Foreign media bias on Lhasa riots

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Source: CCTV.com | 03-23-2008 14:46

Since the riot in Lhasa last week, the foreign media have taken a keen interest in the Tibet situation. But some of the coverage has differed greatly to the coverage here in China.

This was Lhasa one week ago. These rioters smashed houses. They destroyed property.

These rioters smashed houses. They destroyed property.

But some western media have described a very different scene.

The Tibet issue is given great prominence by major western media outlets. But some commentators claim these journalists know little of the region's history and fail to show balance in their reports.

Associate professor Shi Anbin from Tsinghua University believes such coverage represents double standards.

Shi Anbin said "I noticed that they used the word crackdown for the Tibet coverage, but not for their Paris or Los Angeles riots coverage, simply because they adopted a kind of frame when they cover Tibet story. So, they would identify this as crack down, not knowing details or enough perspectives. So, they would automatically consider those people in Tibet as peaceful demonstrators rather than mobs. This naming strategy is always the strategy the western media would use, especially for countries like China, Iraq and Palestine, because they are considered as the other in the western eyes."

Some western media have described a very different scene.

During the riots, local police appeared to show restraint. They also rescued injured people.

"I really can't understand why the rioters killed innocent civilians."

Victims' relatives were in despair, while other people suffered severe injuries, including this Tibetan doctor.