press Release August 20, 2008 With the Beijing Olympics in Full-Swing and with Abundant Capacity on W5 Satellite The European Satellite Provider EUTELSAT Still Helps the Chinese regime Silence NTDTV (Brussels, August 20, 2008) Whilst the international media is complaining about Beijing's media censorship, Paris-based satellite corporation Eutelsat shut down New Tang Dynasty Television’s (NTDTV) broadcast to China via its W5 satellite -the only uncensored Chinese language TV channel that millions of people in China relied on since 2004 as the free alternative to the Communist state-controlled TV. The shutdown of NTDTV is a goal the Chinese regime has sought long and hard to achieve. Eutelsat and its chairman, Giuliano Berretta, delivered this to Beijing weeks before the Olympics. At the same time, Eutelsat continues to transmit China's state-controlled television channels to European nations. Eutelsat claimed the shutdown on June 16, 2008 was caused by a “power generator subsystem anomaly.” On July 10th, 2008, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) released the transcript of a recorded telephone conversation with a Eutelsat employee in Beijing, which revealed Eutelsat’s behind-the-scenes technical manipulations to shut down NTDTV and satisfy Beijing’s preconditions for major business. RSF stated that this material shows that the shutdown was "a premeditated, politically motivated decision violating the free flow of information and the convention under which Eutelsat operates." In its public statements, Eutelsat maintains that it is technically impossible to resume NTDTV's transmission. On August 18th, 2008, RSF stated that Eutelsat would be technically capable of restoring NTDTV’s broadcasts to Asia as the C2 transponder was vacated as of August 1st . On August 20th, 2008, International Federation of Journalists says that the so-called technical problems have evaporated and calls on Eutelsat to end bar on NTDTV. The European Union Charter that created Eutelsat required the practice of non-discrimination, equal access, and respect for media pluralism. Eutelsats own corporate description states: "For millions of homes, the Group's satellites are synonymous with openness and exchange." Mr. Berretta's action has put its international and European commitments in jeopardy. Berretta has once again jeopardized Eutelsat's credibility and business ethics. NTDTV invites media colleagues to learn about the latest developments and its impact on China’s press freedom. A Press briefing, given by NTDTV Director of Corporate Relations, Ms. Jenny Fang, will take place at Time : 11h30am, Thursday, August 21, 2008 Location: Room “Monnet”, Crown Plaza Europa Hotel Brussels Address: 107 Rue de la Loi, 1000 Brussels joined by International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Human Rights without Frontiers, etc. About NTDTV New Tang Dynasty TV (NTDTV) is an independent, nonprofit Chinese language TV broadcaster that also features programming in the English language. NTDTV began broadcasting via satellite in North America in February 2002and extended its 24/7 programming to cover Asia, Europe, and Australia in July 2003. Headquartered in New York City, NTDTV The network has gained an international reputation for its objective and timely reporting of political, economic, and cultural stories in the Chinese language, and for multi-faceted educational and entertainment programs that bring together the finest in both Eastern and Western cultures. From the news about the SARS Epidemic three weeks before Beijing announced, the true death total of the school children killed during the earthquake because of the collapse of shoddy school buildings, to extensive reporting of forbidden themes, such as the massacre on Tiananmen Square on July 4th 1989, NTDTV brings groundbreaking news and provides a platform for all voices inside and outside of China, all those suppressed by the Beijing regime. NTDTV is like a "breath of fresh air, and one feels as if being suffocated without it," a viewer from Mainland China said.