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    Philippine Lawmakers Deny Top Broadcaster New Licence

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    Philippine lawmakers denied ABS-CBN's application for a new 25-year broadcast license, forcing the country's largest media network to remain shut down. The vote was seen as a blow to press freedom and an apparent concession to President Duterte's pledge to block the network's license renewal. ABS-CBN's shutdown resulted in the loss of over 11,000 jobs and denied millions of Filipinos their most-watched news source. Critics warned the move restricts media freedom in the Philippines and could keep ABS-CBN off the air until the end of Duterte's term in 2022.

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    Philippine Lawmakers Deny Top Broadcaster New Licence

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    galatians
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    Philippine lawmakers denied ABS-CBN's application for a new 25-year broadcast license, forcing the country's largest media network to remain shut down. The vote was seen as a blow to press freedom and an apparent concession to President Duterte's pledge to block the network's license renewal. ABS-CBN's shutdown resulted in the loss of over 11,000 jobs and denied millions of Filipinos their most-watched news source. Critics warned the move restricts media freedom in the Philippines and could keep ABS-CBN off the air until the end of Duterte's term in 2022.

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    Philippine news

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    Reuters

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    Philippine lawmakers denied ABS-CBN's application for a new 25-year broadcast license, forcing the country's largest media network to remain shut down. The vote was seen as a blow to press freedom and an apparent concession to President Duterte's pledge to block the network's license renewal. ABS-CBN's shutdown resulted in the loss of over 11,000 jobs and denied millions of Filipinos their most-watched news source. Critics warned the move restricts media freedom in the Philippines and could keep ABS-CBN off the air until the end of Duterte's term in 2022.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    14 views2 pages

    Philippine Lawmakers Deny Top Broadcaster New Licence

    Uploaded by

    galatians
    Philippine lawmakers denied ABS-CBN's application for a new 25-year broadcast license, forcing the country's largest media network to remain shut down. The vote was seen as a blow to press freedom and an apparent concession to President Duterte's pledge to block the network's license renewal. ABS-CBN's shutdown resulted in the loss of over 11,000 jobs and denied millions of Filipinos their most-watched news source. Critics warned the move restricts media freedom in the Philippines and could keep ABS-CBN off the air until the end of Duterte's term in 2022.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Philippine lawmakers deny top

    broadcaster new licence


    AFP News19 hours ago

    ABS-CBN's broadcast news coverage had been watched by millions daily before regulators forced it off
    the air

    Philippine lawmakers refused Friday to issue a new operating licence for the
    country's broadcasting giant ABS-CBN, in the latest blow to media outlets critical
    of President Rodrigo Duterte's policies.
    The lower house committee voted 70-11 to reject ABS-CBN's application for
    another 25-year franchise, after it was forced off the air in May over a stalled
    renewal of its previous licence, which Duterte had pledged to block.
    The results of the vote -- slammed by critics as an assault on press freedom --
    could potentially keep the radio, TV and internet giant from broadcasting until the
    end of Duterte's term in 2022.
    ABS-CBN president Carlo Katigbak said the company was "deeply hurt" by the
    decision.
    "We believe that we have been rendering service that is meaningful and valuable
    to the Filipino public," Katigbak said in a statement.
    "We hope to find other ways to achieve our mission."
    Hundreds of ABS-CBN employees, including some of its biggest stars, protested
    outside Congress on Friday in a last-ditch effort to convince lawmakers to vote in
    their favour.
    About 11,000 jobs could be lost due to the shutdown, ABS-CBN said previously.
    During more than a dozen hearings lasting over a hundred hours, Duterte allies
    alleged ABS-CBN's honorary chairman and top shareholder Eugenio Lopez was
    an American citizen which disqualified him from owning a Philippine media
    company.
    They also accused the network of tax evasion, interfering in elections and
    abusing employees' rights.
    ABS-CBN denies the allegations.
    "Today's vote... is an astounding display of obsequious behaviour by
    Congressional representatives, kowtowing to Duterte by agreeing to seriously
    limit media freedom in the Philippines," Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for
    Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
    - 'Dark day' -
    The Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines said it was a
    "profoundly dark day for journalists" in the country.
    Duterte had regularly targeted ABS-CBN with accusations that it had failed to air
    his ads during the 2016 presidential election despite accepting payment to do so.
    It had appeared the media powerhouse would get its licence renewal after
    publicly apologising to the president earlier this year.
    Duterte's spokesman Harry Roque said the committee's decision was the "sole
    prerogative of Congress".
    "Much as we want to work with the aforesaid media network, we have to abide
    by the resolution of the House committee," he said.
    ABS-CBN's broadcast news coverage had been watched by millions daily before
    regulators forced it off the air.
    The network has challenged the order in the Supreme Court, arguing it curtailed
    freedom of speech guaranteed by the Philippine constitution. The court has not
    ruled on the case.
    ABS-CBN is allowed to file a fresh licence application but its success would
    require members of Congress, whose terms expire in 2022, to change their
    minds.
    Duterte is notorious for tangling with media outlets critical of his policies,
    including a drug war that has killed thousands.
    Journalist Maria Ressa, an outspoken critic, faces up to six years in prison after
    she was convicted of cyber libel last month.
    Her website Rappler is also battling a government closure effort.

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