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HK tycoon launches controversial news channel on Internet
2010/07/31 19:37:33 |
Taipei, July 31 (CNA) A Hong Kong business tycoon has unveiled a new news channel on the Internet featuring animated news stories after the Taiwanese government put on hold his application for a TV news channel due to distaste for his well-known sensationalist style.
Jimmy Lai's Next TV also made its debut Internet broadcast on big screens in 20 busy shopping areas in the cities of Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung Friday.
Some speculated that Lai's move was aimed at demonstrating to Taiwan's official media watchdog, the National Communications Commission (NCC) , and its other critics, how Next TV reports can appeal to audiences without resorting to sensationalism.
Lai has failed in three attempts to obtain NCC approval for his news channel.
On July 28, the NCC approved only Lai's sports channel application while putting on hold again his applications for three other channels -- news, general information and entertainment.
Asked to comment on Next TV's debut, NCC spokesman Chen Jeng-chang told CNA in a telephone interview Saturday that the NCC is monitoring the content of Next TV's news programs for future licensing review and will issue fines if it violates the law by broadcasting inappropriate footage.
However, NCC officials considered the content of Next TV's debut news programs to be similar to those carried by other TV stations, Chen said.
Lai said earlier this week that he is aware of the concerns that his TV station will air sensationalist animated news reports, like those that once appeared on the website of Apple Daily, a Chinese-language newspaper that is also part of Lai's media group.
Several civic groups voiced strong protest against Apply Daily's animated reports on sexual assaults and domestic violence in November 2009, prompting the newspaper to apologize and promise to change its stance.
While many on the social website Plurk said they liked Next TV's debut animation effects, two local journalism professors were quoted in an Apple Daily report Saturday as saying that Next TV's overall debut reports were not impressive.
Lai had previously vowed that his TV outlet will tell news stories in an image- based and interesting manner, which is contrary to what he described as "boring" stories broadcast by other TV stations that are text-based.
"Now is the image era. People under the age of 40 use images to communicate and absorb information, " Lai told a group of web media workers and bloggers during a visit to the Next TV office in Taipei July 28.
"The biggest challenge we are facing today is how to use a great many images to tell a story," he said.
Although he has not been granted channel licenses, Lai has put a considerable amount of investment and resources into getting his TV station ready.
So far, Lai has recruited more than 500 people including anchors, reporters, editors and animation specialists for Next TV and has spent NT$100 million (US$3.1 million) every month for the past six months.
Several senior news journalists predicted last year that the launch of Next TV is likely to create a big impact on local TV stations, similar to the impact Apple Daily had on local newspapers when it was launched in Taiwan in 2003.
In the first few months following its launch, Apply Daily engaged other major newspapers in a fierce price-cutting war. Some of the newspapers also changed their layout designs to resemble that of image-focused Apple Daily.
Apple Daily has also beaten other major newspapers in Taiwan to be rated as the most ideal newspaper for five years in a row, according to a survey released in May by Taiwan's Yahoo News. (By Alex Jiang) ENDITEM/J
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