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Media in Hong Kong is available to the public conveniently in various forms, namely: television and radio channels, newspapers, magazines and the World Wide Web. They serve the local community by providing necessary information and entertainment.
Introduction In Hong Kong, the mass media is an indispensable part of people's lives. Not only does it affect the way people think and act, it also plays an active role in the economic and cultural domains of the society, shaping the economy and cultural values of the people. The mass media is also a kind of business. Just like other commercial utilities, mass media produce infotainment and sell it to the buyers (targeted audience) for profit. Infotainment (a portmanteau word formed from information and entertainment), also known as soft news, provides information in a way that is entertaining to its viewers. ...
Mass media in Hong Kong can be classified according to their nature into 3 categories:
A collection of magazines A magazine is a periodical publication containing a variety of articles. ...
Yahoo! Inc. ...
Legislation on the media industry Freedom of the press and publication are enshrined in Art. 27 of the Basic Law, Hong Kong's mini-constitution, and are also protected by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) under Art. 39 of the Basic Law. Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public speech for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ...
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China serves as the constitutional document of Hong Kong. ...
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is a United Nations treaty based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. ...
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China serves as the constitutional document of Hong Kong. ...
There is no law called "media law" in Hong Kong. Instead, the media is governed by a bunch of statutory laws. In brief, there are 31 Ordinances that are directly related to mass media, 7 of which are more important. They includes Registration of Local Newspapers Ordinance (Cap. 286), Books Registration Ordinance (Cap. 142), Telecommunications Ordinance (Cap. 106), Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance (Cap. 390) Broadcasting Authority Ordinance (Cap. 391) and Broadcasting Ordinance (Cap. 562). The most important thing to remember, when dealing with Statutory law, is that all statutes are commercial contracts enforcable under the jurisdiction of the Uniform Commercial Code. ...
- Registration of Local Newspapers Ordinance (Cap. 286) provides for the registration of local newspapers and news agencies and the licensing of newspaper distributors.
- Books Registration Ordinance (Cap. 142) (Cap. 106) provides for the registration and preservation of copies of books first printed, produced or published in Hong Kong.
- Telecommunications Ordinance (Cap. 106) makes better provision for the licensing and control of telecommunications, telecommunications services and telecommunications apparatus and equipment.
- Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance (Cap. 390) controls and classifies articles which consist of or contain material that is obscene or indecent. Obscene Articles Tribunals are established to determine whether an article is obscene or indecent.
- Broadcasting Authority Ordinance (Cap. 391) provides for the establishment and functions of a Broadcasting Authority.
- Broadcasting Ordinance (Cap. 562) licenses companies to provide broadcasting services and regulate the provision of broadcasting services by licensees.
The rest of the 31 Ordinances are of less importance since they do not aim at regulating mass media, but some of their provisions do affect the operation of media organizations and also the freedom of the press. BlackBerry 7100t Telecommunication is the extension of communication over a distance. ...
The passing of Bill of Rights Ordinance(BORO) in 1986 strengthened the protection of fundamental human rights like press freedom, freedom of speech, etc. This has been reflected in the loosening of control over mass media. Laws that violate the principle of press freedom are gradually amended. (For example, s.27 of Public Order Ordinance, which criminalized publishing of false news, was repealed in 1989) A bill of rights is a statement of certain rights that citizens and/or residents of a free and democratic society have (or ought to have) under the laws of that society. ...
Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public speech for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ...
A public demonstration Freedom of speech is the liberty to say what one pleases, as well as the related liberty to hear what others have stated. ...
Nonetheless, there are still concerns among the media sectors that laws some existing laws may still undermine the freedom of the press and publication, e.g. Official Secrets Ordinance (Cap. 521) and Public Order Ordinance (Cap. 245). On the other hand, the HKSAR Government considers that such laws do not violate the BORO and the constitutionally protected rights under the Basic Law. The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China serves as the constitutional document of Hong Kong. ...
Authorities enforcing relevant policies - Broadcasting Authority (BA) regulates broadcasters in Hong Kong by licensing and penalties according to the Broadcasting Regulation.
- Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority (TELA) is responsible for monitoring television and radio broadcasting to secure proper standards.
