Olympic Reporters in China

Olympic Reporters in China

Posted on August 4th, 2008 by Jason Sterlace

In 2001, when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded the 2008 games to China, Wang Wei, the leader of China’s bid told reporters: “We will give the media complete freedom to report when they come to China.”

But for many reporters there now, it’s still unclear how free they will be able to report or not, as the restrictions and red tape seem almost endless, and they never know whether they’ve covered all their bases. “We already have to tell the Chinese everywhere we want to be in August, and what time,” one TV broadcaster, who preferred to remain anonymous, recently told the Associated Press. “We have to provide a list of the guests who will be interviewed and the content of the interview.”

That is, some things speak for themselves where permitted.

Which is to say, if you are reading the article I linked, you are probably not doing so in China.

That the Chinese government will frustrate and limit the international press during the Beijing Olympics is a given. What remains to be seen is whether the international press will show itself to be a greater force than the Chinese government in the long run.

It is possible that the Chinese government will make the situation so untenable and intolerable that reporters will never forgive the transgressions, and will draw ever greater worldwide attention to the oppression that the Chinese people have undergone for years.

Or it is possible that the international press will complain a lot during the games and immediately afterward, but then fail to provide any sustained or cohesive effort to bring freedom to the Chinese people, who — unlike the international athletes and press — will still be living in China after the games.

A.J. Liebling once said “People everywhere confuse what they read in newspapers with news.” That’s still true today, though television news has dethroned the newspaper. Blogs are still reactionary, focusing mostly on the “news” that is published by papers or broadcast on TV… by reporters. While they do not decide what is news and what is not to the extent that they once did, the traditional media still has the power to shape narratives and focus the world’s attention. I can’t think of a cause that should be a greater motivation to them than worldwide freedom of the press.

Let the games begin…