The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday fined Sanlih TV News NT$800,000 for broadcasting images that could “disrupt public order or adversely affect good social customs” during its morning news segment.
The fine was decided by an independent review committee and was approved at the commission’s weekly meeting, it said.
The channel broadcast a news story at 9am on Jan. 20 about two men being allegedly tortured by members of a criminal gang who accused them of embezzling stolen money, the commission said.
Photo courtesy of the National Communications Commission
The news footage showed the men being forced to remove their clothes, sing, dance and do pushups over a charcoal burner, it said.
Even though the channel blurred the men’s faces and private parts, viewers could still see that they were naked, said Chen Chin-shuan (陳金霜), a senior executive officer at the Department of Broadcasting and Content.
Committee members also said that the channel should not have aired an act of bullying, as it could be copied by children and teenagers, Chen said, adding that the station was fined for contravening Article 27, Item 3 of the Satellite Broadcasting Act (衛星廣播電視法).
In related news, CtiTV was asked to improve the content of two programs on its news channel after complaints were filed over two episodes.
The program New Mysterious Zone No. 52 (新神秘52區) on March 3 featured fengshui experts and fortune tellers commenting on events involving China Airlines.
While the show warned viewers that they should take the content with a pinch of salt, the commission said that the channel should have followed Article 27 by verifying facts and adhering to the principle of fairness.
“The station should report a major public issue in a balanced manner based on gathered facts and evidence. It is inappropriate to speculate about the causes of an incident based on explanations from fengshui experts and fortune tellers,” Chen said.
China Airlines asked that the episode be taken down, which the channel did, she said.
The Political Gossip (大政治大爆卦) program featured former Mainland Affairs Council deputy minister Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀) on March 14, when he said that many Kaohsiung city councilors from the Democratic Progressive Party had planned to follow Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) when he visited China earlier this year.
Chen said that the commission had received complaints about the episode, saying that the facts were not checked.
“We are not here to determine whether what Chang said was true or false. We simply are asking the news channel to check the facts before broadcasting a program, and it should also remind its guests not to make groundless accusations,” she said.
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