The French media authority, the Conseil supérieur de l’audiovisuel, announced today that it has approved the application for a broadcasting license for the Chinese official media, China Global Television Network (CGTN). This means that CGTN will be able to continue broadcasting in Europe, including the UK.
In early February, CGTN’s license was revoked by Ofcom for being under the control of the Chinese Communist Party.
However, in December CGTN began applying to the French Supreme Audiovisual Council (CSA) for legal recognition of its broadcasting capabilities. According to French regulations, two technical conditions must be met in order to obtain a broadcast license – it must be broadcast on a French satellite, known as Eutelsat, and it must send its signal from France; the content of the broadcast is not a censorship item.
Today’s review by France’s Conseil supérieur de l’audiovisuel confirmed that CGTN met both conditions and therefore approved its broadcasting capabilities.
In a press release, the Conseil supérieur de l’audiovisuel said that “as a result of the UK’s exit from the European Union and the withdrawal of the CGTN license by Ofcom under UK law, the head of CGTN approached the Conseil and requested certification that its broadcasts complied with European law and French norms. The French Supreme Audiovisual Council approved the request”.
“French law does not require prior authorisation for non-European channels broadcast via satellite that have the ability to broadcast in France. These channels are free to broadcast without prior verification, provided that they respect French audiovisual communication laws.”
However, in light of the controversy caused by CGTN, the French authorities stressed in a press release that “the CSA will pay particular attention to the compliance of CGTN with the regulatory requirements.
According to the “cross-border TV agreement” signed in 1989 within the Council of Europe, CGTN can continue to broadcast in the UK as long as it can apply for legal broadcasting rights from other signatory countries. Although the UK has left the EU, it is still a member of the Council of Europe, and Brexit does not affect the rights of foreign media to broadcast throughout Europe.
After a roundabout way, CGTN can still broadcast legally in Europe, including the UK.
But that doesn’t mean that CGTN can be unscrupulous. CGTN is now under the control of France’s Supreme Audiovisual Council, which has the power to order fines or suspensions when CGTN broadcasts content that incites hatred, violence or disrespect for human dignity and integrity. In the past, the CSA has ordered the suspension of the Middle East channel for serious mistakes.
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