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Three problems of Radio Television Hong Kong behind the storms of WHO and "Toutiao"

2020-04-05T12:00:29.265Z


Hong Kong society has been full of political tension in recent years. The media has repeatedly been on the cusp of the limelight. The public broadcaster, Radio Hong Kong, is even more severe. The long-standing debate over the positioning of Hong Kong and Taiwan has also heated up. Behind all the disturbances, the contradiction is quite consistent: Hong Kong


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Author: Yi Wenjian

2020-04-05 19:52

Date of last update: 2020-04-05 19:53

Hong Kong society has been full of political tension in recent years. The media has repeatedly been on the cusp of the limelight. The public broadcaster, Radio Hong Kong, is even more severe. The long-standing debate over the positioning of Hong Kong and Taiwan has also heated up. Behind the disturbances, the contradiction is quite consistent: Hong Kong and Taiwan have long been trapped in the conflict of roles between government departments and public broadcasters. Between Hong Kong and Taiwan and their superiors and different stakeholders in the society, there is too much difference in the understanding of the social functions of Hong Kong and Taiwan. . There are public broadcasters around the world that provide diverse information and entertainment to the general public, and transmit social values ​​such as equality and inclusiveness. Hong Kong and Taiwan carry the same mission, but they have failed to fulfill their expectations for many years and have repeatedly been caught in the vortex under the influence of different forces in society. . The freezing of three feet is not a temporary cold. To solve the difficulties for Hong Kong and Taiwan, it is necessary to fully clarify its social role and positioning, formulate clear performance indicators, and adjust or even reform the structure accordingly to keep it up to date.

The Hong Kong and Taiwan program "The Pulse" was criticized "advocating Taiwan independence" by asking the World Health Organization (WHO) Assistant Director-General Kim "whether the WHO will reconsider Taiwan's membership". (Screenshot of RTHK program)

The controversy about Radio Television Hong Kong has recently been one after another. The latest one is the Hong Kong and Taiwan program "The Pulse", which asked Bruce Aylward, Assistant Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Whether the CCW reconsidered the membership of Taiwan "was criticized for" advocating Taiwan independence "; from February to March, the Commissioner of Police Deng Bingqiang wrote twice to the Director of Broadcasting, Liang Jiarong, complaining that the Hong Kong and Taiwan program" Headlines "mocked the slandering police force in handling The anti-amendment campaign and work during the anti-epidemic period criticized the content for misleading the public; almost at the same time, the Communications Authority announced that it accepted the request made by TVB and allowed local free TV stations to stop broadcasting RTHK programs.

The series of storms are irrelevant on the surface, but they have common points in detail. They cannot be separated from the status of "public broadcasting" of Hong Kong and Taiwan. Different camps say their own things, but they also lead to an unavoidable one. The reality, that is, the status of Hong Kong and Taiwan as "public", makes it more important than the other media in the production of programs.

Specifically, the visit to the WHO official of The Pulse caused controversy. The direct reason was that the question ignored the fact that WHO members are based on the country, and that the interviewees were not responsible for handling this matter, and they were not equipped to decide on it. Power. In other words, the program asked the wrong target, and intended to show the embarrassment of the interviewee. Whether the editorial team intends to provoke political controversy is difficult to make a conclusion, but it is difficult to get rid of insufficient preparation and professionalism. The point of social disputes lies in the hidden political meaning of the relevant questions, and different stakeholders have made judgments more or less according to their respective positions. If the program is produced by private media, it is probably that the audience will use their colors to label and decide whether to continue to promote it. However, as a government department, RTHK is regulated by the Charter, which lists the public missions of RTHK include Increase the public's understanding of "one country, two systems" and cultivate the public's sense of identity with citizens and national identity. Based on this, Qiu Tenghua, the superior of Hong Kong and Taiwan, the Secretary of Commerce and Economic Development, showed that Hong Kong and Taiwan must have a correct understanding and must not be biased. Liang Jiarong, the editor in chief of Hong Kong and Taiwan, must also be held responsible.

