© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Comic and discuss present host Jon Stewart arrives on the pink carpet earlier than receiving the Mark Twain Prize For American Humor, at The Kennedy Middle in Washington, U.S., April 24 2022. REUTERS/Cheriss Might/File Photograph
By Patricia Zengerle and Michael Martina
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. lawmakers requested Apple Inc (NASDAQ:) to elucidate the abrupt finish of political comic Jon Stewart’s tv present on its streaming service, in line with a letter made public on Wednesday, citing issues that content material associated to China was behind the cancellation.
The New York Occasions reported final month that Stewart’s present on Apple’s streaming service was ending, the results of artistic variations. The newspaper mentioned Stewart advised members of his employees that potential present matters associated to China and synthetic intelligence had been inflicting concern to Apple executives.
Apple declined remark to the Occasions.
“While companies have the right to determine what content is appropriate for their streaming service, the coercive tactics of a foreign power should not be directly or indirectly influencing these determinations,” the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Home of Representatives’ Choose Committee on Competitors with the Chinese language Communist Get together mentioned within the letter to Apple Chief Government Tim Cook dinner.
The letter requested representatives of Apple for a briefing on its issues by Dec. 15, 2023. It mentioned the committee additionally anticipated to talk with representatives of Stewart.
“To reassure the creative community in light of these reports, we also respectfully request that Apple publicly commit that content that could be perceived as critical of the CCP or the PRC is welcome on Apple TV+ and other Apple services,” mentioned the letter, signed by the panel’s Republican chairperson, Consultant Michael Gallagher, and Consultant Raja Krishnamoorthi, the panel’s rating Democrat.
Representatives for Stewart and Apple didn’t reply to Reuters’ requests for remark.
The letter was launched forward of a dinner anticipated on Wednesday night time at which prime U.S. enterprise leaders had been to dine with Chinese language President Xi Jinping in San Francisco as he seeks to courtroom American firms and counter his nation’s current struggles to entice overseas funding.
The dinner on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Financial Cooperation (APEC) discussion board would comply with a day of talks between Xi and U.S. President Joe Biden, aimed toward stabilizing fraught ties between the world’s two largest economies.
The Home committee has made China’s controls on media a spotlight of its work.
U.S. lawmakers have lengthy expressed issues about potential Chinese language authorities censorship given the ruling Communist Get together’s strict media controls. The priority is especially acute for Hollywood movies, as some studios have altered or self-censored scripts to appease Chinese language authorities minders and acquire entry to the nation’s market.
