Wed, May 09, 2001 page1

• Tycoon ends aid to `Taiwan Daily'

  MEDIA INTRIGUE The head of Formosa Plastics Group says he will stop funding the paper because he is running short of money, but others say China is playing a role

  • By Lin Mei-chun / STAFF REPORTER
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  Wang Yung-ching (王永慶), chairman of the Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團), yesterday confirmed that he had cut off his financial support to the Taiwan Daily (台灣日報), a newspaper that has been losing money for the duration of his sponsorship.

  Authorities at the newspaper, however, said the daily would continue to function without the economic aid from the business tycoon, and that they were in the process of searching for a new partner to continue the operation, which requires approximately NT$20 million to cover its monthly expenses.

  

  Lo Chiung-hsuan, deputy editor in chief of the Taiwan Daily, speaks of the paper's future yesterday.

  PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

  "Nothing has changed at the newspaper. No personnel will be laid off, and there will be no reduction in the size of the published newspaper," said Lo Chiung-hsuan (羅炯　 ), the newspaper's spokesman and a deputy editor in chief of the paper.

  "Our present task is to carry out drastic reforms with the ultimate goal of being self-sufficient," Lo added.

  Expressing his gratitude for Wang's past support, Lo acknowledged that it was about time that the paper "stood on its own feet." To achieve that end, the spokesman called on the public to demonstrate support for the paper by taking out subscriptions and placing advertisements.

  In the meantime, Lo dismissed reports by Chinese-language media yesterday that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) had acted as a mediator for the newspaper in trying to convince Wang to reverse his decision.

  Lo spoke to the media a few hours after Wang announced his decision to halt funding to the pro-independence newspaper.

  Wang began subsidizing the paper in 1996, and has reportedly lost a total of NT$3.5 billion since then.

  "[Five years ago] I extended a helping hand to my friend Yen Wen-shuan (顏文閂), [chairman of the Taiwan Daily] when he was encountering financial difficulties, but there is, after all, a limitation to assistance to friends ... My personal [financial] power is actually rather limited," Wang said.

  He added he would pay off the deficit, leaving the newspaper without any debt, so it could make a fresh start.

  In 1996, after being under the KMT's control for nearly 30 years, the Taiwan Daily went through a radical transformation, as liberal senior journalists Yen Wen-shuan and Antonio Chiang (江春男), former editor in chief of the Taipei Times, took charge of the paper, along with the hefty financial backing from Taiwan's top business tycoon.

  Despite being unprofitable, the paper achieved fame for its political commentaries and its firm stance in championing Taiwan independence.

  The paper presently has a staff of 500 and a daily circulation of 150,000.

  Although Wang said his decision was made based on his exhausted financial resources, a source at the Taiwan Daily said that politics was playing a part in Wang's move.

  "To facilitate his immense investments in China, Wang was compelled to bow to the pressure from China because China has been exhibiting displeasure at Wang's endorsement of a pro-independence newspaper in Taiwan," the source said.

  Formosa Plastics Group, Taiwan's leading manufacturer, has invested tens of millions of US dollars in power plants, petrochemical plants and hospitals in numerous cities in China.
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