February 25, 2007	Sunday	Safar 7, 1428

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24: Authorities in Malaysia have banned a popular live television talk show following ‘insulting’ comments by a guest about the Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) first wife, according to a newspaper report published on Saturday.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) said it had banned live broadcasts of the weekly `Sensasi’ programme on private station TV3 after the comments by well-known actress Rosnah Mat Aris.

It said the broadcast on Jan 30 did not abide by licensing and content codes and that TV3 had failed to control inappropriate content, the Star newspaper reported.

“With this, TV3 has been asked to stop the live broadcast of the show with immediate effect,” the commission was quoted as saying in a statement to the newspaper.

The comments sparked numerous complaints from viewers and attracted the attention of Malaysia's Islamic authorities.

An MCMC spokeswoman chided the Sensasi programme for being out of step with national values, the daily said.

Sensasi should have `contributed to the national aspiration and not offend the sensitivity or values of the community’, she was quoted as saying.

Adelina said TV3 would need approval from Malaysia's Film Censorship Board to air pre-recorded versions of the programme.—AFP