创建网络社区

Continuing on with the coverage of "China, The Olympics, Social Media, Symposiums, etc." mini-series, I'm am co-opting Olympic scholar Dr. Andy Miah's questions for the panel he is organizing at the 9th International Symposium on Olympic Studies, in Beijing, August 5-7, 2008.

My point in doing this is to stimulate some discussion to push my own perceptions and resolve my own conflicts. You see, I am big fan of amateur sports (personally i prefer winter Olympic events) and an ardent advocate of the UN Declaration of Human Rights, and someone who hopes for a greener planet. In some ways, I see these three as not jiving within the China paradigm. On another hand, i wonder is it really my place to ask an ancient culture why they do things they way they do?

As such, I question my personal (not professional) emotional investment in the athletes' struggle. Should I watch them strive for greatness on the CBC while the background struggle seems so much weightier? Or are the Olympics a time for healing and celebration where understandings are fostered and differences sorted out? In other words, should i participate in the Olympics from my couch or from the streets!

I invite you to offer your answers to Dr. Miah's questions. The comments are open for your opinions on China, the Olympics, Social Media, etc. - be frank and polite (and avoid ticket selling and other spam).

Media Access and Control

* Briefly describe whether or not you see the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games as a focal point for media transition in China.

* Will foreign journalists obtain the level of access they require to undertake their work?

* Will the temporary legislation designating additional freedoms for foreign journalists produce different coverage of China than we have seen before?

Politics and Focus

* Is political transition within a country a reasonable expectation to have of the Olympic Games?

* How will commentators summarize the Beijing Olympic Games in the closing minutes of television coverage at the end of the Closing Ceremony?

* Will the Olympic media focus, to the same degree, on sports, compared with other Games, or will other narratives dominate the coverage?

Social Media

* In what way are new media platforms enabling new forms of journalism to surround the Beijing Olympics?

* In February 2008, the IOC released blogging guidelines, which indicate that they do not consider blogging to be a form of journalism. Do you think there is merit in their assertion?

* What kind of convergence is visible around old and new media in China, in the context of the Beijing Olympic?

* Is citizen journalism politically prescribed in China?

* Claims have been made about China's rising Internet population and its surpassing the United States. In what ways do you perceive the utilization of new media as distinct within China, compared with other nations?

More Questions

* In this context of social media, freedom of press expression, and background of security and political posturing, what other questions come to mind?