Uncensored Satellite Broadcast to China Going Dark -- Communist interference suspected


By John Nania

The Epoch Times

Mar 14, 2005

Viewers like this man in Anhui Province of China will no longer be able to watch the independent network NTDTV after French company Eutelsat made a unilateral decision to stop satellite transmission (Cancan Chu/Getty Images)

NEW YORK - The TV network aspiring to be "the Chinese PBS" will be unable to reach its prime audience in east Asia after satellite provider Eutelsat unaccountably stops carrying the signal this week.

New Tang Dynasty TV (NTDTV), headquartered in New York, says that the unilateral move not to continue the contract "doesn't make any business sense," according to Samuel Zhou, programming director for NTDTV.

"They have abundant unused capacity on their satellite," he said. "This is a company that has never removed any channel, even those with content that incites violence and hatred."

Heightening the suspicions of NTDTV executives is the fact that Eutelsat continues to accept payment for NTDTV coverage over Europe. Only the sensitive area of China, as well as Taiwan, southeast Asia, Japan, and Korea, are going dark.

"We learned that the true reason they aren't continuing the broadcast is pressure exerted on them by Chinese authorities," said Zhou.

The non-profit network has been broadcasting on four continents, via satellite and cable, since early 2002. In addition to cultural programming, such as the Chinese New Year Global Gala annual broadcast, NTDTV covers original news that makes the ruling Chinese Communist Party nervous, such as 2003's coverage of SARS and the ongoing persecution of Christians and 100 million practitioners of Falun Gong.

NTDTV and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) will hold a press conference in Brussels, Belgium on Tuesday to discuss more details and planned action.

Eutelsat gave no reasons to NTDTV for stopping the signal. Calls from The Epoch Times seeking comment from the Eutelsat branch office in Washington DC had not been returned at press time.

http://english.epochtimes.com/news/5-3-14/27005.html

 Yearly Archive   Printer Version


We welcome your comments and suggestions, please email:
feedback@clearwisdom.net

Related Articles

Article Review
• A Secret Notice From the Chinese Communist Party "Guard Office" [3/15/2005]
• Senior Police Officer Finds Opportunities to Protect Falun Gong Practitioners [3/14/2005]
• "We Need To Learn from the Falun Gong Practitioners and Conduct Ourselves as Good People" [3/14/2005]
• My Daughter's Name Means "Joyful," But She Is Very Sad (Photos) [3/13/2005]
• "Politics" is a Smokescreen for the CCP's Persecution of Falun Gong [3/12/2005]
• The Essentials to Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts and the Schedule for Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts at Set Times Around the World (Update 2) [3/12/2005]
• "I Did Not Save My Child, My Child Saved Me:" The Story of a 610 Office Employee's Personal Awakening [3/11/2005]
• Middle School Student: Your Informational Pamphlet Moved Me Very Much [3/11/2005]
• Making Truth-clarifying Materials to Save People, Remaining Undaunted Amidst Hardships (Photos) [3/10/2005]
• Epoch Times: "The Killing of So Many Falun Gong Practitioners Must be Investigated" -- Open Letter by Shandong University Professor to Political Consultative Conference [3/9/2005]
• Regarding Dafa Practitioners' Anti-Torture Exhibits, It is the Chinese Media that is Distorting Reality [3/9/2005]
• Taking the Lawsuit Against Jiang Zemin to the U.S. Supreme Court Is of Significant Importance in Exposing the Persecution (Photo) [3/6/2005]
• U.S. State Department's Annual Report Says China Continues Persecution of Falun Gong and Violation of Human Rights [3/3/2005]
• Law Expert from China: Those Who Remain Silent About The Persecution of Falun Gong Have No Excuse [3/3/2005]
• Jiang's Followers in the Persecution Continue to Receive Karmic Retribution [3/3/2005]
• Reflections on Laws and Legal Community in China After Reading Lawyer Gao Zhisheng's Open Letter [3/2/2005]
• US West Falun Dafa Cultivation Experience Sharing Conference Held in San Francisco, Master Li Gives a Lecture (Photo) [2/27/2005]
• Australian Organization Submits List of Persecutors' Names to the Government, Requests Ban on Their Entry into Australia [2/27/2005]
• Truth Clarification Flyer about the Role of China's State-run Media in Persecuting Falun Gong [2/25/2005]
• Guo Chuanjie, Deputy Head of 610 Office at the Chinese Academy of Science, Is Sued in New York (Photos) [2/25/2005]
• More Articles...