我到美國接受了星島中文電台的訪問，當中談及了公民抗命、DQ事件、民主自決等等，最後節目被改名（刪去了「民主自決」的字眼），甚至被下架。自今，星島中文電台仍未有解釋原因。
節目內容和編排，包括解釋民主自決的理念，也是電台一方建議的。如果星島因為政治敏感而將節目下架，為何當初要如此建議？再者，每個人也有談及自己政治主張的權利和自由，也有權不同意或作出批評，作為媒體，何必如此懼怕，要自我審查？
星島中文電台必須盡快清楚解釋，及把節目重新上載網頁，我們需要的是媒體，不是政權的喉舌。
(中文版本在英文版本下方)
==== Press Release: A protest against political censorship by Sing Tao Chinese Radio (AM1400) ====
Agnes Chow 周庭, who was disqualified in the Hong Kong LegCo by-election in January this year, was invited by Stanford Hong Kong Student Association to attend the Cantonese Awareness Week in mid April. Northern California Hong Kong Club had coordinated with the hosts of a current affairs talk show 焦點訪談 of Sing Tao Chinese Radio (AM1400) to arrange Agnes Chow and another ex-Scholarism member appearing in the 4/17 (Tuesday) show.
Everything went smoothly and there were good interaction among the host, the guests and the audience. As usual, the program recording was archived in the show web site (http://www.chineseradio.com/…/%E7%AF%80%E7%9B%AE…/cm-f09-10/) in the same afternoon.
Alerted by a friend, however, we noticed that the recording of this particular episode has gone through sequences of editing and censorship afterward.
1) The title of the episode has changed from "04/17/2018 香港眾志常委周庭闡述香港自決主張" to "04/17/2018 訪問香港眾志常委周庭".
2) Starting from 4/19 (Thu) afternoon or earlier, the link of this episode no longer works while all other older and newer episodes work just fine. (See the attached screen capture: singtao_0421.png.)
In fact, we found out only the MP3 file of this episode (http://archive.chineseradio.com/Archive/C20180417_09-10.mp3) is removed or renamed. The episode one day before (http://archive.chineseradio.com/Archive/C20180416_09-10.mp3) and one day after (http://archive.chineseradio.com/Archive/C20180418_09-10.mp3) are still accessible.
3) We notified the host on 4/19 (Thu) about this issue. Later on, we filed a formal complaint through its official contacts with email and online message board. Not only do we not get any official response, but the operation to block this episode also seems to step up.
4) Starting from 4/23 (Mon) afternoon or earlier, even the web page of the whole talk show archive is removed (screen capture: singtao_0423.png) and a new archive page is created (screen capture: singtao_0424.png). In this new page, however, the 4/17 episode disappears and all other episodes have no title. Besides, this talk show is missing in the archive page of all cantonese programs (screen capture: singtao_cantonese_0424.png). All these appear to be a cover-up for the removal of the episode involing Agnes Chow.
So far, we do not receive any official explanation. Based on the sequences of events, the only logical conclusion is that the blocking is an intended political censorship and not a technical error.
Let us be clear that we had had good working relationship with the hosts in the past. We appreciated their openness and professionalism to invite different spectrum of view points to their program.
We suspect this post-censorship is an intervention from the senior management of the Sing Tao Group, as the political leaning of the owner and the editor in chief of the Sing Tao Group is well known.
We have to ask the Sing Tao senior management:
- Why are you so afraid of a 21-year-old activist has to say?
- The director of HK ETO in San Francisco was willing to attend the panel discussion in Stanford on the very same day (4/17) to debate Agnes Chow head on. Where is your courage?
Although the majority of the mass media in Hong Kong has been influenced directly or indirectly by mainland China or pro-establishment interest, it is a whole different matter when such political censorship happens in the United States. According to the Foreign Agents Registration Act, an organization and persons have to disclose the related activities and finances if they act "at the order, request, or under the direction or control" of a foreign power. As such, we would like to remind our media friends in the United States about the potential consequence of your action.
