The Role of the Chinese Press in the Tiananmen Square Rebellion   Term Paper ID:27451 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Analyzes the role of the Chinese press in the 1989 democracy uprisings. Argues that the domestic Chinese press took an active role in the events & aided in manipulating reactions & outcomes.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Analyzes the role of the Chinese press in the 1989 democracy uprisings. Argues that the domestic Chinese press took an active role in the events & aided in manipulating reactions & outcomes. Paper Introduction: Introduction In China, as in most totalitarian states, the press is really little more than another arm of the government. In the Beijing Spring of 1989, however, for a brief moment that dynamic changed. Whereas the usual opposition or rebellion movement would have no voice in or means to manipulate the press, the student democracy protestors in Tiananmen Square found themselves both gaining straightforward coverage from their national press and also able to participate in the process by granting interviews and attempting to manipulate the coverage. The reasons for this change are multifold, among the most important of these being the behind the scenes power struggle within the government, during which it relaxed its control of the information flow. This did not, however, mean that the students Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. The students repeatedly defined their demands as modest, butwhat would they have entailed in reality? But do people in other cities, not to speak of the countryside,believe that "a small handful of thugs and ruffians were trying tooverthrow the government?" That is a question which is much more difficultto answer accurately. According to Shen Tong, a biologymajor at Beijing University and one of the many student leaders, smallinformal 'democracy groups' were set up during the winter of 1988-89 todiscuss strategy and ways to promote political reform: "My group, whichwas called the Olympic Institute, contacted people from many differentparts of society, especially of course intellectuals, in order to establisha network of relationships," Shen Tong explainedin an interview in April ,199 . (1989). China has yet toexperience press freedom. (199 April 15). Vancouver: Douglas& McIntyre. The Xinhua NewsAgency's story citing Zhao Ziyang saying that the recent demonstrations didnot indicate political instability was a clear sign to even the lessinformed reader. American network news broadcasts and morning shows did usefootage obtained by Chinese television (CCTV) and Wei Hua, the femaleanchor of CCTV English News, became a familiar face to many Americans,thanks to the airing of some of her reports from Tiananmen Square. The underlying forces which led to the reactions ofthe Chinese public have received less attention. Zhongguo Jizhe, translated byForeign Broadcasting Information Service. Would the unimaginablystubborn resistance which the army encountered on the night between June3rd and 4th have been so persistent had it not been for reports by theChinese media citing high-ranking people saying that violence should not beused against the students? Other intellectuals also felt inspired and encouraged thatresponsible adults who had families to support -- people whom any educatedcity-dweller could, at least to a certain extent, relate to -- had summonedenough courage to speak out about their frustrations. Xinhua News Agency's domestic service ranscores of stories about the support pouring in from the most unexpectedsectors of society during the week-long hunger strike. It was closer to three weeks. Popular protest & politicalculture in modern China. (1989). This did not, however, mean that the studentswere left free to manipulate the press. Reports mentioning the continuing sit-in at Tiananmen Squarewere still being published as late as May 3 th, even in People's Daily(Renmin Ribao) ("Demonstrations Continue," 1989, 73). The hungerstrike hit a nerve among ordinary citizens, which in turn led to aspontaneous outpouring of sympathy and support for the students. Therewas no doubt that the journalists' sympathy was on the side of thestudents. The World Economic Herald's (Shiji JingjiDabao) case was described in detail by major American publications. That's why it was one of our major demands from the beginning (Liu, 1989, 97). Whereas the usualopposition or rebellion movement would have no voice in or means tomanipulate the press, the student democracy protestors in Tiananmen Squarefound themselves both gaining straightforward coverage from their nationalpress and also able to participate in the process by granting interviewsand attempting to manipulate the coverage. Zhao Ziyang's words were splashed over the front pages ofall the major newspapers. During the dialogue the student representatives set two conditions forendingthe hunger strike. In the first place, Chinese newspapers