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China-Japan-Koreas
Media Watchdogs Accuse Satellite Operator of Bowing to Chinese Pressure
2005-03-15
International media watchdogs on Tuesday accused leading satellite operator Eutelsat of bowing to pressure from Beijing by refusing to renew a contract that allows a U.S.-based Chinese television company to broadcast into China. "The inexplicable decision to suddenly end the contract of an independent broadcaster in this way appears to be a shocking act of censorship," said Aidan White, general secretary of the International Federation of Journalists.

Another group, Reporters Without Borders, said Eutelsat was violating European and International conventions by terminating the contract of New Tang Dynasty Television, which it called "the only non-governmental channel freely reaching Chinese viewers via satellite in the Chinese language." Lawyers for the New Tang Dynasty Television and Reporters Without Borders have said they plan to bring a lawsuit in a Paris court Wednesday against Eutelsat. "We opened a historic open satellite window in the great wall of information control that is forcibly maintained by Beijing," NTDTV board director Joe Zhao told a news conference. "Eutelsat is preparing to slam shut the open satellite window this week." Zhao said NTDTV would use the Internet and other unspecified alternative methods to get its broadcasts into China if Eutelsat removes the satellite signal. He estimated the channel's global audience at 200 million. From its Paris headquarters, Eutelsat said it had honored it contract with a London-based company through which it dealt with NTDTV and said its decisions were based on commercial grounds. "Eutelsat is not reacting to pressure from the Chinese authorities or any other authority," the company said in a statement.
"No, certainly not!"
New York-based NTDTV has been denounced by Chinese authorities as a mouthpiece for the Falun Gong spiritual movement which Beijing has tried to shut down as a dangerous cult. The TV station insists it is independent, although many of its staffers are Falun Gong practitioners. The IFJ said New Tang Dynasty had gained an international reputation for "objective and timely reporting of political, economic and cultural stories" since its founding in 2001. It said Eutelsat had been under pressure from the Chinese Communist Party over the arrangements with NTDTV. The media watchdog said Beijing had warned that business opportunities linked to broadcasting 2008 Olympics would might be at risk. Based in Brussels, the IFJ is an umbrella group that brings together journalists' unions in over 100 nations. It claims to represent more than 500,000 media professionals. Reporters Without Borders is a Paris-based media rights watchdog.
Posted by:Steve

#2  
Headquartered in Paris..

That says it all.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2005-03-15 2:27:24 PM  

#1  Falun Gong? Lol! The ChiCom BS Bogeyman. Wotta load. They trot out this very scary group of Buddhist-inspired folks looking for a little slack Gong. Amazing how much they apparently frighten the ChiComs. Well, every bad Govt needs a Bogeyman to blame shit everything on.

The sucking sound you hear is Eutelsat fellating the ChiComs. I'm sure this will be forgotten papered-over swept under the rug explained away dismissed out of hand by the EU Justice System resolved to the EU's satisfaction.

Eutelsat info:
Unofficial Coporate Motto:
Hey, baby, we'll fuck anyone for a buck.
Hé, bébé, nous baiserons n'importe qui pour un €uro.
*Under Construction* (in Beijing)

Headquartered in Paris and with a workforce of 450 professionals from 25 countries, Eutelsat operates marketing and sales offices in Germany Italy, Poland, the UK and the USA, as well as a broadband affiliate in Italy called Skylogic. Eutelsat also owns and operates teleports in France and Italy that supply in-orbit satellite control, value-added and hosting services.

The corporate governance of Eutelsat is the responsibility of a Board of Directors with 10 members. Giuliano Berretta is Chairman of the Board and CEO.


Eutelsat S.A. Limited Liability Company with Management and Supervisory Board.
Headquarters: 70 rue Balard, F 75502 Paris Cedex 15, France
Posted by: .com   2005-03-15 1:23:12 PM  

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