous people should be hired to anchor newscasts. Would there be any TV anchors in Taiwan who could stand up to an integrity test? The punchline is that the only person likely to get fired as the result of such a housecleaning movement is the one who started it.

Unfortunately, the real joke is on the people of Taiwan. The quality of Taiwan's TV stations has degenerated to the point where every crow is equally black and everyone is equally lousy.

TVBS the sensational-reporting style that pervades Taiwan today. Ever since its began in 1993 with capital from Hong Kong media tycoon Run Run Shaw (邵逸夫), TVBS has relied on exaggerated reports to attract viewers. It's the broadcast version of Next magazine.

The station's 9pm discussion forum (2100, 全民開講) is a daily dose of irrational arguments and vitriol -- although it has helped create some "media darlings." The station also mobilizes a legion of fans to hog its call-in lines and express one-sided opinions, thereby deepening the disagreements. When not discussing political issues, the program hypes celebrity gossip. Sometimes it even lets the two sides in a dispute get into a scuffle in order to boost its viewership rates and advertising revenues.

The Taiwan Advertisers' Association (台灣廣告主協會), which was established last year, apparently wants to unite advertisers against TVBS. How successful such a campaign would be is hard to predict. Ironically, TVBS took the lead on Sept. 1, Reporters' Day, to promote a "media environmental movement" that called for better journalistic ethics in the local media.

The hysteria over the Kelly Hsueh story has prompted criticism from media watchdog organizations. In a way, however, such hype is a backlash against TVBS -- which is getting a dose of its own paparazzi medicine.

However, the print media should take some responsibility for the decline in the quality of TV news. If they had not reported on TV anchors and reporters as if they were celebrities, they probably would not have caused the TV stations to ignore their professionalism and plumb new lows in muckraking.

Self-policing a stress on balanced reporting and coverage are the only way to salvage the reputation of Taiwan's media. The fact that TVBS has come under attack should teach journalists some valuable lessons and may even open the door to a media house-cleaning movement. The next time questions about a journalist's integrity come to light, the industry as a whole should take action to determine the validity of the complaint and require action be taken if the complaint is true. This is the only way to establish a basic work ethic and discipline and provide the people of Taiwan with reporting that they can trust.