Journalistic blackmail

Some news from China-

BEIJING - China's government has ordered newspapers to stamp out the common practice of demanding money from people they cover, a state news agency said Tuesday, after the killing of a newspaper employee drew attention to the seamier side of the industry.

Newspapers also must make sure that only properly accredited reporters are allowed to conduct newsgathering, the China News Service said, citing an order by the national news industry regulator.

The order followed the beating death in January of newspaper employee Lan Chengzhang, who earlier reports said tried to extort money from a mine owner by threatening to publicize his illegal operation.

"News bureaus must not use news coverage to demand that subjects buy newspapers or advertising, or to do such activities as using 'exposure' in reporting to extort money," CNS said, citing the order.

It made no mention of Lan, but the killing in the northern province of Shanxi attracted widespread attention and prompted President Hu Jintao to order an unusual high-level investigation.

The case highlighted unscrupulous practices at many newspapers, where reporters demand that people they cover pay bribes or buy advertising in order to get favorable coverage or suppress bad news.

China is almost like the wild west. Present day China is sometimes compared to late nineteenth century America. The country is an emerging power in the world and with it comes turmoil and corruption. China's newspapers and the MSM included may also be compared to the same in the over 100 years ago(Except for the government regulation of them), it shouldn't be surprising there are excesses and lawbreaking at present. The US had William Randolph Hearst(and others) clamoring for the Spanish-American War. Who knows but maybe similar blackmail took place in the US also. I'm not naive enough not to believe it never happened. Money is power and vice versa.

Linked to- Bullwinkle, Third World County,