■ Society
Family found dead in NYC
A family of four was found dead in a Harlem apartment in New York City in an apparent suicide by the father, who had sent a letter to relatives in Taiwan saying he was depressed over a financial setback. Fred Wang, 42, his wife, Christine, his 8-year-old son Dennis and his 6-year-old daughter Serena were discovered dead on Thursday night of apparent carbon-monoxide poisoning. They were found by a relative who went to their housing complex after Wang sent his family a letter by express mail saying he was upset by a failed business venture. Coals were burning in silver-colored bowls in the room and a blanket was draped over the door, said Sergeant Mike Wysokowski, a police spokesman. The drapes had been pulled closed. A grandmother who lived with the family was unharmed.
■ Media
TVBS slapped with fine
The Government Information Office (GIO) yesterday issued a NT$200,000 (US$6,000) fine to television station TVBS for "not honestly reporting the transfer and background of its shareholders." The fine came as one of the station's talk shows publicized evidence related to government scandals for the second straight day, but GIO minister Pasuya Yao (姚文智) denied to reporters that there was any connection. "We decided to fine them [TVBS] because we discovered that the station did not honestly provide necessary information as required when they were renewing their license for the channel earlier this year," Yao said. He warned that such dishonest behavior could result in suspension of the station's license. The GIO is investigating whether TVBS Chairman Norman Leung (梁乃鵬), who is also the former chairman of the Hong Kong Broadcasting Authority, is eligible to hold such a high-ranking position in Taiwan's media industry.
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
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