The legislature’s Transportation Committee yesterday passed a resolution authorizing it to form an ad hoc panel to review documents related to Mirror News’ acquisition of an operational license from the National Communications Commission (NCC).
The resolution, proposed by the Taiwan People’s Party caucus, narrowly passed in a six-to-five vote with support from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators. Committee chairman KMT Legislator Chen Hsueh-sheng (陳雪生) cast the tiebreaking vote.
The resolution was proposed amid concerns over how the news channel secured its license in January 2022.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Mirror Media founder Pei Wei (裴偉) was accused of receiving a monthly consulting fee of NT$1.5 million (US$47,749) from the network even after he resigned as chairman and pledged not to interfere in the operations of the news channel.
Although Mirror News had stated in its business plan that the channel would neither produce nor broadcast political talk shows, it launched a political talk show in October last year ahead of the presidential and legislative elections in January.
The NCC has been criticized for helping Mirror News secure a license and not censuring the network when it failed to meet the commission’s conditions.
The resolution states that NCC Chairman Chen Yaw-shyang (陳耀祥) should have complied with legislative oversight in a professional and responsible manner.
Instead, he circumvented legislative questions on how Mirror News obtained the license with the tacit cooperation of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, it said.
“The NCC knew all along that the network contravened regulations, but it continued to delay turning over evidence, saying that ‘the case is under investigation’ or ‘the channel has been asked to rectify the situation.’ It showed contempt for the legislature and disrespect for the rule of the law... An ad hoc team should be formed to review relevant documents,” it said.
In response, Chen said that the NCC briefed lawmakers at the committee five times last year on the procedures the commission followed in handling the license application.
An ad hoc panel could cause the legislative branch to interfere in the operations of the executive branch, he added.
In a statement, the NCC called the committee’s resolution on a case it already ruled on “regrettable.”
“We have exhausted all administrative resources to investigate all major issues of concern, including Mirror News’ financial soundness, staffing situation, and frequent changes of shareholders and management,” the NCC said, adding that it had consulted with the Financial Supervisory Commission, Investment Commission, Ministry of Justice, Mainland Affairs Council, National Security Bureau and other agencies in the review process.
It used the highest standards and intensity to scrutinize cases related to Mirror News compared with similar cases, it said, adding that it had cooperated with prosecutors in investigating the network.
“Controversies over the network’s ownership changes are disputes of private rights and should be addressed through legal proceedings, rather than political intervention and by trying to influence public opinion. We will continue monitoring Mirror News to ensure it meets the conditions it agreed to in order to obtain the news channel license,” the commission said.
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The next minimum wage hike is expected to exceed NT$30,000, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday during an award ceremony honoring “model workers,” including migrant workers, at the Presidential Office ahead of Workers’ Day today. Lai said he wished to thank the awardees on behalf of the nation and extend his most sincere respect for their hard work, on which Taiwan’s prosperity has been built. Lai specifically thanked 10 migrant workers selected for the award, saying that although they left their home countries to further their own goals, their efforts have benefited Taiwan as well. The nation’s industrial sector and small businesses lay
Quarantine awareness posters at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport have gone viral for their use of wordplay. Issued by the airport branch of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, the posters feature sniffer dogs making a range of facial expressions, paired with advisory messages built around homophones. “We update the messages for holidays and campaign needs, periodically refreshing materials to attract people’s attention,” quarantine officials said. “The aim is to use the dogs’ appeal to draw focus to quarantine regulations.” A Japanese traveler visiting Taiwan has posted a photo on X of a poster showing a quarantine dog with a
RSS