Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) on Monday called on the government to treat Phoenix Television as a Chinese state-owned media company, after China’s State Council became a majority shareholder of the company.
State Council-funded Bauhinia Culture Holdings Ltd in April last year bought 21 percent of the shares of Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television, becoming a majority shareholder, Liu said.
Chinese state-owned China Mobile also owns 19.68 percent of Phoenix Television shares, Liu added.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Phoenix operates in Taiwan and other countries outside of China, where it airs content in Mandarin and Cantonese.
“There is no private media company in China. The government must recognize that Phoenix Television is now under the control of the Chinese Communist Party [CCP],” she said.
In its latest report on Hong Kong, the Mainland Affairs Council said the investment in Phoenix was part of Beijing’s plans to control all publications and media in the territory.
However, Phoenix Television was already connected to the CCP before the investments, a source said.
Company founder and CEO Liu Changle (劉長樂) previously served as an officer and political instructor in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, and later became a journalist for CCP-controlled China National Radio, the source said, adding that Liu is a standing member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.
Xu Wei (徐威), the company’s board chairman, was formerly a Shanghai municipal government official, as well as China Central Television deputy director, the source said, adding that Xu is now responsible for content planning and production at Phoenix.
“As Phoenix is effectively a channel for CCP propaganda, its operations in Taiwan should be restricted under current laws,” the source said.
If recognized simply as a media company funded by Chinese investors, it would not be permitted to employ more than 10 Taiwanese, and if recognized as a Chinese state-owned media outlet it would not be permitted to hire any Taiwanese, the source said.
All of the employees at the Taiwan division of Phoenix are Taiwanese, the source said.
According to stipulations in the Measures Governing Investment Permits to the People of the Mainland Area (大陸地區人民來台投資許可辦法), Phoenix Television should already be considered a company funded by Chinese investment as more than 30 percent of its shares are owned by Chinese investors, Economic Democracy Union researcher Chiang Min-yen (江旻諺) said.
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