A deal between the International Olympic Committee and China will allow the communist country to block journalists from sensitive websites during the Beijing Games in August.
IOC press chief Kevan Gosper said Wednesday that the Beijing Organizing Committee of the 2008 Olympic Games (BOCOG) will impose "limitations on website access."
"I also now understand that some IOC officials negotiated with the Chinese that some sensitive sites would be blocked on the basis they were not considered Games related," he said.
On Monday, foreign journalists complained after being blocked out of Amnesty International's website. The organization had released a report on its website attacking China's human rights record.
"When Beijing was awarded the Games, China had committed to providing media with the same freedom to report on the Games as they enjoyed in previous Olympics," CTV's Beijing Bureau Chief Steve Chao reported Friday.
"Now it appears it's not going to happen."
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I wonder how filtered our media coverage from the games are going to be.
China keeps digging a hole. And with the athletes who are not showing up due to protest and / or injury, I'm not taking the Games this year seriously. They seem to be a joke, and more of a media circus than anything.
Although it has really highlighted the efforts the Chinese will go to censor important issues. They seem to believe that if they hide everything under a blanket, all their problems will just go away.
China keeps digging a hole. And with the athletes who are not showing up due to protest and / or injury, I'm not taking the Games this year seriously. They seem to be a joke, and more of a media circus than anything.
Although it has really highlighted the efforts the Chinese will go to censor important issues. They seem to believe that if they hide everything under a blanket, all their problems will just go away.
Stupid regime.
There won't be much controversy about the reporting of the games since the winners and losers are quite clear. You can't hide results.
And are journalists really going to be digging around for human rights stories during the 2 weeks or will they be too busy covering the actual sports?
The BIG story would be if something happened during the events.
I'm waiting for the first FREE TIBET t-shirt worn on the podium.
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Yup stupid regime. That's why anyone who had the chance to would risk life and limb to escape it.
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Watching the Oilers defend is like watching fire engines frantically rushing to the wrong fire
China made a bunch of empty promises to get the games and the IOC fell for it, or more likely ignored better judgement in favour of $$$$$
Really what authority does the IOC hold over China to enforce their promise of better human rights standards? Is the IOC going to revoke the games at the 11th hour?
counting on a corupt organization like the IOC to hold China to their commitment of free speach and improved human rights is foolhardy
There won't be much controversy about the reporting of the games since the winners and losers are quite clear. You can't hide results.
And are journalists really going to be digging around for human rights stories during the 2 weeks or will they be too busy covering the actual sports?
The BIG story would be if something happened during the events.
I'm waiting for the first FREE TIBET t-shirt worn on the podium.
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Yup stupid regime. That's why anyone who had the chance to would risk life and limb to escape it.
The results are part and parcel of the Games; there will be those who go and cover the medal counts and the performances, and that's it.
You can bet your bottom dollar there will be journalists trying to tackle the big political issues as well; there is too much potential to stir the pot while all eyes are focused on a questionable regime. What's China going to do, start jailing well-known journalists? Like that will go over well. Sure, there will be a few that will get in trouble, but you can bet Amnesty International and other like-minded organizations are going to be stirring the pot.
Isn't the internet access in China already strictly limited? Why did journalists expect special treatment?
Because one of the conditions of China receiving the Olympics was an "Open Internet requirement".
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"The problem with any ideology is that it gives the answer before you look at the evidence."
—Bill Clinton
"The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance--it is the illusion of knowledge."
—Daniel J. Boorstin, historian, former Librarian of Congress
"But the Senator, while insisting he was not intoxicated, could not explain his nudity"
—WKRP in Cincinatti
And in other news, a former White House official has confirmed that Fox News is really just a mouth piece for George Bush and the Republican Party.
Meanwhile, here in Canada, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has decreased funding for the CBC. Harper defended the move by stating that he didn't think tax payers dollars should be used to fund a Liberal Party of Canada communications vehicle.
This.
I'm wondering what lengths, if any, people (particularly the athletes) will be willing to go to to get their message out.
Someone print up a ton of TREE FIBET! shirts.
Depends.
Say someone like Van Koeverden wins gold and on the podium wears a FREE TIBET t-shirt. How would fans and media react? Would he be celebrated or condemned by Canadians?
All 3 participants of the 1968 Black Power salute (including the Australian silver medalist who supported the two blacks) were blasted by the public and media and were never the same.
40 years later, have things changed? Would an athlete who made such a stand be celebrated or would 'we' rip them down once more?
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Watching the Oilers defend is like watching fire engines frantically rushing to the wrong fire
It's obvious they're in a classroom and those two students have their hands up.
Well, this should be frowned upon too, soley for the reason that the Olympics exist for the purpose of many colors and races getting together and competing on an equal level; bringing a color-based political action into the Olympics only alientates the two athletes who choose to put themselves and their own issues above the rest of the world. There's a time and a place for that kind of stuff, and I think that while they may have gotten their message across, it was in poor taste to do so at that time.
Sorry, but I'm not fully understanding the problem here. Why do the media need access to the sites like Amnesty International anyways? Is the inability to access websites hosted outside of china actually preventing them from reporting the games?
IOC admits to media censorship deal with China