- Press Council was established in July 2000. The objective of the Council is to promote the professional and ethical standard of the newspaper industry, defend press freedom, and deal with public complaints against local newspapers. It is an independent organization funded by the newspapers and public donations, and its authority rests on the willingness of members to respect the Council's views, to adhere voluntarily to ethical standards and to admit mistakes publicly.(Adopted from Press Council Homepage)
Characteristic of Hong Kong's Mass Media - Legally regulated
- Mass media in Hong Kong are regulated by an independent legal system. Therefore, media can seek mutual development on a fair platform. Legal regulations on the mass media also foster beneficial competition and effective administration. It also guarantees that practitioners can fully utilize their creativity and professional capacity to entertain the public and pose check on the government.
- Industrialized
- Hong Kong's mass media is a kind of "culture industry", therefore it unavoidably takes profitability into account in its operation. Market investigation and audience/readers research are usual practice. To the audience and readers, they are customers to the mass media. As a result, the taste of the audience/readers have significant effect on the content of information/entertainment provided by the mass media.
- International
- As a world financial centre, Hong Kong attracts mass media all over the world to set up their business here. Apart from local media, overseas publications can be found easily. Foreign broadcasting, like BBC, ABC news, etc. can be seen and heard by Hong Kong people.
- Infotaintive
- Hong Kong media are run under commercial principles. Market force plays an important role. Ratings largely determine the income of the media organizations. As a result, the audience in fact determine what is provided by the mass media. In face of the fierce competition in the media market and a large group of audience who have a strong favour towards leisury and entertaining readings/programmes, "infotainment" becomes the mainstream of the products of the mass media.
- Promptness
- As a product of a commercial city, the mass media of Hong Kong has the characteristics of other commercial institutes- prompt, responsive, quick. For example, when there is an car accident, reporters would arrive at the hospital earlier than the ambulance. The responsiveness is also demonstrated by the keen need of scoop. In order to get a scoop, reporters may use all means to obtain news. It is not unusually to hear/read about "sources said" in news reports. It is the nature of commercial media.
- A blend of press freedom and social responsibility
- Under the notions of press freedom and social responsibility, government intervention of the press in Hong Kong is minimal. At the same time, the mass media practitioners uphold self-discipline as a means to ensure that the others' rights are not adversely affected by the media. There is no government censorship of news in Hong Kong. People are free to criticize the government. Nonetheless, though the mass media is generally independent of any political powers, political powers have not given up the chance to affect the media. Occasionally we would hear Chinese officials criticizing Hong Kong media, saying that the media should give more support to the Government. The media have formed their own professional bodies, e.g. Hong Kong Journalists Association, Hong Kong News Executives' Association, etc., to guarantee the independence of the media. In respect of self-discipline, Hong Kong Press Council was setup in 2000 to handle complains from the public to the press.
- Private ownership
- Apart from RTHK and a few newspapers and magazines with supports from Mainland authority, most of the media corporations are private-owned. Furthermore, although RTHK is owned by the Hong Kong Government, it is not an "official channel". In fact, RTHK has always been under fire for its criticizing the government "too much" (in the eyes of the pro-China camp). In fact, a high degree of independence is maintained though under pressure.
Judicial independence is the doctrine that decisions of the judiciary should be impartial and not subject to influence from the other branches of government or from private or political interests. ...
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the national publicly funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. ...
The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is a television and radio network in the United States. ...
Rating is a means of classifying things in different categories. ...
A scoop is a colloquial term to refer to a news story, (especially an exciting one) that is reported in a particular newspaper or magazine before it appears anywhere else, implying a high level of investigation skill; a scoop and a scoop reporter are highly positive assets for that newspaper...
Mass media is the term used to denote, as a class, that section of the media specifically conceived and designed to reach a very large audience (typically at least as large as the whole population of a nation state). ...
Television Programs RTHK produces public affairs television programs which are broadcast by Hong Kongs three commercial television channels, TVB, ATV and Cable TV. These programmes include Hong Kong Connection (鏗鏘集), A Week in Politics (議事論事), Media Watch (傳媒春秋) and Police Magazine (警訊). ...
