China’s coverage of Tibetan protests

CO says the acknowledgment by Xinhua that Chinese police shot Tibetan rioters is significant: it marks a shift from the official approach of information control. they’ve been forced into making this move by things like the internet. So they may try to sympathize with police who’ll they say were acting in self defense given their previous line they’ve been following. (When you were at Xinhua yourself, how did reporters and editors approach Tibet?) It was done case by case, but there was strict control. my colleagues were told to report word by word how the government wanted it. some stories were a bit more free reign. But it is a sensitive region. (How come if you were part of this operation you stayed there for two years?) I stayed there as an interested observer and I amassed a lot of knowledge about China and how information is controlled there. I enjoyed working with my colleagues, especially those willing to push the boundaries. (If China is modernizing then do you think that the Xinhua news agency model still works?) I think on an international level there’s a declining relevance of Xinhua. However, while many Chinese are finding new access to news, some believe Xinhua still works and on the Tibetan issue it’s been very effective.