European broadcast chief: Turn Greek state TV channel back on

ATHENS, Greece – The head of Europe's public broadcasters has arrived in Greece to show support for 2,600 fired state TV and radio staff and demand that the country's conservative government put the stations back on the air.

Workers at the Hellenic Broadcasting Corp. or ERT have continued to occupy the broadcaster's headquarters and maintain online and satellite broadcasts since the government shut down the station Tuesday, citing the need to make austerity cuts and promising to relaunch with fewer staff before the end of the summer.

Jean-Paul Philippot, president of the Switzerland-based European Broadcasting Union, said he would meet with Greece's Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras to hand him a petition signed by 51 European broadcast executives calling for the broadcaster's signal to be restored immediately.