Challenges faced by Media In 1999, a survey on the mass media ethics was conducted by four journalists' groups (Hong Kong Journalists Association, Hong Kong News Executives' Association, Hong Kong Federation of Journalists, Hong Kong Press Photographers' Association ). They could not deny the fact that the mass media were suffering decreasing respect of Hong Kong citizens. Journalism was no longer seen as a respectable profession. The Public had little trust in newspapers. The news industry attributed this phenomenon to Hong Kong citizens' complaints about the decreasing ethics of journalists. This survey has revealed the problems that mass media industry is now facing.
Over 75% people were not satisfied with journalists' ethical behavior. 81% agreed that the journalists had injected too much violence and pornography into news reporting. 66% stated that there was a lack of accuracy in reporting. Stories were exaggerated and contorted to cater for the readers' taste. And 62% thought that journalists did not respect individual privacy. The victims were usually the super stars and celebrities. Violence is the causing of, or acting with the intent to cause, injury to people or animals. ...
Pornography (from Greek ποÏνογÏαφια pornographia — literally writing about or drawings of harlots) (also informally referred to as porn or porno) is the representation of the human body or human sexual behaviour with the goal of sexual arousal, similar to, but (according to some) distinct from, erotica. ...
Privacy is the ability of an individual or group to stop information about themselves from becoming known to people other than those they choose to give the information to. ...
However, Hong Kong people still had much concern about press freedom. In 2000, the 'United State Policy Act Report' pointed out that Hong Kong media still remained free and robust after reunification with China in 1997. Mass media had the absolute freedom to report and comment and criticise every event that happened in Hong Kong,Taiwan, Mainland China and other regions around the world. The majority did agree that the supervisory duty should not rely on the government. Over 60% support the proposal that a non-governmental organisation, composed by group of professional journalist should be set up for strict and close supervision. In view of this request of the public, Hong Kong Press Council, an independent organization, was founded in 2000 to promote the ethical stands of the newspaper industry, to fight for press freedom and to deal with public complaints. In the technical terminology of political science the PRC was a communist state for much of the 20th century, and is still considered a communist state by many, though not all, political scientists. ...
Incidents with Impact
"Mr Chan Kin Hong (陳健康) Incident" On 19 October 1998, a woman, together with her 2 children, jumped down from a tall building in Sheung Shui and died. The local media quickly turned their attention to Mr. Chan Kin Hong, the woman's husband. It was alleged that Mrs Chan committed suicide because her husband had taken another wife in mainland China. Chan then became the headlines of major newspapers and TV channels, being portrayed as both a disgraceful husband and a living example of trans-boundary marital problems between Hong Kong and mainland China. October 19 is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...
1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...
Sheung Shui is part of the Fanling-Sheung Shui new town in Hong Kong. ...
During the media's wild chase of the story, the Apple Daily was so eager to outstrip its competitors that it posted a picture that ruined its reputation. In the picture Chan was holding 2 women, whom were said to be prostitutes, in his arms - all three were cuddling under a bedsheet inside a hotel room. On one hand public resentment against Chan reached its peak, but the readers could not help wondering, how did the Apple Daily manage to get this picture?
Later on it was found that the Apple Daily had paid Chan HK$5,000 for the story. [Alternative version of the story: the Apple Daily never paid Chan directly in cash, but their reporters paid for Chan's meals and "entertainment" expenses during the process of "reporting", including the fees for the prostitutes.] Finally, the Apple Daily posted a whole-page notice of apology on its front page on 10 November 1998. November 10 is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 51 days remaining. ...
1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...
The incident sparked off fierce criticism from other media, academics and the public. One of the issues of discussion was that, if journalists start to fabricate the very reality that they claim to report, or worse still, if they actively take part in creating social tragedies, journalism is parting from its ethics and social role. A tarnished reputation of media ethics left Hong Kong's freedom of press more vulnerable to the much-suspected censorship after 1997.
