Japan: Chine and Tibet

Interestingly enough 3 of the 5 top international stories listed by the Mainichi Daily News are focused on the current unrest in Tibet and China. Given the outcry for China to "clean up" before the 2008 Olympics, it's hardly a surprise that the events are taking prominent place in the Japanese media, especially given Japan's close proximity to the area in conflict. Interestingly enough, however, is that the stories featured speak of China's promise to compensate civilian victims of the violence and diplomatic visits; pressure being placed on sponsors of the Olympics; and China's call to crush the protests versus John McCain's calls for peace. Of the three stories only the last one has a less a less than neutral frame on the events, citing violent clashes, using the words "crush" and "crackdown", quoting China critics, as well as sporting a picture of a blood covered Tibetan protester amidst Chinese police. All the articles are written by the AP and the photo is from Reuters. The other two articles read more like a fact sheet and have an added interesting point of always mentioning the US. The first article explains that the US sent a delegate to the area along with several other countries such as the UK and Japan, devoting half the article to the diplomats credidentials and alocations of blame of all the powers involved. The second article focuses on the US companies sponsoring the Olympics that are having a hard time balancing human rights causes and their finances should they anger China over the issue of Tibet.