Taiwan TV managers resign for running news of Chinese invasion
CTS erroneously ran false news ticker items such as "On the brink of war" and "New Taipei City hit by People's Liberation Army ground force missiles"
Two top managers of Taipei-based Chinese Television System (CTS) announced their resignation Friday after the station mistakenly ran incorrect news tickers claiming a Chinese invasion of Taiwan and natural disasters.
On Wednesday, CTS erroneously ran false news ticker items in its morning news program, such as "On the brink of war", "Vessel explodes in Taipei Harbor, facilities and ships destroyed," and "New Taipei City hit by People's Liberation Army ground force missiles."
Other factually incorrect headlines found later included "heavy hail fell in capital Taipei," "a volcano in northern Taiwan erupted" as well as "new oil fields were found in the Basal Channel."
CTS apologized on Wednesday, saying it mistakenly ran war and disaster prevention messages, which were used in a video on disaster-prevention recorded earlier, and said there was no need for the public to panic.
However, harsh criticism also from lawmakers led to calls for a management review.
On Friday, CTS apologized again, announcing that two top managers will resign and a comprehensive investigation will be launched.
Public broadcasting group
The managers who resigned were named as TBS board chairwoman Tchen Yu-chiou and CTS acting general manager Chen Ya-ling.
CTS is part of Taiwan Broadcasting System (TBS), a public broadcasting group established in 2006 and partly funded by the government.
For years, the TBS group has struggled with budget issues and the ruling party's influence on management.