were notfree to report on any subject without limitations. First, he points to the widespread support which the students receivedfrom people in all fields of urban society (Walder, 1989, 34). In other interviews dealingwith the effect the Chinese press had on the movement, American journalistsechoed the view that because of Chinese media, the whole nation knew whatwas going on in Beijing during May. "In the long run, maybe the articles which were written duringthat spring will have a more lasting effect than the student movementitself," he ventured. By the time thestatue "Goddess of Democracy" was erected on May 3 th, it was evident thatforces loyal to Prime Minister Li Peng had regained control of the press.All media reports emphasized the government's disdain for the statue. The students' demonstrationson May 4th drew hundreds of thousands of onlookers, who cheered andmarveled at the jubilant, but non-violent atmosphere. The impertinent behavior of the student representatives,especially the brash conduct of Wu'er Kaixi, who criticized the PrimeMinister for being late and told him off for quibbling with him, made alasting imprint on the minds of hundreds of millions of viewers across thecountry. Step by step, the pieces were based on factual reporting andlisted the students' demands. But it is also apparent that ZhaoZiyang's stance was in accordance with the aspirations of the students andthe press corps. Equally -- if not more -- significant as the May 4th demonstrationswas the speech made that same evening by Party Secretary Zhao Ziyang at theannual meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The split in the top leadership affected all layers of the government,includingthe ones intended to control the media. and educate the masses to conscientiously safeguard the situation of stability and unity ("Ministry announcement," 1989, 32-5).'Stability' and 'unity'- these two words were used time after time tojustify the "quelling of the counter-revolutionary rebellion" in Beijing.The Chinese media coverage of the events of June 3rd and 4th is well-known. Xinhua NewsAgency's English Service wire story mentioned that "most of the sloganswere directed against the chief leader of the State Council," but LiPeng's name was not mentioned ("Martial law declared," 24, 1981, 53). Every experienced editor knewwhat Zhao Ziyang's speech implied and by May 5th, it was clear which sidethey favored. Westport, Conn: Praeger Publishers. In addition, because of the media'simpact, the student movement became a people's movement." Li Lu is aphysics and economics major from Nanjing University. SandraBurton, Bureau Chief in Beijing for Time, thought the Chinese media was"very significant," while Time Beijing correspondent Jaime FlorCruz addedthat the Chinese journalists' input was considerable "in giving themovement a second wind" (Lin, 1992, 121-2). Once the journalists, even members of the Party's mouthpiece People'sDaily (Renmin Ribao), got away with their public show of discontent, themost determined members of other intellectual groups pushed ahead withplans to join in and show their support for the students' movement. Might these reports not have egged the peopleon, giving them the illusion that they might somehow come out of thestruggle victoriously? On May 29th, Beijing Radio Service broadcast a circular issued by theMinistry of Radio, Film and Television. Liu, B. Simmie, S. Problems of communism, Sept.-Oct. First, Kristoff writes, "democracy is an issue on people's minds in away it never was before." Secondly, "the rulers and ruled alike came tosee that their discontent was much broader than anyone realized." Andthirdly, "the leadership, in handling the protests the way it did, actuallystrengthened and expanded the opposition. Neither the Western nor the Chinese press seemed tobelieve that Mao's famous expression about power coming from the barrel ofthe gun still held true. Hewanted to make public his split with the conservatives in the Party. Mayor Chen Xitong, who in his report of June 3 th reviewed theevents leading up to the "counter-revolutionary rebellion," said that theChina Broadcasting Station, CCTV, People's Daily (Renmin Ribao) and othernewspapers were encouraged to do so by Zhao Ziyang's close aide Bao Tong(Yi & Thompson, 1989, 2 9). "There is too muchinterference," wrote Mo Ru in a blatantly critical article aboutjournalistic work and the rules of journalism, published in Zhongguo Jizhe(Journalist of China), a month before Hu Yaobang's death; "newspaperscarry a lot of reports that are not news, while genuine news reports thatthe readers like to see are pushed aside" ("Press reform needed," 1989,56). In addition, asserts Walder (1989), "thereportage helped to magnify public sympathy and involvement, and for apivotal period, made it appear that the demonstrations might succeed intoppling the hard-line leadership" Andrew Walder asserted (41). (1989 November 12). First, the April 26th