Jacky Wu (吳宗憲), a popular TV variety show host who has dubbed himself “the local king” (本土天王), appeared undeterred despite legal action brought against him by cable station TVBS over his recent comments about the TV station’s political stance.
The spat stemmed from remarks reportedly made by Wu on Wednesday last week alleging that the Government Information Office (GIO) and TVBS were the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT), while SET-TV was the Democratic Progressive Party’s.
In response, TVBS spokesperson Yeh Yu-chun (葉毓君), saying that the KMT does not have a stake in TVBS, said that Wu’s comments had in effect slandered thousands of workers at TVBS.
Yeh said that Wu would face legal action from the company if he did not make a public apology within three days.
Not backing down despite the legal threat, Wu said on Friday last week that he would not apologize.
“Taiwanese media are all colored. If I were to say: ‘My statement that TVBS is pan-blue is wrong,’ then I am sorry, I’m color-blind,” Wu said. “Why don’t we hold a survey asking people in Taiwan whether they think TVBS is pan-blue or pan-green? If everyone said that it was pan-green, I would apologize.”
TVBS filed charges against Wu on Tuesday.
Insisting that he did not say TVBS is the KMT’s, but merely said that it was pan-blue, Wu on Thursday said: “I’ve truly spoken with a sincere conscience.”
Wu added that on Friday last week, he also made suggestions regarding the GIO’s subsidies for popular music, but none of those suggestions were reported by the press.
“Or is it that only the press has freedom of expression and that we as individuals don’t?” he said.
Veteran TV host Chang Fei (張菲), when asked for comments on the incident, said that Wu was probably swayed by his feelings and acted rashly, “but he is only stating a truth that everyone knows.”
TRANSLATED BY JAKE CHUNG, STAFF WRITER
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS