The World
Association of Newspapers, along with five other press freedom and
human rights organizations, is now offering the full report from the
"Beijing Olympics 2008: Winning Press Freedom" international
conference, held on 18 & 19 April, 2008 in Paris, France. You can
either download it or order a hard copy free of charge.
The
conference panels explored questions such as "How are Chinese news
media controlled ?" "What reporting conditions should you expect in
Beijing ?" "China's Internet; What freedom/What limits ?" "Trading with
China: What risks, responsibilities, opportunities ?" and "How does
China deal with foreign and peripheral news media ?"
The
introductory speech was made by Professor Merle Goldman of Harvard and
Boston Universities, a leading authority and prolific writer on civic
rights in China. Goldman made the following formal request to the
foreign journalists who will cover the Games: "Reporters at the
Olympics in Beijing should not only point out China's rise as a modern
great power, should not only describe the athletic achievements, and
not only report on China's denial of freedom to the Tibetans and
Uighurs, they should write about the denial of freedom to their own
citizens. In this age of globalization, the international media has a
major role to play in showing that no matter how powerful the country
may become, its human rights violations against minorities and
especially its own people cannot be hidden. The media's exposure of
China's human rights violations can help exert international pressure
on China to live up to its own international commitments..."
The
speakers represented Olympic authorities, Chinese news outlets, foreign
news media and experts specializing on China, rights defenders, sports
journalism services, businesses providing communication services in
China, corporate sponsors of the Olympics.
To download the report in PDF, click here Report
To receive a print copy, send a email to akalinine@wan.asso.fr
N.B: Please do not forget to send your name and full address.
