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THE EUROPEAN BROADCASTING Union (EBU) has ended its contract with a Chinese broadcaster which failed to air Ireland’s Eurovision entry.
The semi-final performance of Together by Ryan O’Shaughnessy featured two men dancing on stage.
China, known for its censorship, banned depictions of gay people on television in 2016.
The broadcaster, Mango TV, also failed to air the Albanian entry because the artist in question had tattoos.
BBC News is reporting that rainbow flags were also blurred by Mango TV when it aired the first semi-final of the contest this week.
In a statement, the EBU confirmed that the broadcaster “censored” two performances.
This is not in line with the EBU’s values of universality and inclusivity and our proud tradition of celebrating diversity through music.
“It is with regret that we will therefore immediately be terminating our partnership with the broadcaster and they will not be permitted to broadcast the second Semi-Final or the Grand Final.”
O’Shaughnessy welcomed the decision, telling BBC Four: “From the very start we have just said love is love. It doesn’t matter whether it’s between two guys and two girls or a guy and a girl.
“I think it’s a really important decision by the EBU, they haven’t taken it lightly, and I think it’s a move in the right direction.”
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