The police accused "Headlines" of mocking the work of the discredited police force during the anti-epidemic period, which made people mistakenly believe that the police work was unprofessional. (Screenshot of RTHK program)

As for the "Headlines" storm, the police accused the show of taunting the police, and RTHK responded to the show's long history of reflecting social phenomena and different opinions in the form of giggles and scolding. The point of contention lies in whether the police tried to interfere with the editorial autonomy of Hong Kong and Taiwan, but after discussing it in the middle of last month, the Hong Kong and Taiwan Advisory Committee considered Deng Bingqiang ’s complaint “preliminarily justified” and asked the Director of Broadcasting to follow up and explain. Based on the Charter, the committee also pointed out that Hong Kong and Taiwan need to provide accurate and balanced news reports, information, opinions and analysis to strengthen the public ’s recognition of the social country and the world. And authoritative information.

Accompanied by this turmoil is the confrontation between different political forces, the establishment faction criticized Hong Kong and Taiwan for spreading violent hatred, violated the principle of equality, and threatened to reduce the appropriation of Hong Kong and Taiwan; pan-democratic forces supported Hong Kong and Taiwan to properly perform their duties as public broadcasters Words help it maintain editorial independence. These wrestlings, in their core, reflect the divergence of roles of different stakeholders in Hong Kong and Taiwan. As far as the establishment faction is concerned, since Hong Kong and Taiwan have the role of government departments, they should be punished by "bolting water pipes"; supporters, including the pan-popular people, believe that Hong Kong and Taiwan reflect the true public opinion of dissatisfaction with the government and fulfill the public broadcast. Institutional responsibilities. The extended argument is that Hong Kong and Taiwan spend one billion yuan of public money every year. Is it worth the money? On the one hand, Hong Kong and Taiwan have repeatedly achieved good results in the media credibility and program quality evaluation conducted on the market, but on the other hand, the overall ratings of their programs are definitely not ideal. The CA canceled the requirement for free TV stations to force the broadcasting of Hong Kong and Taiwan programs. Out of the operating dilemma of Hong Kong and Taiwan: Even if there is its own TV channel, the content of the program is extremely limited, and it is far from being the mainstream choice for viewers. After "split" with free TV, the number of viewers will be further narrowed.

Hong Kong and Taiwan have been involved in political disputes from time to time in recent years. Some citizens have demonstrated at the TV Tower of Hong Kong and Taiwan to protest against the discredited government. (Profile picture / photo by Yu Junliang)

Stripped of cocoons from the turbulent disputes, Radio Television Hong Kong is like a "four different things". Although it is a government department, it is not an official mouthpiece; it provides information and entertainment to the public, but from the market perspective, the value of work has been like a big flower tube; Although some quality programs are indeed produced, and some are even regarded as classics, compared with public media in other countries or regions, the overall performance is unsatisfactory. The resulting problem is: if viewing and revenue are the key indicators to measure their performance, I am afraid that Hong Kong and Taiwan can only end their operations in the cruel market reality; if they are to implement the functions of government departments, Hong Kong and Taiwan need to be strengthened for the government. Make political propaganda and give full play to the "official media" character. Both of these situations are inevitably unfavourable to Hong Kong society. In fact, around the question of where Hong Kong and Taiwan should go, the Hong Kong community has been exploring the third way for many years, that is, to transform Hong Kong and Taiwan into the credibility and influence of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). A public broadcaster with balanced revenue and expenditure. This vision should not be reduced to a castle in the sky all the time. To find a breakthrough, we must first sort out the origin of the role conflict between Hong Kong and Taiwan and the reason for the insufficient performance of the role of public broadcasting.

