Media organisations and academics have urged TV news anchor Sorayuth Suthasanajinda to quit his role after he was found guilty in a Criminal Court case involving an MCOT advertising revenue scam.
The Criminal Court on Monday initially sentenced Sorayuth to 20 years for cheating MCOT out of more than 138 million baht in advertising revenue in 2005 and 2006.
However, the jail term was commuted to 13 years and four months as a result of his testimony. He was released on bail and banned from leaving the country without court permission.
Thai Broadcast Journalists Association (TBJA) president Thepchai Yong said Monday it is obvious Sorayuth should step down from his job as a news show host to demonstrate responsibility following the court's ruling.
This case serves as a lesson for members of the media to work transparently, he said. If the media wants government officials, and politicians to maintain high standards, the media itself must hold itself to a high standard, too, he said.
Thai Journalists Association (TJA) vice-president Manop Thip-Osod said Sorayuth should review his role. "The media profession's role is to fight incorrectness and right the wrongs," Mr Manop said.
Mana Trirayaphiwat, dean of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce's communication arts faculty, also shared the journalist organisations' view that Sorayuth should step down from his media role to uphold professional ethics.
Following the court's ruling, it was reported that management at Channel 3 called an urgent meeting to consider how to proceed.
The news talk programme Rueng Den Yen Nee (The Top Story This Evening), hosted by Sorayuth, was dropped Monday evening.
The programme was replaced by news reports which covered the court's ruling.
The case was brought to court by the National Anti-Corruption Commission which bought malfeasance charges against Sorayuth and others.
The Criminal Court on Monday also convicted Rai Som Co founder and managing director Sorayuth, and Rai Som employee Montha Theeradet, for supporting official malfeasance.
Montha received the same sentence as Sorayuth.
The Criminal Court also sentenced a former employee of MCOT Plc, Pichapa Iamsa-ard, to 30 years in prison in absentia and fined Rai Som 80,000 baht. Pichapa's sentence was commuted to 20 years.
The defendants bribed Pichapa to conceal a 138-million-baht advertising fee Sorayuth's firm owed to the state-run media organisation.
Their actions were in violation of sections 6, 8, and 11 of the 1959 Act on Offences Committed by State Officials.
The court heard that from Feb 4, 2005 to April 28, 2006, Sorayuth's company paid Pichapa 658,996 baht.
During 2005-2006, Rai Som had a contract with MCOT to co-produce the Kui Kui Khao news talk programme and was allocated advertising slots of between two and five minutes during the programme.
The court was told Pichapa used correction fluid to erase entries detailing the advertising times of Rai Som.
This caused damages worth 138.8 million baht to MCOT and enabled Rai Som to withhold advertising revenue that was due to MCOT, the court was told.
The Criminal Court later released Sorayuth and the other defendants present on 2 million baht bail each.
They are required to report to the court every 30 days. Isara News Centre reported that the management at Channel 3, where Sorayuth's TV programmes are broadcast, said the court ruling was a personal matter.
It said the issue would not affect the channel's normal television programme schedule.
News programmes produced by Rai Som Co -- Rueng Lao Chao Nee (Monday-Friday), and Rueng Lao Sao Arthit on Saturday and Sunday -- will continue to be broadcast as usual, although it is up to Rai Som to decide whether to change the TV show host, Isara News quoted Channel 3 management as saying.