A government plan to set up a panel to review public broadcasting policy has been delayed.
Director of broadcasting Chu Pui-hing said he had been expecting the government to announce who would sit on the panel yesterday and had only been told on Monday of the delay.
News of the review has raised fears for RTHK's editorial independence. The panel is said to be dominated by senior media professionals who have no public broadcasting background.
Speaking after an academic seminar, Mr Chu confirmed he had been told about the proposal to set up the panel last week but had no further details. He said he did not want to speculate on the reason for the delay but dismissed concerns that the committee was a step to tighten control over RTHK.
'Strictly speaking, it's not a review of RTHK, it's about broadcasting policy in general,' he said. 'My feeling is that it's not targeting RTHK. Our response is positive and we hope to participate in the process. We do have expectations.'
He hoped the panel would include professionals and academics who specialised in public broadcasting.