Role conflicts have a long history

Since its establishment in 1928, Hong Kong and Taiwan have been subordinated to government departments. For more than 40 years, the public broadcasting concept of Hong Kong and Taiwan was not strong. Even though the government had studied the separation of Hong Kong and Taiwan from the government system in 1956, 1960, and 1970, the results were considered impossible. Row. Liang Lijuan, a mentor at the School of Journalism and Communication of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, has long been concerned about the development of Radio Television Hong Kong. She said in an interview with "Hong Kong 01": "Before the TVB was not licensed, the government had considered whether to expand Hong Kong and Taiwan. As a result of the financial burden, he decided to license to wireless, which reflected that the government was not determined at that time. "

At the beginning of last month, Commissioner of Police Deng Bingqiang wrote to the Director of Broadcasting, Liang Jiarong, complaining that the content of the "Headlines" on the Hong Kong and Taiwan program mislead the public. (Profile picture / Photograph by Liang Pengwei)

The turning point appeared in the early 1970s. In 1972, Jimmy Hawthorne was seconded by the BBC to serve as the broadcasting director in Hong Kong. He advocated that the Hong Kong and Taiwan News Department have the autonomy to interview and edit. The Hong Kong and Taiwan Department established the Information Department in 1973. The News Department no longer provides news briefings. During this period, the radio department had a live answer program "Walking Down the Mountain" to help listeners understand the problem, and even asked officials to answer questions. It is the prototype of today's Fengyan program. The TV Department also produced programs such as "Under the Lion Rock" and "Clanging Collection", both reflecting the current status of society and criticizing government policies. Later produced "Opinions and Perspectives" and "Confrontation", inviting people from different sectors and the public to attend to explain the policy of the debate. However, the public vigorously criticized the current politics on the show, and Hong Kong and Taiwan have received complaints and pressure from officials and the business community. The program lasted for more than a year and ended in about two years.

Later, there were studies to sort out the reports and meeting minutes submitted by Hong Kong and Taiwan, pointing out that Hong Kong and Taiwan agreed to reflect the opinions of the public and dared to take risks. This was seen in the "80s" of the Radio Department in the 1980s, "Urban Forum" and "Headlines" in the TV Department. The government's December 1983 document stated that Hong Kong and Taiwan "cannot be regarded as a government propaganda machine." It can be said that the public broadcasting role of RTHK was born within RTHK and the needs of the citizens, and was accepted by the British Hong Kong government.

The British Hong Kong government stated in a December 1983 document that Hong Kong and Taiwan "cannot be regarded as a government propaganda machine." (Profile picture / Photo by Luo Junhao)

In the mid-to-late 1980s, the government proposed to corporatize Radio Hong Kong, imitating the BBC, to perform public broadcasting as it deserves, and to separate from government departments. However, the government and Hong Kong and Taiwan failed to agree on staff transition arrangements. In 1993, the sea sank. Even so, the idea of ​​public broadcasting is rooted in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and after the return, it has become stronger and stronger, and its inherent contradiction as a government department has become more apparent.

Pan-democracy believes that public broadcasting should dare to criticize the government, adhere to editorial independence, safeguard human rights and freedoms, and support Hong Kong and Taiwan based on these concepts. Although the formed camp did not expressly want Hong Kong and Taiwan to become the "mouthpiece" of the government, they were dissatisfied with the cold treatment or targeting of them, and denounced their violation of the principle of equality. At the beginning of the return, Xu Simin, member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, criticized the "headline news" for "yin and yang strangeness". At that time, the chief executive Dong Jianhua criticized the "headline news" for "low-level fun"; Face down against the government.

No need to be a "mouthpiece", need to reform services

The government launched a review of public broadcasting services in 2006 and completed it in 2009. The conclusion was that Hong Kong and Taiwan maintained the status of government departments, but they also signed a "Hong Kong and Taiwan Charter" with Hong Kong and Taiwan, setting out the mission and public purpose of Hong Kong and Taiwan, and reaffirming the public of Hong Kong and Taiwan. Broadcasting status (Table 1), also called Hong Kong and Taiwan as a public broadcaster in the future. At that time, many comments pointed out that establishing a position does not help to eliminate the conflict of roles between Hong Kong and Taiwan. The current "Headline News" storm can be said to be an extension of the controversy.

