Media News - Tuesday, August 19, 2008

China media guidelines leaked

Ignore protests. Be positive about security. No dissing of the Olympic opening ceremony. And whatever you do, don't mention the carcinogenic mineral water. Beijing's propaganda mandarins have issued a 21-point edict on Olympic coverage for domestic media that goes some way to explaining the different perception of the games within and without China. The directive includes a detailed list of dos and don'ts for journalists. According to a translation of the document in the Sydney Morning Herald, journalists are instructed to follow the official line on all matters relating to international affairs. They are warned not to conduct interviews about the US election, the Doha world trade negotiations or China's relations with Sudan, Iran and Zimbabwe. 'Follow the official propaganda line on the North Korean nuclear issue; be objective when it comes to the Middle East issue and play it down as much as possible; no fuss about the Darfur question; no fuss about UN reform; be careful with Cuba. If any emergency occurs, please report to the foreign ministry,' it says. Chinese officials have denied issuing the edict, but local journalists have confirmed its existence. Some say it was distributed by email, others by word of mouth. The release of such a document is extremely sensitive. Journalist Shi Tao was imprisoned for 10 years in 2005 for 'divulging state secrets abroad' after Yahoo passed on email correspondence that suggested he leaked a similar propaganda edict relating to the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. (The Guardian)

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