Angered by certain Taiwanese politicians and the many media institutions that are biased in favor of them, a group of students from National Taiwan University and Shih Hsin University recently decided to put their education to use by making a series of satirical videos called Special Report. The students raised money from others who shared their political views -- including at least one goose meat vendor -- and they spent their summer vacation producing a series of videos that they hoped might become as popular as the award-winning lampoon programs that appear on Taiwanese television.
The primary targets at whom these young social critics took aim were legislators belonging to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and People First Party (PFP) -- along with TV anchors and journalists who support them. They criticized a few Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) politicians as well.
The students controlled every aspect of the videos' production, from scriptwriting to camera work. When it came to casting, they used only actors and actresses who could speak Hoklo, also known as Taiwanese. And they did extensive research of newspaper, magazine and TV reports so that they could satirize the public figures described therein. The students understood very well how to make a video, but they did not understand the political environment in which the Taiwanese media operate. Only three years have passed since Taiwan underwent a major political transformation, and over 90 percent of Taiwan's media is still controlled by pan-blue forces. As a result, Taiwan Television, which had initially pledged to air the videos, changed its mind under political pressure from the KMT and the PFP. The students then sought air time at other TV stations, but they were turned away. Finally the Southern Taiwan Society, a pro-green political organization, agreed to help them sell the videos.
The students also might not have understood the reaction that their work would provoke. PFP chairman James Soong (
On Monday afternoon, the Government Information Office directed government agencies to stop confiscating the videos. In effect, they proclaimed that Special Report was perfectly legal.
In the midst of all this controversy, the people of Taiwan should take the opportunity to reflect on the reasons that the students who made these videos were so discontented to begin with.
Consider ethical standards in politics. Commonwealth magazine, a respected pro-blue business publication, recently published the results of a public opinion poll that focused on the moral integrity of politicians. The poll found that Soong -- who was the central figure in the Chung Hsing Bills Finance embezzlement scandal -- had a higher reputation for ethical behavior than did President Chen Shui-bian (
Special Report can be seen as a kind of public counter-force to the sorry state of political ethics in Taiwan. Even though the mainstream media shunned the videos as long as they could, the Taiwanese people have made their feelings clear by snapping up copies of the videos all across the island.
Taiwan’s higher education system is facing an existential crisis. As the demographic drop-off continues to empty classrooms, universities across the island are locked in a desperate battle for survival, international student recruitment and crucial Ministry of Education funding. To win this battle, institutions have turned to what seems like an objective measure of quality: global university rankings. Unfortunately, this chase is a costly illusion, and taxpayers are footing the bill. In the past few years, the goalposts have shifted from pure research output to “sustainability” and “societal impact,” largely driven by commercial metrics such as the UK-based Times Higher Education (THE) Impact
History might remember 2026, not 2022, as the year artificial intelligence (AI) truly changed everything. ChatGPT’s launch was a product moment. What is happening now is an anthropological moment: AI is no longer merely answering questions. It is now taking initiative and learning from others to get things done, behaving less like software and more like a colleague. The economic consequence is the rise of the one-person company — a structure anticipated in the 2024 book The Choices Amid Great Changes, which I coauthored. The real target of AI is not labor. It is hierarchy. When AI sharply reduces the cost
The inter-Korean relationship, long defined by national division, offers the clearest mirror within East Asia for cross-strait relations. Yet even there, reunification language is breaking down. The South Korean government disclosed on Wednesday last week that North Korea’s constitutional revision in March had deleted references to reunification and added a territorial clause defining its border with South Korea. South Korea is also seriously debating whether national reunification with North Korea is still necessary. On April 27, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung marked the eighth anniversary of the Panmunjom Declaration, the 2018 inter-Korean agreement in which the two Koreas pledged to
I wrote this before US President Donald Trump embarked on his uneventful state visit to China on Thursday. So, I shall confine my observations to the joint US-Philippine military exercise of April 20 through May 8, known collectively as “Balikatan 2026.” This year’s Balikatan was notable for its “firsts.” First, it was conducted primarily with Taiwan in mind, not the Philippines or even the South China Sea. It also showed that in the Pacific, America’s alliance network is still robust. Allies are enthusiastic about America’s renewed leadership in the region. Nine decades ago, in 1936, America had neither military strength
RSS