August 21, 2002

(Clearwisdom.net) The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council has slammed a Chinese-language TV station for airing a news story in this country loaded with Chinese government propaganda against the Falun Gong spiritual group.

The news item was shown in December on the B.C.-based TalentVision pay channel, which serves the Mandarin-speaking segment of the Chinese-Canadian community in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary. The story -- picked up by TalentVision from the state-run Chinese broadcaster CCTV -- was about an accused killer in China who was believed to be a member of Falun Gong.

The practice of Falun Gong, which combines exercises and spiritual instruction, was banned three years ago in China.

[...]

The CBSC, which investigates charges of shoddy journalism among Canada's 500 private broadcasters, received 20 complaints about the report and a petition signed by more than 1,200 members of the Falun Dafa Association of Canada.

The council ruled that the CCTV newsreader's statement "is not journalism; it is nothing more or less than a biased attack on Falun Gong by the producer of that news item."

Under its obligations as a member of the CBSC, TalentVision is required to broadcast an announcement of the council's ruling.