Spreading of false news during SARS period On April Fools' Day in 2003, a 14-year-old pupil copied the design of the Ming Pao Web site to his own, wherein he announced that Hong Kong had been declared an "infected port", the Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa had stepped down and that the Hang Seng Index had plunged. Rumour had it that Hong Kong would be quarantined and cut off from supplies, which immediately sparked panic buying at supermarkets and prompted the government to issue an official denial in an emergency briefing and through SMS messages to mobile phone users. Newspapers overwhelmingly condemned the spread of misinformation in times of the SARS crisis. Ming Pao in particular demanded the punishment of the spread of false news in the public interest. This raised a discussion on the choice between freedom of speech and the public interest. The person who spread the rumor had subsequently been arrested. — Mark Twain April Fools Day or All Fools Day is a notable day, though not of its own right a holiday, celebrated in many countries on April 1. ...
The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Chinese: 香港特別行政å€è¡Œæ”¿é•·å®˜ pinyin (forMandarin Chinese pronounciation): XiÄnggÇŽng Tèbié XÃngzhèngqÅ« XÃngzhèng ZhangguÄn) is the head of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China, and represents the Region. ...
Tung Chee-hwa (Traditional Chinese: 董建華 Simplified Chinese: 董建华 Pinyin: Dǒng Jiànhuá) (born July 7, 1937, or the 29th day of the fifth month in the Chinese calendar) is the first Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ...
Hang Seng Index (HSI, 恒生指數) is a capitalization-weighted stock market index in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. ...
Exterior appearance of typical supermarket (Albertsons) Supermarket produce section A supermarket is a store that sells a wide variety of goods including food and alcohol (where permitted), medicine, clothes, and other household products that are consumed regularly. ...
A received SMS being announced on a Nokia phone. ...
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is an atypical form of pneumonia. ...
Public interest is a term used to denote political movements and organizations that are in the public interest—supporting general public and civic causes, in opposition of private and corporate ones (particularistic goals). ...
A rumor (British English: rumour) is a piece of purportedly true information that is circulated without substantiating evidence. ...
The legislation to implement Article 23 of the Basic Law, which concerns the prohibition of crimes against national security, has been one of the most controversial issues since the reunification of Hong Kong with Mainland China in 1997. Among the laws proposed to implement Article 23, the media were most concerned about the offences of handling seditious publications and unlawful disclosure of official secrets. There are worries among the media sector, as well as the legal and human rights groups, that the amendments would endanger the freedom of the press in Hong Kong. Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 is the basis (parent statute) of a security law proposed by the Hong Kong Government. ...
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China serves as the constitutional document of Hong Kong. ...
In this map of China, the light-coloured areas represent Mainland China, while yellow coloured area refers to Taiwan. ...
1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Sedition refers to a legal designation of non-overt conduct that is deemed by a legal authority as being acts of treason, and hence deserving of legal punishment. ...
Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public speech for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ...
In particular, the media sector had argued strongly for a "public interest defence" under the Official Secrets Ordinance (Cap. 521), the secrecy law of Hong Kong inherited from the United Kingdom, but the Government considered the defence not necessary and refused to add the defence. After a huge protest of up to 500,000 people in Hong Kong on July 1, 2003 to voice dissatisfaction against the legislation and the Government, the defence was finally accepted by the Government. Nevertheless, in a few days, the Government was forced to postpone the second and third readings of the Bill due to the resignation of Mr James Tien, Chairman of Liberal Party, from the Executive Council. Finally, on 5 September 2003, the Government announced withdrawal of the Bill. In the context of secrecy laws, a public interest defense is a defense which allows a defendant who disclosed classified or protected information to avoid criminality, if he can establish that the public interest in disclosure of the information outweighs the public interest in non-disclosure. ...
In most litigation under the common law adversarial system the defendant, perhaps with the assistance of counsel, may allege or present defenses (or defences) in order to avoid liability, civil or criminal. ...
July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 183 days remaining. ...
A second reading is the state of the legislative process where a draft of a bill is read a second time. ...
A third reading is the stage of a legislative process in which a bill is read with all amendments and given final approval by a legislative body. ...
The Honourable James Tien Pei-chun GBS JP (田北俊) (born January 8, 1947) is currently the Chairman of the Liberal Party (LP), a pro-business political party in Hong Kong, and a Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (LegCo). ...