Northern California Hong Kong Club
2017-04-24
[Background information]
梁建鋒 (Editor in Chief of Sing Tao Group): 百無小政客
https://www.singtaousa.com/…/481534-%E7%99%BE%E7%84%A1%E5%…/
维基百科: 何柱國 (Owner of Sing Tao Group)
https://zh.wikipedia.org/…/%E4%BD%95%E6%9F%B1%E5%9C%8B_(%E5…
Foreign Agents Registration Act
https://en.wikipedia.org/wi…/Foreign_Agents_Registration_Act
_________________________________________________
==== 4月17日是怎樣被星島中文電台消失的 ====
今年一月在香港立法會補選中被奪去參選資格的香港眾志常委周庭，應史丹福大學香港同學會的邀請，到訪灣區參加四月中旬的廣東話週。北加洲香港會協調安排了周庭與另一位前學民思潮成員，於4月17日（星期二）在星島中文電台（AM1400）「焦點訪談」節目中接受現場訪問。
訪問過程順利，主持人、來賓和聽眾互動良好。當日節目重温一如既往，當天下午即存檔在節目網站（http://www.chineseradio.com/…/%E7%AF%80%E7%9B%AE…/cm-f09-10/）。
然而，一位朋友稍後注意到當曰節目重温連結出現了問題，她把這事情告知我們。我們開始跟進，發現該連結經過一系列的編輯和疑似審查：
1）當日節目重温標題，由原先的“04/17/2018 香港眾志常委周庭闡述香港自決主張”，後被改為“04/17/2018 訪問香港眾志常委周庭”。
2）從4月19日（星期四）下午或更早的時候開始， 當日節目重温連結失效，然而所有其他較新或較舊的節目重温連結仍正常工作。（參閱屏幕截圖：singtao_0421.png）
我們發現只有這一集的MP3語音文件（http://archive.chineseradio.com/Archive/C20180417_09-10.mp3）被刪除或重新命名。 之前一天（http://archive.chineseradio.com/Archive/C20180416_09-10.mp3）和之後的一天（http://archive.chineseradio.com/Archive/C20180418_09-10.mp3）的文件則完好無缺。
3）4月19日（星期四）下午，我們通知星島中文電台主持人有關事宜。之後我們再依正式途徑，用電郵和網上留言投訴。我們不但沒有得到回覆，星島對該節目的屏閉動作反而更進一步。
4）從4月23日（週一）下午或更早的時候開始，整個「焦點訪談」節目的原有重温網頁亦被删除（參閱屏幕截圖：singtao_0423.png），而新建了一個重温網頁（參閱屏幕截圖：singtao_0424.png）。在這個新的網頁中，4月17日消失了，而其他日子亦沒有題目。另外在羅列所有粤語節目的網頁中 (singtao_cantonese_0424.png)，「焦點訪談」亦不見了。種種動作，似乎是對周庭訪問重温被消失作掩飾。
到目前為止，我們沒有收到星島中文電台的任何解釋。根據事件的發展時序，唯一合乎邏輯的結論是，封鎖是有意的政治審查，而不是技術上的錯誤。
我們一直與「焦點訪談」節目主持人有著良好的工作關係。我們讚賞他們以專業及開放的態度，邀請不同的觀點的來賓到他們的節目發表言論。
我們認為這次審查是源於管理高層的介入，星島集團主席和總編輯的政治傾向是眾所周知的。
我們必須問星島集團管理高層：
- 為什麼你們如此害怕一個21歲的年青人的言論？
- 舊金山香港經貿辦主任，就在同一天（4月17日）願意出席史丹福大學的香港問題討論會，面對面與周庭同場討論。為何你們沒有這個勇氣？
儘管香港傳媒近年常因中國大陸或親建制勢力的影響，而直接或間接的進行政治審查。但要在美國進行這樣的政治審查，則要面對一種完全不一樣的環境。根據美國“外國代理人註冊法”，如果一個組織和個人，在外國勢力的指揮或控制下行事，他們必須披露相關活動和財務聯繫。我們想提醒身在美國的媒體朋友，注意你們的行為可能引起的後果。
北加州香港會
2017年4月24日