editorial was to be rescinded.In other words, their movement should be officially acknowledged as ademocratic, patriotic movement which was not creating turmoil. And to recognize the unofficial student organization would havebeen interpreted as giving permission to other groups in society, mostnotably the workers, to organize themselves independently. AnAmerican teacher said that one could hear the blaring VOA broadcasts allalong the city's one and only main street. Initially, the students had no intention of mobilizing the city dwellers. TheMay Fourth Movement of 1919 is honored in China as the first time studentsinitiated a mass movement not only to protest against government policies,but also to spread new ideas. Also, the students did not have enough experience to organize the workers. Going through the major American media organizations' coverage of theevents, one finds numerous references in both print and television reportsabout the demand for 'freedom of the press' and also references to theopening up of the Chinese media. & Nixon, B. 1989. We felt the time wasripe to fight for that right ourselves. Walder, A. Walder thenstates: Second, and perhaps more important, the party split internally over its response to the student movement, which prevented effective repression early on, and which eventually led to key elements of the capital's party apparatus and, most crucially, the mass media to support openly certain student demands. On theone hand, they are looked upon as 'children,' who sometimes do not knowbetter, but on the other hand, they are also privileged members of thecommunity, who have the right to have pure and idealistic views (Liu,1989). According to the Hong Kong media,one of the journalists, Li Datong, exclaimed in his presentation that "Wefeel profound shame!" and added, "Journalism means recording the facts"("Press Reforms Promised," 1989, 37-41). . The following study will analyze this phenomenon. The Chinesemedia's ability to spread the news of the student-led movement and itssupporters has a direct bearing on all three of these changes. The marshals assured thestudents that "the army comrades are, under no circumstances, willing tosee a bloody incident" ("Martial Law Declared," 1989, 18). Nicholas Kristoff (1989) assesses that China has changed in threefundamental ways, despite the fact that the "democratic conflagration" ofthe Beijing Spring has been extinguished on the surface. Also, Chinese journalists did not dare speculate on theintense power struggle going on among the top leadership (Lin, 1992, 91-3).The Party's Mouthpiece Even after martial law was declared, hardliners in the government didnot regain control of the media immediately. Few envisioned that the authorities would use brutal force tocrush the movement. Theyknow that the official version of the "counterrevolutionary rebellion inBeijing," the one the media is putting out, is what they are supposed tothink. The government's decision to agree to such a meeting wassurprising enough, but to give in to the students' demand that it betelevised made the concession all the more astonishing. While the journalists' participation in the demonstrations had aneffect on the educated parts of society -- in Chinese terms, theintellectuals -- it hardly caught the attention of the workers. Do the citizens of Beijing believe what the government has told themabout the 'incident?' It would be nearly impossible if they did. The people,who at first refused to believe that the People's Army would fire at itsown citizens, had only sticks and stones and 'Molotov cocktails' at theirdisposal. Nicholas Kristoff, Beijing correspondent for the New York Times, feltthat VOA and BBC had an "enormous impact," while the Chinese media had"quite a bit of significance for the Chinese" (Kristoff, 1989, 71). Secondly,televised dialogues should be held between the decision makers and genuineleaders of the students, which essentially meant the unofficial students'organization. Butonly after June 4th, when the government had taken full control of thepropaganda apparatus, did American newspapers publish more in-depthanalysis of the role of the Chinese media during the actual movement.While the drama was unfolding, the immense impact which the Chinesenewspaper, radio and television coverage was having on the country, and onthe events themselves, did not receive the attention it deserved by theAmerican media. It was signed by1, 13 journalists from 3 news units. A negation of the April 26theditorial was equivalent to asking Deng Xiaoping to write a self-criticismpublicly. According to a cadre working for the Information Department of the CCPPropaganda Department, two weeks passed in the beginning of May without theDepartment receiving a single phone call from the Central Committee, whichin normal times routinely relayed instructions (Kristoff, 1989, 68). The public relations value of thehunger strike was enormous. Yang Shangkun was telling the truth. The