Liberty Times: Beware of China's attempts to manipulate Taiwan's media The chief of Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation is visiting China at the head of a delegation of Taiwanese media executives with the hope of promoting press exchanges with China.

China does not have press freedom, and Taiwan's press freedom will be downgraded from 36th spot to 59th worldwide next year, according to a rating conducted by Reporters Sans Frontieres.

So what is the purpose of Taiwanese journalists visiting China? To prepare them for the country's further downgrading in ranks of press freedom? Taiwan has allowed Chinese reporters to be stationed in Taiwan to cover stories about the country, only to find them skewing their stories about Taiwan to serve China's political purposes.

China's leaders have claimed that they will step up penetration of Taiwan's mass media to sell China's political schemes.

Their trick is beginning to work, as some local TV channels broadcast live Beijing's Oct. 1 National Day military parade.

No government ought to be without censors, and a free press is obliged to monitor the government. It is pointless to promote press exchanges with Beijing before the press in China becomes an independent fourth estate.

We have to caution our Taiwan press colleagues to guard against China's plot to use them and not allow themselves to be debased as China's mouthpiece.

Apple Daily: Ex-president's mess-up, people's disaster Ma Yung-cheng, the former deputy chief aide to ex-President Chen Shui-bian, said in an interview with a local biweeky that Chen was wrong to transfer huge amounts of funds overseas and transferring them among various bank accounts, and also wrong in failing to address the problem after learning that his wife had stashed huge funds overseas without his knowledge.

Ma said he could not believe by any stretch of the imagination that Chen and his family members had accumulated such a big fortune, and said Chen should separate himself from his family members to make them realize what a big mistake they made.

Ma expressed regret that the Democratic Progressive Party's entire legacy after eight years in power is a "mess-up." We have to regret that the people have been left to clean up Chen's mess. However, Chen lacks the stuff of a head of state, but it was the people of Taiwan who swept him to the peak of power nonetheless and so they well deserve to carry the can.

United Daily News: 'Pseudo' DPP and KMT members A group of DPP followers branded DPP Chiayi County Magistrate Chen Ming-wen and DPP Chiayi County magistrate candidate Chang Hwa-kuan as pseudo DPP members because they formerly belonged to the Kuomintang.

Meanwhile, the DPP has voiced its support for Chang Chih-min in his bid for Hualien County magistrate, because Chang, who was groomed by incumbent KMT magistrate Hsieh Shen-shan as his successor, is running against Du Li-hua, the KMT's official candidate in Hualien.

We wouldn't be surprised if Hsieh, who was elected four years ago on the KMT ticket, cooperates with the DPP to help Chang Chih-min.

Furthermore, Hsinchu County Magistrate Cheng Yung-chin was expelled by the KMT for supporting in public a former member of the KMT who is running for the office in defiance of the party.

There are many individuals in Taiwan who are political turncoats.

They change their party affiliation not out of political beliefs but for personal interests.

China Times: Time for government to reorganize professional baseball league The image of Taiwan's professional baseball league has again been tarnished by a game-fixing scandal, for the fifth time in its 20-year history.

With only four teams in the league, it is on the brink of collapse as eight players of one leading team are reportedly involved in the scandal.

We urge the government to weigh in on reorganizing the league rather than letting it go down the drain after it is deserted by its fans, as it will deal a hard blow to the people's confidence and make them more cynical.

The government's involvement should come in the form of bringing the offenders to justice, encouraging large enterprises to sponsor professional baseball teams, and charge the president of the league with managing it.

The administration should consider the reorganization of the baseball league as part of its reform program for the whole country and make it one of the plan's most eye-catching elements.

(By Maubo Chang)