winning press freedom conference

The Chinese government has been trying hard to portray their country as a much freer environment for the media.

But as Committee to Protect Journalists’ Asia Program Director Bob Dietz told the Paris conference, you really can retrain an old dog (the Chinese censors) old tricks and make them all work like a charm.

New Media, Old Censorship Tools
By Bob Dietz

You'll hear different perspectives this morning. There's been rapid commercialization of the press and more sophisticated citizens require better coverage.

The central propaganda machine is working harder than usual, anxious to stifle criticism. China continues to hold 24 journalists behind bars. Since July of 2001, when IOC selected China as the site of the Olympics, at least 37 new journalists have been held behind bars, and 16 remain in jail.

Chinese constitution protects free press and expression, but there are restrictions, and the media must comply with rigorous requirements. Print and Internet have more leeway than broadcasters.

The central propaganda department (CPD) tries to retract "mistakes." Directions from the department come now more by telephone rather than by emails, because such instructions can't be easily reproduced and be sent abroad.

What kinds of mechanisms control journalists in China? Most are administrative. Most don't think about going to jail.

In commercial press, at most publications, journalists are paid a bonus for articles published plus a base pay. The end result is that staff is more likely to go after stories that will be printed.

Editors know that they can't push the boundaries too often before bringing themselves and their paper under scrutiny. They want to keep their paper out of trouble. Management of the paper will say they can't run a story that will endanger the publication itself.

Journalists can be charged under 1988 laws intended to protect state secrets. Can't report on major policy decisions, economic and technology, criminal issues, and state secrets. A subject can be deemed a state secret even if in public domain. This law has nasty consequences -- pretrial detention and they can be held for months without charges.

It's clear that China's promises made in 2001 won't be met, and we believe journalists have been abandoned by the IOC.

Bob Dietz is CPJ's Asia Program Coordinator.