decision on the part of the journalists to take to the streets anddemonstrate on their own behalf for 'freedom of the press' was made in ameeting on May 3rd at the Lu Xun Museum in Beijing. Their banners were prepared by ShenTong and two other students, who, in the pre-dawn hours of May 4th, tookthem to the gates of Xinhua News Agency. In the daysfollowing the declaration of martial law, the media carried several reportsciting prominent Party members warning against the use of force. "Ministry announcement,"(1989 June 5). The Struggle for Tiananmen: Anatomy of the 1989 MassMurders. For the first timejournalists joined the marchers under their own banners demanding "Supportthe World Economic Herald" and "Reinstate Qin Benli." Television andnewspaper reports of the day consisted of straightforward coverage with theuse of pictures portraying the unbelievable scenes (Yi & Thompson, 1989,29). The openness of the media coverage reached its climax on May 18th,when Prime Minister Li Peng met with students in a dialogue televisednationwide. They did not publisharticles which, for example, quoted people calling for the overthrow of theCommunist one-party system of rule, or who demanded that Tibet be grantedindependence. Zhang Dandan was amongthe approximately 2 journalists who demonstrated on May 4th. 1994. During the hunger strike, the different mediaorganizations marched under their own banners, and even the older editorscould be seen chanting, "We want to be able to tell the truth." On May9th, a petition requesting a 'dialogue' on freedom of the press wasdelivered to the All-China Journalists' Association. As Canadian journalistsScott Simmie and Bob Nixon write in their book, Tiananmen Square, "thestudents and the media thrived on a symbiotic relationship" (Simmie &Nixon, 1989, 75). (Liu, 1989, 97).Shen Tong said that the student activists were well aware of theshortcomings of the 1986-87 movement: We were too isolated. Crisis at Tiananmen: Reform and realityin modern China. Government officials,representatives from the People's Liberation Army, distinguished members ofvarious Party-led organizations all joined the "more than one millionpeople from all works of life," who were trying to urge and pressure theleadership into submitting to the students' demand for an "open and equaldialogue" (Liu, 1989, 47). The mayor accused Zhao Ziyang and hisfollowers of manipulating the media. His speech was broadcast on radio and televisionfor three days. Tiananmen Square. Introduction In China, as in most totalitarian states, the press is really littlemore than another arm of the government. A major breakthrough was the televised'dialogue' between student representatives and State Council officials onApril 29th, the first one of its kind in the history of the People'sRepublic, followed by a second one with Mayor Chen Xitong on April 3 th.The announcer of the 'National News Hookup' program featuring the meetingsstarted off by explaining that the government officials had a, . In an articlepublished in Problems of Communism (Walder, 1989), Walder describes two newdevelopments that distinguished this movement from previous ones and led toan unprecedented popular rebellion. Already in June 1989 I met with some of the journalists at, for example, Renmin Ribao, Jingji Ribao (Economic Daily), Zhongguo Qingnian Ribao (China Youth Journal), Keji Ribao, Beijing Ribao (Beijing Daily) and Guangming Ribao. "Press Reforms Promised," (1989 May 15). Boulder, CO.: Westview Press. Bibliography "Demonstrations Continue," (1989 May 3 ). The work group was not gettingits guidelines from the top leaders and therefore, instructions were notbeing passed down to the newspapers in the standard, institutionalized way"(Kristoff, 1989, 67). "Martial Law Declared," (1989 May 24). "How the hardliners won." New YorkTimes Magazine, 55-73. The XinhuaNews Agency reported that officials maintained that "it is high time tocarry out press reform, which is an important part of political reform."The wire story did not carry any quotes. "Press Reform Needed," (1989 May 3). Chinese television broadcast moving images of suffering students,stretched out on the ground in suffocating heat or in the pouring rain,determined not to give in. On May 2 th he declared martial law in parts of Beijing. A group of students visited the famous retired marshals Xu Xiangqianand Nie Rongzhen to ask for their support. On May23rd, television viewers were shown shots of the mass demonstration withabout one million people demonstrating against martial law. Translations of articles and broadcasts published by the ForeignBroadcasting Information Service (FBIS) alone would fill a thick book.Media reports from all corners of the kingdom described demonstrations insupport of the fasting and fainting students in Tiananmen Square andactivities related to the movement. Kristoff, N. It stressed, that radio and television services are the mouthpieces of the party, government, and