The banning of the Chinese state television broadcaster from Britain has a delivered a strong message that state propaganda will not be tolerated in the UK, leading media experts said.
The decision by television regulator the Office of Communications (Ofcom) makes it possible that other state sponsored broadcasters could be targeted, such as Russia Today.
With the election of US President Joe Biden, there is greater appetite in Britain to speak out against state-sponsored channels that release questionable news highly partial to their countries.
Following endless pro-Chinese government reporting, Ofcom acted decisively to shut down CGTN on Thursday after its investigation found that the network was editorially controlled by the Chinese Communist party.
"This was a precise complaint on the basis of which Ofcom could legitimately and meticulously conclude that CGTN did not have the editorial independence which licensees require in the UK," leading media commentator Prof Tim Luckhurst told The National. "It's very clear that China is a surveillance state beyond George Orwell's imaginings and this was an egregious breach of licence. Britain is not seeking to be confrontational but it has retaliated effectively."
The CGTN channel has also been accused of forcing people, including human rights activists, to make confessions on air, reading from scripts provided by the Chinese authorities.
Ofcom’s finding is damaging to China’s state television broadcaster, which had planned to use London as a base to launch major international news operations.
British broadcasting laws require the body that holds the broadcast licence to have control over broadcasts, but CGTN’s licence holder, Star China Media Limited, does not have editorial responsibility for its content. Ofcom therefore ruled it cannot retain the licence.
The move was welcomed by former foreign minister Tobias Ellwood, MP, a strong critic of China’s undermining of the international rules-based system.
"What we've witnessed is China advancing its ability to communicate well beyond the region, so it's really good to see the authorities taking a more robust stance on China as it tries to rewrite international norms and standards," he told The National. "If this is your diet of news that you're receiving you're only going to get China's view of the world and China's interpretation. Freedom of the press is so important that it cannot be controlled by the state in the way that we see it with China."
His views were echoed by Prof Luckhurst, of Durham University, who while praising the great history and culture of the Chinese people labelled their government “a totalitarian regime, which has extraordinarily committed ambitions to extend its power and to assert itself in the world”.
The former editor of The Scotsman newspaper added: "There is widespread rejoicing amongst journalists and democrats throughout the rest of the world to see Britain actually sticking to its principles and applying a sensible approach to those who seek to abuse the values of Western democracy, to exploit our liberalism and to impose their poison on us."
Ofcom revoked the licence of the Iranian state broadcaster Press TV in 2012 for breaching the Communications Act after it found the channel had editorial oversight from Tehran, again in breach of broadcasting licence rules in the UK.
However, in 2017 Ofcom cleared Al Jazeera of anti-Semitism and breaching impartiality rules after the channel made an undercover investigation that found an Israeli embassy official plotting to “take down” British MPs seen as unfriendly towards Israel.
It is not known yet if Ofcom, following the China ruling, is set to take a closer look at the Russia Today channel broadcast from London for its alleged ties to Moscow.
“Russia Today has shown that if it has editorial independence then the editor is a very determined supporter of Vladimir Putin,” said Prof Luckhurst. “It’s entirely unlikely to genuinely have any such independence and I would not be remotely surprised if Ofcom moves against it as well, as Russia Today remains on air despite multiple breaches.”
It is understood that Ofcom has previously looked at RT’s fitness to hold a licence but, although it accepts that the station is funded by the Russian state, the licence holder, TV Novosti, is not controlled by a political party.
Ofcom would not comment on whether RT will be investigated further.
Roll of honour 2019-2020
Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Hurricanes
Runners up: Bahrain
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Bahrain
Runners up: UAE Premiership
UAE Premiership
}Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes
UAE Division One
Winners: Abu Dhabi Saracens
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes II
UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
Runners up: RAK Rugby
THE BIO
Ms Davison came to Dubai from Kerala after her marriage in 1996 when she was 21-years-old
Since 2001, Ms Davison has worked at many affordable schools such as Our Own English High School in Sharjah, and The Apple International School and Amled School in Dubai
Favourite Book: The Alchemist
Favourite quote: Failing to prepare is preparing to fail
Favourite place to Travel to: Vienna
Favourite cuisine: Italian food
Favourite Movie : Scent of a Woman
What is a Ponzi scheme?
A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance
%3Cp%3E-%20Diriyah%E2%80%99s%201.9km%20King%20Salman%20Boulevard%2C%20a%20Parisian%20Champs-Elysees-inspired%20avenue%2C%20is%20scheduled%20for%20completion%20in%202028%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20The%20Royal%20Diriyah%20Opera%20House%20is%20expected%20to%20be%20completed%20in%20four%20years%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20Diriyah%E2%80%99s%20first%20of%2042%20hotels%2C%20the%20Bab%20Samhan%20hotel%2C%20will%20open%20in%20the%20first%20quarter%20of%202024%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20On%20completion%20in%202030%2C%20the%20Diriyah%20project%20is%20forecast%20to%20accommodate%20more%20than%20100%2C000%20people%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20The%20%2463.2%20billion%20Diriyah%20project%20will%20contribute%20%247.2%20billion%20to%20the%20kingdom%E2%80%99s%20GDP%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20It%20will%20create%20more%20than%20178%2C000%20jobs%20and%20aims%20to%20attract%20more%20than%2050%20million%20visits%20a%20year%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20About%202%2C000%20people%20work%20for%20the%20Diriyah%20Company%2C%20with%20more%20than%2086%20per%20cent%20being%20Saudi%20citizens%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How Voiss turns words to speech
The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen
The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser
This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen
A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB
The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free
Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards
Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser
Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages
At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness
More than 90 per cent live in developing countries
The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device
More from UAE Human Development Report:
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
'The%20Alchemist's%20Euphoria'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Kasabian%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EColumbia%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE BIO
Favourite car: Koenigsegg Agera RS or Renault Trezor concept car.
Favourite book: I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes or Red Notice by Bill Browder.
Biggest inspiration: My husband Nik. He really got me through a lot with his positivity.
Favourite holiday destination: Being at home in Australia, as I travel all over the world for work. It’s great to just hang out with my husband and family.
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Zayed Sustainability Prize
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
