Foreign Correspondents Club of China, “2008 Reporting Environment,” Summer 2008

FCCC website: www.fccchina.org

The reporting environment for foreign media can vary  dramatically --  from place to place and even from time to time – and is undergoing immense flux in the run-up to the 2008 Olympics. Overall, Chinese authorities – especially the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) – have tried hard to make the government more media-friendly in the run-up to the Olympics. 

On January 1, 2007 China introduced temporary regulations for foreign journalists allowing them to travel freely and interview anyone who consents to speak. (The previous rules required foreign media to obtain local government permission before travelling to report.) 

“Foreign journalists "can travel anywhere in China. There will be no restrictions."

                -- Olympics Press Chief, Sun Weijia, Press briefing September 2006 

"Foreign journalists will not limit their activities to the Games themselves. They will also cover politics, science, technology and the economy ... the 'related matters' ... actually expands the areas on which foreign journalists can report."

                -- Foreign Ministry Spokesman Liu Jianchao, December 2006 

However, as of early 2008, the degree of press freedom still fell short of international media's expectations in a number of areas. Government phones often went unanswered. Officials sometimes failed to provide timely, if any, responses to requests for information. Foreign journalists had little access to Chinese athletes. Some journalists who sought to cover politically sensitive issues still encountered

harassment, interference, and even assault by plainclothed assailants. 

Click here to download the full 36 page report.