Spanish TV network bans bullfights

Spain's leading broadcaster said today that it will no longer show the country's centuries-old tradition of bullfighting in order to protect children from viewing violence.

RTVE lists its new ban on transmitting bullfighting programmes in a chapter called Violence With Animals in its latest style book and says it "will not broadcast bullfighting".

One of the reasons given by RTVE - Spain's state network - is that bullfights "generally coincide with hours protected or specially protected for young viewers".

Spain has seen a fierce debate over the blood-soaked pageant which has fascinated artists and writers from Francisco Goya to Ernest Hemingway.

In July, the influential north-eastern region of Catalonia became the second Spanish region to ban bullfighting, joining the Canary Islands, which outlawed the practice in 1991.