To untie this knot, we must finally clarify the role of Hong Kong and Taiwan. Hong Kong and Taiwan undertake the task of public broadcasting in Hong Kong. This positioning itself is no problem, and this positioning does not mean that it must also bear the responsibility of the government's mouthpiece. In the existing government structure, Hong Kong and Taiwan do not need and should not be the government ’s microphone. To publish government information, the Information Services Department is more than competent. Hong Kong and Taiwan only need to keep up with the requirements, ensure that the content of the program is flat, give the government enough time to explain its positions and policies, and arrange time to broadcast government information. At the end of 2018, Qiu Tenghua, the Director of Commerce and Economics, once said that Hong Kong and Taiwan have a public mission. Unlike the work of the Information Department, the two departments have no intention to merge.

Past surveys on the evaluation of Hong Kong and Taiwan and the quality of programs have shown that the general public agrees that Hong Kong and Taiwan perform the public purposes and missions set out in the "Hong Kong and Taiwan Charter". Nonetheless, after reviewing the previous audit reports of the Audit Office and comparing the experience of public broadcasters in different places, it is not difficult to find that there are still deficiencies in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and there is much room for reform.

At the end of 2018, Qiu Tenghua, the Director of Commerce and Economics, once said that Hong Kong and Taiwan have a public mission. Unlike the work of the Information Department, the two departments have no intention to merge. (Profile picture / photo by Yu Junliang)

1. How to increase the impact of ratings?

As mentioned above, RTHK relies on a number of performance indicators to assess service performance. In terms of programming, it mainly includes ratings, appreciation index, public satisfaction survey and complaint figures. The purpose of the Appreciation Index is to improve the overall program quality of the Hong Kong television industry and hope to become a professional indicator other than ratings. Liang Lijuan once participated in the judging work. She explained that the business and advertising industry will pay attention to the programs with high appreciation index, and think that these programs attract specific audiences and are more effective than broadcasting advertisements and sponsored programs.

However, Hong Kong and Taiwan often quote the appreciation index and audience surveys as a commercial consideration, rather than a long-term downturn in program ratings, which is difficult to match with wireless (and ATV, which has ended its free TV business). RTHK usually responds that some programs take care of the niche and coupled with inertial ratings, it is unfair to use ratings to assess the performance of RTHK programs. In fact, the audit report issued by the Audit Commission in 2018 also agreed that it is not appropriate to use ratings alone as a program performance indicator, but at the same time pointed out that the rebuttals of Hong Kong and Taiwan are not convincing. Even if ratings are not the only measure of quality, they are also important. Even though some programs in Hong Kong and Taiwan have a high appreciation index, the recognition rate is generally lower than the average, and some are only about 10%. In fact, it is a waste of the efforts of the production team.

The phenomenon of inertial ratings has loosened in recent years. Two commercial free TV channels, ViuTV and Hong Kong TV, are also seeking strategies. These commercial TV stations should not only win viewers, but also avoid losses, and face double pressure. Relatively speaking, RTHK has relieved commercial pressure and already has certain advantages. Since the program can be applauded, RTHK should conceive how it can be equally popular.

Radio broadcasting cannot be ignored either. Radio listening surveys show that in recent years, the number of listeners in Hong Kong and Taiwan has exceeded 3 million. According to the channel, the listeners spend an average of 1.4 to 4 hours a day to listen, which is actually not bad in a society where video is dominant. Of course, the audit report also pointed out the drop in the listening rate of English channels, Putonghua channels and channels for the elderly, and suggested that Hong Kong and Taiwan improve. Losing listeners is a common challenge faced by radio stations around the world, especially the Internet easily absorbs the niche. Although Audit has not proposed a more radical solution, such as integrated channels, RTHK should not exclude this option in order to allocate manpower and resources to more demanding areas.

