萬國法律事務所

Recently, Director Su Chi-Cheng of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in Osaka committed suicide, apparently as a result of harsh criticism directed at him for allegedly failing to provide sufficient assistance in the evacuations of Taiwanese nationals trapped at Kansai Airport due to strong winds and rain brought by Typhoon Jebi. This criticism was maliciously spread online, accompanied by false reports that Chinese authorities had sent buses to evacuate Chinese nationals stuck at the airport. The criticism has been deemed "fake news" and is considered to be one of the factors responsible for Su's death.

Speaking about the malicious spreading of fake news, the National Communications Commission (NCC) recently stated, "the malicious spreading of false and inaccurate news may adversely affect societal stability, especially when widely disseminated through the transmission of broadcast media, and may also jeopardize Taiwan's democracy."

Due to the need to protect the freedom of the press, there have not yet been any cases where a reporter has been fined for failing to verify the facts in a news report. However, in order to prevent the aforesaid adverse impacts, when deemed necessary, NCC will from now on require satellite / radio / television broadcast media to attend training sessions regarding internal control mechanisms and journalistic ethics. If such satellite / radio / television media fail to properly verify the facts of a report and as a result cause harm to the public interest, the maximum amount of a fine that may be imposed will be as high as two million Taiwan dollars per Article 53 of the Satellite Broadcasting Act and Article 43 of the Radio and Television Act.

The relevant regulatory authority, the Ministry of Culture, is authorized to handle any publication media violations of laws and regulations, such as the Protection of Children and Youth Welfare and Rights Act.