people, and that state radio and television stations must ... Shortly after the founding of the People'sRepublic it was declared National Youth Day. In that same day's issue of Worker'sDaily (Gongren Ribao), an article vehemently defended the citizens' rightto know what was going on from the domestic press. The reasons for this change aremultifold, among the most important of these being the behind the scenespower struggle within the government, during which it relaxed its controlof the information flow. It was hard to ignore television shots showing wailingmothers begging their offspring at Tiananmen Square not to starvethemselves to death, or small children carrying signs: "Don't let our bigsisters and brothers die!" Even those who were not the slightest bitinterested in politics felt touched. Xiang Xiaoji, who led the students' dialogue delegation together withShen Tong, agreed that the Chinese media was instrumental in changing thenature of the movement. ButAmerican network reporters failed to elaborate on the fact -- to the degreethe situation warranted -- that the same dramatic images which were beingrelayed to American living rooms were also being seen by hundreds ofmillions of Chinese viewers. And they have learned that believing -- at least saying onebelieves -- in the official Party line is a way to stay out of trouble.The Journalists Join the Demonstrators Already months before Hu Yaobang's death, the 7 th anniversary of theMay Fourth Movement had been targeted by a handful of student activists asthe start of a new student move-ment. (1989). Morrison, D., Ed. TVnews anchor Feng Xiaoming remembered that Ai Zhisheng, the Minister ofFilm, Radio and Television, did not show up for his daily preview of the 7o'clock news broadcast between May 15th and May 19th. In aspeech on May 24th, China's President, General Yang Shangkun, suggestedthat everyone go back and read very carefully Zhao Ziyang's speech at theADB meeting. Beijing Radio, translated byForeign Broadcasting Information Service. 1989. News of the bloody suppressionreached her college on June 5th: My students, who were all extremely upset, kept asking me, can we believe the VOA reports about the massacre? The government did not take long to succumb to the journalists' demandfor a 'dialogue.' On May 11th, the Politburo member in charge ofpropaganda, Hu Qili, and the head of the CCP Central Committee PropagandaDepartment, Wang Rezhi, went to the office of the China Youth Journal(Zhongguo Qingnian Ribao) to meet with members of the media. Xinhua, translated by ForeignBroadcasting Information Service. The Chinesejournalists' short-lived period of openness would gradually come to an end. Politburomember Hu Qili reportedly visited eight major media organizations,evidently on May 6th, to relay a message from Zhao Ziyang: "There is no bigrisk in opening up a bit by reporting on the demonstrations and increasingthe openness of news" (Kristoff, 1989, 66). It also noted thatworkers had joined the ranks of marching supporters. With the top leadership paralyzed, and with Hu Qili's remarksregarding Zhao Ziyang's views to fall back on, the media was free to reporton the events taking place not only in Beijing, but in cities all overChina. Rickshaws raced up thesidestreets transporting the bloodied bodies of the wounded and dead tohospitals and morgues. Li Lu, whose official title during the movement was 'deputy commanderof the hunger strike committee,' did not hesitate when asked about theimpact of the Chinese media: "It was extremely important - it brought themovement onto a national scale. Aday earlier, a front page story and headline cited a Hungarian leadersaying that Stalinist tactics of violence should not be used to suppressthe people ("Martial Law Declared," 1989, 18). The changes in thepress will be followed as its roles evolved, with each section of the paperdescribing one of the following occurrences: In the early days, the pressused its freedom to conduct mostly straightforward reporting of the news;when the government re-asserted its control, the press became once more theParty's mouthpiece; later, emboldened by their taste of press freedom,journalists joined the ranks of the protestors. Tell the World. Thatday's issue of People's Daily (Renmin Ribao) printed the Xinhua NewsAgency's story about student demonstrations in Shanghai, making note ofsome of the banner texts, for example: "We Want Democracy and Freedom."The momentum of the media surged in pace with the movement's. (Yi & Thompson, 1989, 2 6) On May 3rd, Beijing Television Service aired the entire pressconference which focused on the students' demands and was held by StateCouncil spokesman Yuan Mu for both Chinese and foreign journalists. When one of the students' brothers returned from Beijing, verification of the killings spread in true Chinese fashion, by word of mouth (Lin, 1992, 118). New York: Pantheon. But the peaceful situation and "normal order" in all parts