Channel 3’s handling of Sorrayuth case ‘unethical’
CHANNEL 3 did not breach broadcasting rules by allowing well-known TV host Sorrayuth Suthassanachinda to continue working at the station after he was convicted in a bribery scandal but it did appear to violate media ethics.
That is the opinion of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission’s subcommittee on TV programming and scheduling.
Lt-General Peerapong Manakit, chairman of the subcommittee, commented yesterday after meeting with representatives from Bangkok Entertainment Company, the operator of Channel 3, and media scholars.
Peerapong said Channel 3 was one of the country’s most influential media organisations so it should strictly comply with media ethics and act socially responsible.
He said in a bid to prevent a repeat of the mistake, he would propose the drafting of a new rule designed to shield digital terrestrial TV broadcasters from unethical business influences.
He said if the NBTC’s Broadcasting Committee approved the proposal, representatives from professional media associations, media scholars and related parties in the media industry would be invited to outline the draft, which would aim to terminate the blurred line between business owners and media professionals.
Sorrayuth’s case is an example of that blurred line because he was a TV host while serving as managing director of the company Rai Som, which co-produce news TV programmes for Channel 3.
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