Sports stars among nominees for PTS board of directors

Taipei, March 12 (CNA) The Ministry of Culture on Thursday released a second list of nominees for the eighth board of directors of Public Television Service (PTS), including former baseball star Peng Cheng-min (彭政閔) and top gymnast Lee Chih-kai (李智凱).

Other nominees for PTS director positions, nominated by the Cabinet, include online course platform Hahow CEO Arnold Chiang (江前緯), National Information and Communication Security Taskforce member Wu Chi-hsun (吳其勲), documentary director Kim-Hong Nguyen (阮金紅), film director Laha Mebow (陳潔瑤), and Taipei Music Center Chairwoman Kay Huang (黃韻玲).

Academic members on the nominee list for the PTS director include Caroline Lin (林照真) and Chan I-i (詹怡宜), professors at National Taiwan University Journalism Graduate Institute, and Kao I-feng (高翊峯), head of the Graduate Institute of Transdisciplinary Study on Creative Writing and Literature at Taipei National University of the Arts.

The nominee for supervisor is intellectual property and entertainment law expert Lin Chia-Ying (林佳瑩).

In a press release, Culture Minister Li Yuan (李遠) said with the recommendation of Sports Minister Lee Yang (李洋), Peng and Lee Chih-kai, representing different generations of Taiwanese professional athletes, could bring strong passion and ideas for public service.

Li said he believes the two athletes' vision could help the PTS board strengthen the broadcaster's role in professional sports reportage, as China Television did for the World Baseball Classic.

He added that although PTS faces challenges and attracts attention, even criticism, as it expands, it remains the most trusted media platform in an era filled with fragmented information and fake news.

PTS is Taiwan's sole publicly funded broadcaster.

Under the law, the PTS board is composed of 11 to 15 directors and three to five supervisors, all vetted by a review committee of party representatives in proportion to their legislative seats, with approval requiring a two-thirds majority.

The Ministry of Culture previously announced 14 nominees for director positions and five for supervisor posts on Dec. 17, 2025, but only four directors and four supervisors were approved on Dec. 31, insufficient to constitute the board.

Li said he hopes the new nominee list will be approved by the review committee and allow the formation of a full board of directors and supervisors.

He added that the Cabinet and Ministry of Culture took the review committee's opinions into account, noting that half the nominees are under 50 years of age, which could support the future development of PTS.