Hong Kong and Taiwan are both government departments and public broadcasters. They have not been able to resolve their role conflicts. (Profile picture / photo by Wu Weihao)

The audit report specifically mentions the low awareness of the Community Participation in Broadcasting Program (CIBS). The plan was originally intended to promote a multicultural society, enhance civic awareness, and encourage the minority to speak, but the results of the 2017 radio listening survey showed that only 21% of the respondents knew CIBS, and the number of listeners responsible for broadcasting was only 2.3% of the population of Hong Kong The proportion of ethnic minorities in Hong Kong is even lower. There are too few listeners, and the program can't be promoted. It's impossible to even encourage the minority to participate. If you can listen to the first and second broadcasts that more people listen to, you can reach more listeners. I believe the response will be wider.

2. How to build Hong Kong's image internationally?

In fact, the target audience of public broadcasters is not limited to local people, but can also be targeted at all parts of the world. BBC, Japan Broadcasting Association (NHK), and Arirang (Korea) are all examples. These three TV stations have their own English satellite channels, and people from overseas can watch them through TV or the Internet.

The establishment of overseas public TV radio program channels can demonstrate the soft power of one place. For example, one of NHK ’s business goals is “to open up Japan ’s diverse culture, traditions and innovations, to give the audience the latest economic and technological conditions, and to be the gateway to the world ’s entry into Japan and Asia”; The image of South Korea in the international community is to improve relations with foreign countries by cooperating with foreign broadcasters. ”Not to mention much, the BBC has already become a representative of the UK in the international community. Its“ Future News ”report five years ago emphasizes the BBC International Channel is the UK's "unique asset", reminding the BBC to continue to grow in order to become the country's "value ambassador" and "soft power spokesperson."

Perhaps, TVB has already established a strong foothold overseas, and its program production volume and equipment investment are more abundant than those of Hong Kong and Taiwan. In recent years, it has developed an OTT platform without the need for an additional overseas Hong Kong channel. However, wireless multi-sale variety entertainment is less important in news and information, and it uses Chinese to broadcast. There is a lack of English channels. RTHK can make up for it. In addition, Hong Kong is an international city and a place where Chinese and Western cultures meet. Hong Kong and Taiwan have the conditions to develop overseas media services. They show Hong Kong ’s local customs, current information, and social conditions on the show. They can also reveal social issues through the show to help all parties. People of insight provide solutions. Since promoting Hong Kong's diverse and open culture is one of the missions of Hong Kong and Taiwan, and some Hong Kong and Taiwan works are well-known, why don't Hong Kong and Taiwan output excellent programs and show soft power to the outside world?

As a public broadcaster, the BBC has long become the representative of the UK in the international community and the "soft power spokesperson". (Getty Images)

3. How to reform finance and actively open source?

To implement the above two points, a large amount of additional resources are required, and government capital injection is essential. Of course, at a time when society is full of political conflicts, funding to Hong Kong and Taiwan is a sensitive issue. To convince the government, the Legislative Council and the public to increase the resources of RTHK, RTHK must lead by example and review whether the current resources are being used properly.

The 2018 audit report revealed that the output and efficiency of Hong Kong and Taiwan are not commensurate. In addition to the low ratings and listening rates mentioned above, there are also high production costs of educational TV but low output. The production cost per hour in 2017/18 reached 1.58 million yuan, more than double the amount in 2008/09. This amount can be said to be unreasonably high. The hourly production cost of the Hong Kong and Taiwan Television Program Outsourcing Project is roughly estimated at 400,000 to 800,000 yuan, which is only one quarter to one half of the equivalent time period for educational television.