Liberal Party (自由黨) is a political party in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Peoples Republic of China. ...
The Executive Council (ExCo) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China is an organ in the Executive branch of the political structure of Hong Kong. ...
September 5 is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years). ...
2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Naked famous actress photos Some naked photos of a famous actress were distributed in East Magazine, and in Three Weekly a week later. The photos were claimed to be taken in early 90's when that actress was kidnapped. Though people from all social strata have shouted themselves hoarse to call on citizens to boycott the publications, many bought and read them even while condemning them for corrupting public morals; those issues of East Magazine and Three Weekly have sold very well. Such inconsistent behaviour has led to a situation qualified as deplorable by many. Media ethics were raised as a hot topic; people investing in or working for "vile" publications were much criticized. As the public pressure grew, East Magazine finally closed down.
Overview - Daily newspapers: 52 (25 Chinese-language dailies, 4 English-language dailies, 8 English-language newspapers publishing 5 or 6 days a week, 7 bilingual dailies and 5 newspapers in other languages)
- Free-to-air commercial TV companies: 2
- Subscription TV licensees: 5
- Non-domestic television programme licensees: 12
- Government radio-television station: 1
- Commercial radio stations: 2
(by the end of year 2002)
Media Institutes TV: Television is a telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures and sound over a distance. ...
See also: ATV logo used in early 1990s Asia Television Limited (ATV) (亞洲電視有限公司) is the first television station in Hong Kong, established on May 29, 1957. ...
Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) (香港電å°); is a public corporation, operated as a department of the SAR government and headed by Mr. ...
Television Broadcasts Limited (HKSE: 0511), commonly known as TVB, is the first over-the-air commercial television station in Hong Kong. ...
Radio There are two free-to-air television services in Hong Kong: Asia Television Ltd (ATV): operates one English-language (World) and one Chinese-language (Home) channel. ...
Pay Television Services in Hong Kong Hong Kong Cable Television Ltd (CableTV): controlled by Wharf Holdings, operates over eighty channels with programmes broadcast in English language, Cantonese, Putonghua and other languages. ...
Newspapers Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) (香港電å°); is a public corporation, operated as a department of the SAR government and headed by Mr. ...
Commercial Radio Hong Kong is one of the two commercial radio broadcasting company in Hong Kong (the other being Metro Radio). ...
See: Newspapers of Hong Kong The newspapers of Hong Kong can be categorized by language: // English-language newspapers South China Morning Post The Standard (formerly, HK-iMail, and earlier Hong Kong Standard) Eastern Express (now defunct) The Sunday Examiner The former two English publications are regarded as neutral towards the government and are mostly serious...
Magazines This article is about the magazine as a published medium. ...
Internet media These are non-profit and unregulated internet radio stations operated by hobbyists and non-profit organisations. Most of these stations tend to be quite political and influential, although a variety of apolitical programs are gradually appearing. This article needs cleanup. ...
Cover of the first issue on 29-10-1992 East Week (東周刊) is a Hong Kong-based weekly Chinese language magazine which had been formally established by Oriental Group on October 29, 1992 and sold to the Emperor Group in September 2001. ...
Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER, 遠東經濟評論) is unusual among English language Asian news magazines in having been founded and developed entirely in Asia. ...
Him is a villain character of the cartoon series Powerpuff Girls. ...
HK Magazine is a free weekly English-language magazine available at certain premises in Hong Kong. ...
Next Magazine (壹週刊) is a Chinese language weekly general interest magazine based in Hong Kong. ...
The Mirror is a former and currently informal name for the British tabloid newspaper The Daily Mirror an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone; see The Mirror (The Twilight Zone) a film by Andrei Tarkovsky This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that...
Public space media 1. ...
Media organizations Global China Group Holdings Limited (泛華集團) is a Hong Kong listed company. ...
Next Media Limited (壹傳媒有限公司) is a publisher in Hong Kong, Peoples Republic of China. ...
Videotage (literally merging the two concepts of Video and Montage) is a non-profit interdisciplinary artist collective, founded in 1985 which focuses on the development of video and new media art in Hong Kong. ...
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