CTi News shows true colors
When CTi News’ broadcasting license expired at midnight on Saturday, the station moved over to YouTube. Before long, the YouTube channel had more than 2 million subscribers.
Interestingly, observers noticed marked changes in how the news was presented. For example, one anchor reported the news while eating a hamburger, while another did the crab dance to thank viewers.
No longer restrained by the old format, they behaved like Internet celebrities. They focused on interacting with their fans instead of following the traditional news format, and are becoming a new benchmark for media entertainment.
Although it might be an obstacle to commercial profitability — making fans donate — CTi News is adapting to the online environment and working hard to break into the new media, but it also makes one question whether it is at all about reporting the news anymore.
It seems as if CTi News’ transition to an online platform marks a clear deterioration of the channel toward entertainment. The news context has faded; it is becoming more like theater.
Polarized reporting is dividing and pushing viewers to further reinforce confrontation between groups to attract viewers.
CTi News is not alone. Every news station is aware of what they are doing and what they should do.
The juxtaposition of news and the level of propaganda are all intended to lead and direct public opinion.
This is probably something that every news station does based on their viewership ratings and editorial stance, but the CTi News case has made the public understand that if the owner of a media organization has political ambitions and uses the media to further their political agenda, that will hurt the outlet’s independence.
Even worse, comparing CTi News after it has gone online with when it was still broadcasting on TV shows that things are much worse than before. Perhaps the station thinks it is giving viewers what they want, but it has also forgotten the impact it can have: In addition to shaping the social climate, it can also create misleading values.
If CTi News continues its online operations in the same way, it will continue to face criticism for its irresponsible news reporting, and will stray even further from news freedom, a value it claims to hold in high regard.
If YouTube slaps a yellow tag on CTi News and forces it to close just as the authorities did, the joke would be on it, and that really would be entertaining.
Chen Kuan-fu
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