Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square Documentary USC China Institute When I First watched this documentary I was at a Saturday seminar put on at USC China Institute. The man who narrated and helped make the documentary, who also was there at Tiananmen Square when the massacre occurred, was there to speak. During his presentation he showed the documentary. It was this presentation and information that swayed me to apply to the program and to go on and write an ERWC module on Tiananmen Square. I also taught the module to my Sophomores and watched it again many times while going through it with them. The documentary is told from the perspective of journalists that were in China during the protests. The journalists hit the jackpot for this story. They were in the right place at the right time. They were actually there because Gorbachev was there visiting. An event that hadn’t happened in a long time. They were allowed into the country to film this important event. What they got was much better. They were in the square when all the events to take place. They were there from the beginning. They filmed the square filling up with student protesters. They got tons of video and pictures of what was happening. They were even able to report live on CNN and other stations. When the hunger strikes began, they were there to see the students suffer and hear what their complaints and protests were. When the Chinese government sent in the tanks, it was all recorded and reported on. The Chinese government tried to shut down the press during this, but they were able to find loopholes to get their information out. When the firing on the people began, many of the reporters were in the firing lines and several were arrested and taken to the Chinese officials. They caught many vivid photos and recorded much of the turmoil. They even told the story of how the picture of the tank man was created and the danger that even surrounded that picture. This was a very interesting perspective for a documentary. It set up a great timeline. For those of us that watched it unfold on our televisions, it was interesting to see the behind the scenes information. It was very informative and interesting. My 10th graders loved it, and were enthralled the entire time.