ofBeijing were also getting a lot of media attention, which was clearlyintended to undermine the government's attempts to create an image ofdisorder. Not even the intellectuals stood up to endorse our cause. Thejournalists' march served as a catalyst.The Impact of the Media on the Events Andrew Walder is one of the few American academics who has studied therole of the Chinese media during the Beijing Spring of '89. Zhao Ziyang wanted to distance himself from the April26th editorial which had accused the students of instigating turmoil. Finally, the paper willconclude with a summary of the influence of the media on the events.Straightforward Reporting Starting from April 28th, stories about the students' protestactivities appeared in all major newspapers as well as TV and radiobroadcasts. According to the BeijingDomestic Service Radio broadcast, the students spoke of their fear that thetroops were going to use violence against them. 1989, 28-45. "People can keep the newspapers" (Lin, 1992, 12 ). The political sociology of the Bejing upheaval of1989. Li Peng, who at times seemed at odds about how to talkwithout a prepared agenda to the unruly students, did not agree to eitherone ("Li Peng, Students Meet," 1989, 14-21). The consequence of these events was that, during the days ofthe Tiananmen protest itself, neither side really manipulated the media.Rather, the media took it upon itself to become a participant in and thusmanipulator of the events. Anyone inChina over the age of thirty remembers a time when most urban residentshardly had enough to eat and there was widespread famine in thecountryside. In the West, the shock which the general public experienced afterwatching the gory events of June 4th on television has been widelypublicized. publicize the brilliant decision of the party Central Committee on ending the turmoil ... We wanted to limit the movement to students. According to the government reports,protests spread to at least 81 cities. "Ominous embers from the fire of 1989." New York Times, 1,8. To understand the effect the journalists' participation in thedemonstrations had on the movement as a whole, one has to appreciate thespecial characteristics of Chinese society. May 4th has often proved to be a milestone in Chinese history. The severity of the situation must have been clear even to thosewitnessing the chaos from a safe distance. The beginning of thehunger strike at Tiananmen Square on May 13th marked a resurgence for thestudent movement and the start of in unprecedented period in the history ofboth the People's Republic and the Chinese Communist press. The combination of mass support and party fragmentation led rapidly to a massive, nonviolent rebellion that echoed in scores of cities throughout China ..." (38). & Perry, E., Eds. They reported on the movement which basically was intent onreforming the Communist Party from within. As late as May 24thnewspapers published stories and photos of citizens setting up roadblocksalong main routes in the outskirts of Beijing to prevent the troops fromentering the center of the capital. David Holley, of the Los AngelesTimes, opined that this was one of the reasons the government had a muchharder time explaining the crushing of the movement, and "in part, it iswhy China remains in such a near crisis situation today" (Lin, 1992, 122). New York: Warner Books. The workers' demands were too rash and we knew that endorsing them would lead to trouble. Wasserstrom, J. The meaning of food in the Chinese culture is portrayed inthe common greeting: "Ni chi fan le ma?" which literally means, "Have youeaten?" though it is meant to express the same as the American phrase,"Hello, how are you?" And just as English-speakers respond, "Fine, thankyou," Chinese answer "Chi fan le," or "I have eaten," regardless of whetherthey have or not (Kristoff, 1989, 68). Kristoff, N. Even though the director and editor-in-chief of People's Daily (Renmin Ribao), Qian Liren and Tan Wenrui, wereremoved from their posts, and a 'work team' loyal to the conservatives inthe Party took over, the staff managed to publicize the protests for a fewdays. They werethe first non-student group to publicly rally on behalf of the students,though they also had their own agenda. Balanced, objective news stories and analysis were also scarce. Voice of America and the British Broadcasting Company became theprimary sources of information once the Chinese media was silenced. All of us knew that without freedom of the press we would not be able to arouse interest and support for our ideas. Instead, China's journalists, freefrom their master for the first time, took an active role in the uprisingthemselves. His piece"Ominous Embers from the Fire of 1989" was published exactly one year afterthe death of Hu Yaobang. The slogan"Down with Li Peng" could be faintly heard in the background. & Thompson, M. It reflects the one-sided government version of a revolt, led by a handfulof people, and of heroic