RTHK
Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) is the public broadcasting service in Hong Kong. GOW, the predecessor to RTHK, was established in 1928 as the first broadcasting service in Hong Kong. As a government department under the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau of the Hong Kong Government that directly supported by annual government funding, RTHK's educational, entertainment, and public affairs programmes are broadcast on its eight radio channels and five television channels, as well as commercial television channels.
Type
Public service broadcasting, radio, television and online broadcasting
Territorial
International
Eddie Cheung Kwok-choi (Director of Broadcasting)
20 June 1928 (radio)
1954 (gained independence from Government Information Services)
1970 (television)
1994 (online)[1]
12 January 2014 (Digital Terrestrial Television Service)
2 April 2016 (Taking over two analogue channels of Asia Television after their licence expired)
GOW (1928–1929)
ZBW (1929–1948)
Radio Hong Kong (1948–1976)
香港電台
香港电台
Xiānggǎng Diàntái
Xiānggǎng Diàntái
Hēung góng dihn tòih
Hoeng1 gong2 din6 toi4
Controversies[edit]
Misconduct[edit]
In 2002, a former Chief Programme Officer was convicted of misconduct in public office. The charges related to approving salary increases for one RTHK employee without complying with procedures.
On 8 June 2006, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) of Hong Kong arrested four people on corruption-related charges, including a deputy head of RTHK 2 and a disc jockey, who were arrested for committing scams totalling about HK$70,000 from 1995 to 2001. They were alleged to have conspired and sold scripts for various programmes that they did not write. Another former disc jockey and her mother were alleged to have aided the conspiracy by using their bank accounts by receiving payments from the radio station. All four were arrested and were released on bail.[30]
RTHK was also criticised by the Audit Commission of the Hong Kong Government for its problems on complying with regulations on staff management. The report especially highlighted the misuse of public funds by the RTHK staff on entertainment expenses, overtime claims and the outsourcing of services.[31]
In July 2007, the head of RTHK and Director of Broadcasting was accidentally spotted by a group of journalists in Causeway Bay along with an unidentified female. The journalists were actually waiting for singer Kenny Bee, who was in a nearby restaurant. On seeing the gathered journalists, Chu ducked behind his companion. Photos became the main page headlines in some of the major Hong Kong newspapers the following day. Chu, who was one year due to his official retirement from the government, subsequently decided to seek early retirement in the aftermath.[32]
Nabela Qoser probation controversy[edit]
Nabela Qoser, who became known to the public after she sharply and unremittingly questioned Hong Kong officials at press conferences following the 2019 Yuen Long attack, saw her three-year-long probation as a civil servant extended by 120 days following a management decision to reopen the investigations on her performance. She stood to be dismissed if she rejected the extension.[33] Members of the RTHK Program Staff Union called the decision "unjustified suppression" and "baseless act derailing from established staff management regulations". Coconuts Media reported that pro-Beijing groups had vilified Qoser, calling her disrespectful and directing racial slurs at her.[34] Qoser left the broadcaster at the end of May 2021.[35]
Censorship under Patrick Li[edit]
Following the appointment of Patrick Li to the post of Director of Broadcasting on 1 March 2021, ten television episodes have been censored; YouTube content more than one-year-old have been removed from RTHK's channel. RTHK claimed that it was to align the YouTube channel with RTHK's policy of only making content available for one year since the date of broadcast on their own website. This move triggered a May 2021 online campaign among RTHK viewers to archive the channel on their own.[36][37] In early August 2021, the broadcaster deleted its English-language Twitter archive, and announced on 5 August that it was disabling comments for all future tweets due to "resource constraints" that did not allow it to combat any misinformation contained in comments.[38]
In March 2021, it was reported that three executives had left the company within two weeks, two of whom left because they did not want to sign an oath declaring loyalty to the government.[39] In March, Li said that he would review all programmes before they could be broadcast.[40]
Within a month since Li took over, at least nine episodes of various programmes, including two episodes of Hong Kong Connection – known for its investigative reporting, have been axed.[15] Days before the 32nd anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre, RTHK journalists were informed that no political story would be allowed to air.[17] Programming cut back or cancelled at least 10 programmes – including an segment about the Tiananmen anniversary already aired the week before. RTHK management said three episodes of Hong Kong Connection, Hong Kong Stories, and LegCo Review "were not impartial, unbiased and accurate".[17]
On 29 June 2021, RTHK let go of veteran Allan Au Ka-lun, ending 11 years of him hosting the Open Line Open View program.[41]
On 5 July, Reporters Without Borders published a report on world leaders who had "cracked down massively on press freedoms". As one reason for including Chief Executive Carrie Lam in the list, the report cited what it described as launching a "full-blown intimidation campaign" against RTHK,[42] and said that Li had been "tasked with setting up an internal censorship system" at the broadcaster.[43]
Taiwan[edit]
Legislative Council member Luk Chung-hung in July 2021 asked Edward Yau, Commerce Secretary, if RTHK's use of the word "president" when referring to Tsai Ing-wen breached the one-China principle.[44] A week later, RTHK implemented new rules, which banned the use of words which would describe Taiwan (and the Republic of China) as an independent country in all television, radio, and online broadcasts.[44]
Tiananmen Square[edit]
In June 2023, several days before the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, RTHK removed a letter of gratitude from its office, which thanked its reporters for covering the event and was displayed in the office for 34 years.[45]
(in English and Chinese)
