THE MEDIA
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Asia. Some 350 copies of newspapers are printed for every 1,000 people in Hong Kong. Only Japan exceeds this figure with 490 copies to every 1,000 people. The world average is 102 to every 1,000 people. Six English language and 63 Chinese language newspapers are published each day. Generally, the price of newspapers is below $1.
Hong Kong is the base of Southeast Asian operations for many newspapers, magazines and news agencies. International news agencies represented include United Press Interna- tional, Associated Press, Agence France Presse, and Reuters.
Several organisations represent and cater for people working in the news media in Hong Kong. The Foreign Correspondents' Club, Hong Kong, comprises correspondent, journalist and associate members. Its professional activities include lectures, news conferences, briefings and film shows.
The Hong Kong Press Club, located in Wan Chai, provides a variety of facilities for journalists. The office of the Hong Kong Journalists' Association (HKJA) is based at the Hong Kong Press Club. The HKJA seeks to raise professional standards by pressing for better training, pay and conditions in journalism, as well as counselling its members in the event of disputes with employers.
Chinese and English language newspapers are represented by the Newspaper Society of Hong Kong, which has 24 members and four associated members. It is empowered to act in matters affecting the interests of local newspapers, the society or its members.
There is also a Hong Kong office of the Press Foundation of Asia whose objective is to help develop and expand the press in Asia. The PFA is an association of Asian publishers and editors representing some 300 publications. It co-ordinates the functions of seven national press institutes from New Delhi to Korea.
It is generally recognised that the standard of training for journalists in Hong Kong must be improved. Following recommendations by the Hong Kong Training Council, a training board set up by the Governor is examining manpower training in journalism.
Sound Broadcasting
There are nine radio channels in Hong Kong. Five are operated by Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) the publicly-financed station, three by Commercial Radio and one by the British Forces Broadcasting Service.
In April, RTHK became the first station to introduce 24-hour broadcasting in both English and Chinese. The move proved extremely popular, and looks like becoming a permanent feature of Hong Kong's fast developing media industry. Both English and Chinese services provide round-the-clock news and are now better equipped to provide emergency information during typhoons or in the event of natural disasters.
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By moving to 24-hour broadcasting the government station's four main channels in- creased output to some 830 hours a week of separate programming, an increase of nearly per cent. In addition, Radio 5, an FM channel, broadcasts for 20 hours each day to provide a relay for the BBC World Service. During the day, the same channel caters for a number of minority-interest programmes in various Chinese dialects.
Despite problems in recruiting, staff of the RTHK newsroom continued to provide a highly informative daily news-interview programme, in addition to normal news bulletins and summaries in both English and Chinese. During the year, the Chinese morning news programme was extended from half an hour to one full hour and from five to six days. each week. Both the English and Chinese programmes contain a balanced mixture of news, current affairs interviews, sports and finance, as well as short features.
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