soldiers risking and sacrificing their lives toensure the stability and unity of the nation (Liu, 1989). The tensof thousands who were on the streets that night saw with their own eyes,how outraged civilians at major intersections along the main boulevardtried to prevent the soldiers from reaching Tiananmen Square. On the other hand, the periodduring which the media carried stories of the students' protests was longerthan the three days often cited. Lin, N. A new vitriol burns in those whowere once merely disdained" (Kristoff, 199 ; p.1, p.8). Yi, M. But, as a result of the Chinese media, the masses' attention was aroused (Lin, 1992, 119).Xiang Xiaoji was a graduate student at the University of Politics & Law inBeijing. They voiced their determination to relay the students' suggestions to the responsible comrades concerned accurately. People in China have grown accustomed to continuouschanges in policy and they are wary of ferocious political campaigns. To speak of China's "three days of press freedom," which quite a fewwriters have done, is hasty and inaccurate (Liu, 1989). Renmin Ribao, translated byForeign Broadcasting Information Service. The pressmobilized the urban population all over the country for nearly a month, anddespite relentless attempts to use the media to justify its actionsfollowing the crackdown, the government has not succeeded in'demobilization,' as far as the spirit which the movement left behind isconcerned. On May 23rd, the front page carried two photos, one of the studentscontinuing their sit-in at Tiananmen Square, and the other of a childoffering a popsicle to a soldier sitting in a blocked military truck. The mediacoverage is what mobilized the 'man on the street.' When the newspapers andtelevision started to report on the protests by the students, withoutbranding them troublemakers, it was interpreted as something officiallysanctioned. After that day, the columns of protesting journalists became a commonsight whenever the students were on the move. San Francisco: China Books & Periodicals. An increasing number of articles quoted prominent members of society,who praised or endorsed the decision to declare martial law and appealed tothe students to return to their campuses to ensure the stability of thecountry. Among the journalists, especially the younger ones who had beeneducated after the Cultural Revolution in an environment which promotedcompetitive standards in education, there were people advocating that thepress be permitted to report on news stories factually. Shen Tong also stated: I think I was one of the few who realized the importance of getting the journalists involved in our movement. "Comrade Zhao Ziyang's speech was a turning point," YangShangkun admitted, "it revealed all the differences of members of theStanding Committee of the Politburo in front of the students" (Yi &Thompson, 1989, 184). Throughout history, universitystudents have been a distinct group apart from the rest of society. In the Beijing Spring of 1989,however, for a brief moment that dynamic changed. We were terribly excited and movedby the students' brave actions" (Lin, 1992, 127). .candid conversation with the students on the issue of punishing official profiteers, clean government, educational development, how to view the current student strike, and other questions. The government'sdilemma was acute. Massacre in Beijing: China's struggle fordemocracy. In the week that followed, newspapers and Xinhua NewsAgency ran favorable commentaries, made by people from different parts ofsociety, about Zhao Ziyang's speech and his attitude towards the studentmovement. Renmin Ribao, translated byForeign Broadcasting Information Service. The soldiers were equipped with machine-guns and armoured PC-vehicles. Xinhua, translated by ForeignBroadcasting Information Service. (1992). "We have all read a lot about the work of Westernjournalists and their role as 'watchdog' in society. Not only the students were elated when they discovered that theywere 'no longer alone,' thanks to the journalists' protest march on May4th. By bringing the disagreements among the top leaders out into the open,Zhao Ziyang provided the media with a chance to show their support for thestudent movement by reporting on it and the students' demands. Yet, "by the time the newspaperswere publishing stories on the student movement, something was deadlywrong;" former China Daily news editor Jing Jun analyzed the situation:"The central government was in disarray. "Li Peng, students meet," (1989 May 19). He arrived in Beijingon April 27th and stayed at the Square until the students marched out inthe early hours of June 4th (Lin, 1992, 116). "Ever since HuYaobang's death and the escalating activities of the students, manyjournalists had met informally in private homes to contemplate action,"Zhang Dandan of the Jingji Zhoukan (Economic Weekly) recalled in aninterview in May 199 . 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