China bans Tiananmen Square live shots during Olympics
By USA TODAY
March 23, 2008
Don't expect to turn on your TV during the Beijing Olympics and see live shots of Tiananmen Square, where Chinese troops crushed pro-democracy protests nearly two decades ago.
Apparently unnerved by recent unrest among Tibetans and fearful of protests in the heart of the capital, China has told broadcast officials it will bar live television shots from the vast square during the games.
A ban on live broadcasts would disrupt the plans of NBC and other major international networks, who have paid hundreds of millions of dollars to broadcast the Aug. 8-24 games and are counting on eye-pleasing live shots from the iconic square.
The rethinking of Beijing's earlier promise to broadcasters comes as the government has poured troops into Tibetan areas wracked by anti-government protests this month and stepped up security in cities, airports and entertainment venues far from the unrest.
In another sign of the government's unease, 400 American Boy Scouts who had been promised they could go onto the field following a March 15 exhibition game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres were prevented from doing so by police.
"It was never specifically mentioned to me it was because of Tibet that there were extra controls, but there were all these changes at the last minute," said a person involved in the Major League Baseball event who asked for anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
The communist government's resorting to heavy-handed measures runs the risk of undermining Beijing's pledge to the International Olympic Committee that the games would promote greater openness in what a generation ago was still an isolated China. If still in place by the games, they could alienate the half-million foreigners expected at the games.
 |  | |
Beijing 2008
,
Doing business in China
,
Freedom of Press
,
Human Rights
,
Internet
,
News
,
Tibet
| ||
 |  |
This article is filed under the categories of
Tags: 
The purpose of the website is to publish articles by journalists about a variety of topics concerning the People’s Republic of China. All journalists and the publications that publish their writings are clearly identified. All copyrights belong exclusively to the identified sources of these articles. | Powered by
Frankly I don't like chinese government. but for this tibet issue, CNN made big and ridiculous mistake.the reporter can not recongize the chinese and nepal police and indian police.
Saving HAN chinese was considered as the Tibetian arrested by army man. this is really.....
although chinese is the country governed by one party. chinese human right has already made progress recent year.We are still a developing country, we have to do what western country did wrong thing. it is must. i do not interested in politics. I do not care who will control this country if he could bring benefit to us.
I do not agree with BJ fans. I am also a chinese. To be honest,I hate the government very much, CCP is really very bad, it makes most of chinese people poor and painful. Chinese tax burden is nearly the heaviest around the world, but chinese welfare is nearly the worst in the world, basically famers do not have any welfare, and the common citizen also only have few welfare, but the government imposes very heavy tax on the ordinary people. At least 90% Chinese officials are corrupt, they enjoy their personal joyment(including keep mistresses or trade with hookers) using taxes which are imposed from the ordinary people! There are countless unfair things in present chinese society, the government only knows to how to get more profit from the people, never care about how to make people benefited!
All what I said above is the truth, I swear!