Sky News Reporter Detained in China

drumbrake · 15-03-2013, 11:48 PM

More here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2013...-china-beijing

drumbrake · 15-03-2013, 11:52 PM

Last time I head of Mark Stone was during the London riots.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXcI-NL3Tro

virago · 16-03-2013, 07:47 AM

Ummmm, goes without saying that you need a permit from the government to do reporting in Tienanmen Square.

Just like you need a permit to protest in HK and most other countries.

No news here........move along.

drumbrake · 16-03-2013, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by virago:

Ummmm, goes without saying that you need a permit from the government to do reporting in Tienanmen Square.

Just like you need a permit to protest in HK and most other countries.

No news here........move along.

Sky News reports that "they had permission and passes to film in the square."

However, Stone says "that police told him the team were not displaying their passes correctly and noted that he did not have his passport with him as he is required to do."

Even so, imagine the Beijing reaction if a pair of Chinese journalists were bundled into a police van after reporting from Parliament Square in London, and then taken south of the river to some warehouse for questioning. I doubt there would be a London copper speaking fluent Mandarin to them though.

What I found interesting was that this was broadcast live. What usually happens in China is that the news crew are recording, and then any footage that they have is deleted.

virago · 16-03-2013, 09:35 AM

I'm sure the police are screening the journalist. The BBC has had many critical articles over recent years.

Watercooler · 16-03-2013, 11:13 AM

Originally Posted by drumbrake:

Sky News reports that "they had permission and passes to film in the square."

However, Stone says "that police told him the team were not displaying their passes correctly and noted that he did not have his passport with him as he is required to do."

Even so, imagine the Beijing reaction if a pair of Chinese journalists were bundled into a police van after reporting from Parliament Square in London, and then taken south of the river to some warehouse for questioning. I doubt there would be a London copper speaking fluent Mandarin to them though.

What I found interesting was that this was broadcast live. What usually happens in China is that the news crew are recording, and then any footage that they have is deleted.

Well, I don't think the Chinese would worry about that since they know it could'nt happen in the UK...at least for Chinese journalists.

As for the broadcasting live issue, there are two possibilities: The first is an oversight by that particular group of police detaining the sky crew. If there is any "silver lining" for those journalists, it is that those police officers will likely face at least a grilling by their superiors for not stopping the recording (and maybe even some stronger punishment/demotion-you know how Chinese cared about face). Although this would hardly be consider a consolation for the general foreign journalist community in China.

The 2nd possibility is that the police intentionally allow the filming to show how "civilized" their conduct are. Trying to counter the perception that they routinely beat-up and arrest journalists however they feel like. Too bad this came just after that TVB journalist got beat-up for trying to see Li Xiaobo's wife...