On the other side, the number of viewers of educational TV programs continued to decline. The average number of programs watched per class in each kindergarten and middle school was maintained at a single number. The daily broadcast time on TV stations was gradually reduced to one hour. 2) Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Education Bureau plan to discuss another method of cooperation. Knowing that the number of viewers is continually losing, if RTHK decides to transform education TV several years ago, hundreds of millions of public money can be invested in other departments, or more programs can be produced to bring greater benefits.

Apart from throttling, Hong Kong and Taiwan need to open source. Most people think that the resources of Hong Kong and Taiwan are 100% from the government. In fact, Hong Kong and Taiwan have income. In 2017/18, they had 20.7 million yuan, but they were insignificant compared with the annual expenditure of 1 billion yuan. Hong Kong and Taiwan not only have talents, but also a precious resource of copyright. Unfortunately, they have not made good use of it. The income from issuing licensing (or content licensing) for program content is only 2.3 million yuan. At the meeting of the Hong Kong and Taiwan Advisory Committee, some members have suggested that this aspect will help Hong Kong and Taiwan to explore open source and promote excellent programs. The management response will consider the opinions of the committee and follow up in due course.

Foreign industry experience also helps Hong Kong and Taiwan to think about how to open source. Taiwan ’s Public Radio and Television Group is a local broadcaster of public television. Its financial sources are similar to those of Hong Kong and Taiwan, and most of them are subsidized by the government. In 2018, the Taiwanese government subsidized approximately NT $ 1 billion (approximately HK $ 262 million), which is equivalent to 40% of the revenue of NT $ 2.5 billion (approximately HK $ 650 million) and a third of public television expenditure.

From time to time, PTV has criticized the government for insufficient subsidies, which has weakened the quality of the programs. However, while seeking more subsidies, PTV actively explored sources of income. For example, under the lead of the series produced by the station, the sales revenue in 2018 accounted for 3.62% of the total revenue. This percentage seems to be small, but if it is excluded Approved to implement government outsourcing of the revenue and expenditure of programming, public sales revenue accounted for 7% to 8% of total revenue. In addition, PTV also tried to cooperate with foreign companies, and pre-sold the copyright to the online audio and video platform, so as to strive for more resources to produce the highlight, through the episode "Provincial Signboard", "Psychic Girl", "Narcotic Storm Bilogy" "Is an example.

Regarding the audit recommendations mentioned above, Hong Kong and Taiwan generally agree that the next question is how to implement reforms to improve finances and expand revenue, which proves Hong Kong and Taiwan ’s determination to remain the best. Only in this way will the increased funding required by Hong Kong and Taiwan and the construction of the new broadcasting building be more convincing. After adding resources, you can increase the number of first-hand programs to be shot, make good use of your own channels, and reduce replays. If more original programs can be produced, it will help build viewers ’support and loyalty to the channel, drive the audience ratings of niche programs in the eyes of Hong Kong and Taiwan to increase the influence of public broadcasting.

With the resumption of this year's Budget, the dispute between Hong Kong and Taiwan is bound to continue to ferment. Admittedly, no matter how Hong Kong and Taiwan emphasize their own public broadcasting tasks, there is still a lot of outside voices to equate Hong Kong and Taiwan with "official channels" and microphones. To be sure, disputes like "Headline News" will recur sooner or later, adding to the internal friction of society. It is a desirable direction for Hong Kong and Taiwan to truly fulfill their social mission as a public broadcaster, separate from the government establishment, introduce a governance system in the form of a board of directors, diversify financial sources, and maintain a certain distance from the government while maintaining relations.

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The above was published in the 208th issue of "Hong Kong 01" Weekly Newsletter (April 6, 2020) "Three Problems of Radio Hong Kong Behind the World Health Organization and" Toutiao "Storm".

More weekly articles: 【01 Weekly News Page】

The "Hong Kong 01" weekly newspaper is available at major newsstands, OK convenience stores and Vango convenience stores. You can also subscribe to the weekly report here to read more in-depth reports.

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Source: hk1

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