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CtiTV’s variety
channel penalized over racist joke
By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
CtiTV’s variety channel was fined NT$200,000 after one of its popular programs
was found to have broadcasted discriminatory remarks about women and Aborigines,
the National Communications Commission (NCC) said yesterday.
Jason Ho (何吉森), director of the NCC’s communication content department, said one
episode of the talk show University (大學生了沒) invited college students and their
parents to attend the show and a competition was held among the parents to see
who could tell the best joke.
One of the parents said that while Aboriginal men go hunting, Aboriginal women
idle around and cheat on their husbands. He said that when women go to
confession after having sex with their lovers, they would simply tell the priest
that “they fell.”
Ho said the episode was reviewed by members of an independent content review
panel after the commission received 50 to 60 complaints from viewers, including
letters from the New Taipei City (新北市) and Greater Tainan governments.
The panel ruled that the episode violated Article 17 of the Satellite
Broadcasting Act (衛星廣播電視法), which prohibits programs from impairing the physical
or mental health of children or juveniles, disrupting public order or adversely
affecting good social customs.
“The general-rating program contained remarks that were sexually and racially
discriminatory,” Ho said.
“The post-production team should have been sensitive to these inappropriate
remarks, which are certainly not jokes and convey only prejudice. This prejudice
will spread through the broadcasting media,” Ho said.
Ho added that nine of 12 media experts voted to penalize the channel, and only
two voted to send an official notice to the channel and ask it to address the
situation.
Meanwhile, the National Geographic Channel (NGC) was fined NT$300,000 after an
episode of the program Most Amazing Moments (驚奇時刻:戰慄刺激) was found to have
contained images that could impair the physical or mental health of children or
juveniles.
According to the NCC, the episode showed people drinking human blood and
engaging in self-torture.
“The starting fine for such a violation is NT$200,000, but the panel considered
it a severe violation, so they decided that the channel would be fined
NT$300,000,” Ho said.
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