My TakeDismal picture for future of obsolete TVB
- Hong Kong’s dominant free broadcaster may blame social unrest for its losses and lay-offs, but its decline is inevitable with the failure to keep up with high-quality television dramas elsewhere and popularity of online platforms
In laying off 350 employees, or 10 per cent of its workforce, TVB naturally blames its losses on the social unrest of the past six months.
After all, of all the mainstream media companies in Hong Kong, it has been the most picked on by protesters. But that’s far from the whole picture when it comes to the decline of this once great broadcaster.
Its news reporters and cameramen have been attacked. Several big-name advertisers have withdrawn under pressure from threats of boycott because many protesters claim, falsely I believe, that TVB’s news coverage has been too biased in favour of the government and Beijing.
Its news department has not been more biased than most; since the summer many leading news outlets have openly supported one side or the other of the political divide. If anything, I would think TVB news coverage has been actually more neutral.
Its real sin is that it has been far more willing to broadcast protesters and rioters attacking bystanders, including an elderly man being killed by a thrown brick and another man being set on fire.