China Would Like You to Forget What They Said in 2001

In 2001, China was awarded the 2008 Olympics partly because they promised to give the media free reign to cover the Olympics. But now that the games are drawing closer China is kind of not cool with the whole censorship free thing.

Like most sports, you never know what the big story is going to be in the Olympics. Whether it be a surprise upset no one was expecting, or something beyond our worst nightmares, the coverage is dictated by the stories. While NBC can probably afford to have a full crew at every venue, I'm not so sure the rest of the world can. But even NBC will most likely want to do some shifting as the stories unfold. China, however, is making that pretty hard.

TV executives appear skeptical they will be able to deliver the kind of coverage they have in past games. Some say Chinese officials are requiring that forms be filled out specifying where satellite trucks will be each day of the games. The IOC says about 2,000 TV trucks usually go in and out of Olympic venues every day during the games.

These kind of restrictions could make it very difficult for TV crews to move quickly around the sprawling city to cover breaking news. Broadcasters also have been denied permits to record aerial views of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.

As much as it is a story, Tibet is not a story once the Olympics start. At least not pertaining to the events. Even if I don't like it, I can understand that Olympic coverage should be about the Olympics once it starts. So I can go along with Tibet being off limits. But any live coverage from Tiananmen Square or the the Forbidden City might be nixed. Those are two of the most iconic places in China. And if China, as a country, has a mood to capture, that is where you want to be. But the possibility of protests has the Chinese worried.

Several TV executives were upset there might be no live coverage from Tiananmen Square. This is a change from two months ago when IOC officials in Beijing said China had agreed to allow live coverage. Broadcasters also have been told there's unlikely to be live coverage from the Forbidden City. Chinese police fear both might be venues for activists' protests, which would be a public relations disaster if demonstrations - and police crackdowns - are beamed around the world.

But if it is something that effects the Olympics, something within the city, then I think it needs to be covered. While I don't think anyone believes the problems as they exist now are not fixable, the time before the Olympics start is shrinking fast. The networks need to make plans according to what they will be allowed to do and where they can go. And China seems to be trending farther away from what they promised as the games get closer. If that was the plan all along, it was very clever. But it will probably also cost them much more than whatever they try to hide.

(ht:Deadspin)