adminChina Central Television (CCTV) should open an English-language news channel in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region to tell China and the world the good story of the rise of Africa-China economic performance, Deputy Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa has said.
The deputy minister said this during a visit to the CCTV’s headquarters in Beijing on Tuesday this week as part of the Ministerial Workshop on Development and Management of Radio and TV media for developing countries.
“We are tired of media coverage that always reflects SADC as a region with endless calamities. We believe that if CCTV can establish a production centre in SADC, the Chinese and the people of the world will be able to see the SADC region and Africa as a continent of intelligent, hardworking, peace loving people.
“Through the CCTV production centre, the world will be shown the true picture of a continent with many economic opportunities,” she said.
Senator Mutsvangwa said media houses from countries with the history of colonising Africa are not reflecting the true stories of a continent which is marching forward towards prosperity.
CCTV deputy editor in chief, Zhu Tong, who is responsible for international programme distribution said: “We are ready to develop the TV industry through entering into media co-operation and collaboration with all media houses across the world.”
She said they had 42 channels, 25 free-to-air, while 17 are pay TV channels.
“We have more than 120 million viewers . . . we have two production centres in Kenya and Washington DC in the United States of America and we are planning to open another one in Europe and we also have 32 more bureaus in different countries,” she said.
Zhu said they have 20 000 employees in Beijing alone, adding that they have just moved into a state-of-the-art building. He described it as the second largest office building in the world, after the Pentagon — America’s Defence Department headquarters.
The Editorial Department Editor-in-Charge, Bruce He said as part of the China-Africa media co-operation, they have in the past assisted 16 African broadcasters including the South African Broadcasting Services (SABC) and the Zimbabwean Broadcasting Services (ZBC).
“We cherish a solid friendship with the broadcast media in the world more especially in Africa where we are planning to assist 16 more African broadcasters with equipment’s for free,” he said.
Tanzania government spokesperson Assah Mwambene said: “We would also appreciate it if CCTV can launch a Swahili-language channel for audiences in east and central Africa to broadcast news covering various social areas of China, and profoundly introducing the successful experiences of China’s economic development.
CCTV was established in 1958 as Beijing TV station, but it was renamed CCTV on May 1, 1978. — Manica Post/SAnews.gov.za.
Online Reporter