Mirror News’ ability to raise its registered capital and start broadcasting on cable systems by the middle of May would be the focus of the National Communications Commission’s (NCC) review of the channel’s proposed management change, NCC Chairman Chen Yaw-shyang (陳耀祥) told lawmakers at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee yesterday.
The channel on Jan. 19 obtained a satellite broadcasting license after a two-year review by the commission.
However, the commission on Wednesday received the channel’s application for a management change after a board meeting on March 4.
Photo: CNA
Local media reported that Mirror News chairman Chen Jian-ping (陳建平) was removed from his post following an allegation that he had interfered in the operations of the news department.
Paper Windmill Theater Troupe founder Lee Yung-feng (李永豐) was elected the new board chairman, while former Formosa TV vice president Paul Tsai (蔡滄波) was elected the new general manager.
The board meeting was reported to have lasted only five minutes.
Chen Yaw-shyang was invited to brief the lawmakers on the committee about the NCC’s budget plan for this year and its preliminary investigation into controversies over the management shuffle at Mirror News.
He told lawmakers that he was “shocked” by the news, adding that he immediately asked NCC staff to verify the information.
“Our understanding was that the controversies occurred due to disagreements among large shareholders over the channel’s funding and personnel arrangements. This would have been an internal corporate management issue, but unfortunately it has evolved into a political issue through media coverage,” he said.
Chen Yaw-shyang said his main concerns are whether the channel can begin broadcasting on cable systems by the middle of May as planned and whether it can raise its registered capital from NT$1.35 billion to NT$2 billion (US$47.3 million to US$70 million) by then, two of the 26 obligations and conditions that the channel must follow to secure the license.
NCC commissioners Lin Li-yun (林麗雲) and Wang Wei-ching (王維菁) on Feb. 8 published a joint letter of dissent over the issue, saying they have severe doubts over the channel’s funding plan.
The channel told the commission that about 30 percent of its annual revenue would come from producing special news coverage for government agencies, but it was unclear who controls the channel, they said.
“We respect the two commissioners who expressed different opinions about the case,” Chen Yaw-shyang said, when lawmakers asked him about the dissent.
The commission’s preliminary investigation showed that there were no mass layoffs at the channel, he said.
“The application to establish the Mirror News channel was originally filed by the team at Mirror Magazine. As the channel and the magazine were asked to be run as separate firms, certain employees were listed on the payroll of Mirror Magazine again,” he added.
The commission has asked the channel’s ombudsman, retired National Chengchi University journalism professor Weng Shieu-chi (翁秀琪), to conduct an internal investigation into the controversies, NCC Department of Broadcasting and Content Affairs Director Huang Wen-che (黃文哲) said.
“We asked her to conclude the investigation as soon as possible, as the controversies could seriously damage the credibility of the channel,” Huang said.
Chen Yaw-shyang said the broadcasting license was granted to Mirror News channel, and the management change at the channel does not affect the ruling.
The commission would only consider revoking the channel’s broadcasting license if it fails to meet the obligations and conditions that the commission has set for it, he said.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
STATS: Taiwan’s average life expectancy of 80.77 years was lower than that of Japan, Singapore and South Korea, but higher than in China, Malaysia and Indonesia Taiwan’s average life expectancy last year increased to 80.77 years, but was still not back to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak of 81.32 years in 2020, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. The average life expectancy last year increased the 0.54 years from 2023, the ministry said in a statement. For men and women, the average life expectancy last year was 77.42 years and 84.30 years respectively, up 0.48 years and 0.56 years from the previous year. Taiwan’s average life expectancy peaked at 81.32 years in 2020, as the nation was relatively unaffected by the pandemic that year. The metric
RSS