China to crack down on journalism

By Michael Fraase

Tuesday, 04 July 2006 08:59AM CST

Section: Censorship

China has a new draft law—one that is surely the envy of President Bush and his administration—that fines media outlets for reporting on “sudden incidents.” The proposed legislation would levy fines up to US$12,500 on media organizations or journalists who report on “outbreaks of disease, natural disasters, social disturbances or other so-called sudden incidents that officials determine to be false or harmful to China’s social order.” So reports Joseph Kahn in this morning’s New York Times.

This is a change for China’s relations with foreign media outlets. Until now, non-Chinese media operated under different, more lax rules although they were always monitored closely by security and operate under travel restrictions. Foreign media operations were, however, generally exempt from attempts at state censorship.

Chinese officials maintained that the new rules were intended to make government officials better manage the “sudden incidents” and to “prevent malicious behavior by journalists who willfully misled the public.” On the other hand, Kahn writes, “critics say the law could be used by government officials to forbid coverage of strikes, riots, epidemics or accidents that they prefer to keep secret.”

In America. on Independence Day, it’s important for us to remember all that means, the administration and the conservative attacks on the Times and other US media outlets notwithstanding. Good journalism isn’t always convenient; but it is necessary.

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