China Detains White House Press Plane

BEIJING — A charter airplane carrying the White House press corps was detained for nearly three hours Friday at Beijing's international airport not long after President Bush arrived to attend the Olympic Games.

The flight crew of the Northwest Airlines 747 had been expecting to park at a VIP terminal, but after landing was instead directed by the control tower to a normal international gate.

White House officials would say only there were "logistical problems" getting clearance to unload the aircraft. The flight crew was told the Chinese were insisting that all luggage be inspected.

Typically, the White House press charter receives the "custom of the port," meaning reporters, photographers and camera crews are able to get off the plane right after landing, board buses and head to their hotels and work areas while U.S. State Department officials process immigration and customs details.

Delays on landing have happened before, but no one on the plane was able to recall one this long.

The plane landed at 2:10 a.m. local time. Passengers finally were able to get off the plane shortly after 5 a.m. However, they were made to pass through Chinese immigration control individually, and baggage was still being screened.

Many of those on the plane _ roughly 40 journalists _ were due to cover the president's first appearance of the day: the opening of the new Beijing U.S. Embassy complex.

Comments

[SaddieMcCall]

The other day NPR had a story about the CIA recruiting at a journalist convention for the CIA. Many of the young journalists thought it was cool and no big deal or conflict. The older journalists stated that when the CIA are known to work undercover as journalists - it will place all journalists in jeopardy.

[zizyphus]

The CIA has covert agents in all the large corporations for many years, including the mainstream media, especially in foreign offices. The oil companies are also first to get the the top secret classified info they produce, as well.

[Chavez08]

The MSM better bite their lip on this. Their corporate puppet masters make billions quarterly on Chinese slave labor.

Take deeeep breaths propagandists,.....let it goooooooo....

[neesy08]

they can detain bush for all i care. he's not wanted here

[markusmarkus]

Let's hope booosh opens his mouth some more so the Chinese keep him for good - our good!

[Ammobob]

Don't you just love the diplomatic 'tit for tat'?? Pres Bush 'bad mouths' their human rights record, the Chinese detain his entourage. Ya gotta love it!

[GhiaccioPronto]

The overlords at the NBC ministry of profits feared that the press corp might leak unauthorized reports of the opening ceremony and had the luggage combed for devices which could be used leak news of the event to the citizens of the United Statest. Corporate censors had determined that this would undermine their authority to determine "reality" at will. "Reality pirates" at the CBC meanwhile, are broadcasting the event live, which threatens the Northern border States and could lead to unrest.

[NochlessMonster]

I am fortunate to live in one of those Northern border states and am watching the Opening Ceremonies live on the CBC.... Have to love those renegade Canadians.... ; )

[Chavez08]

Let's hope they can stay true and fight against the neoliberal/reagan-ist cancer that is starting to plague their country (they already have neocons in highest offices)

[Kevbo68]

CBC continues to have the best Olympic coverage every year. Puts American networks to shame.

[Rumplestiltskin]

Just so long as there is no "hate speech" involved in their reporting, they don't have to worry about being brought up in front of a provincial “human rights” tribunal.

[FZliveson]

See.. Human Rights, hue and cries. Hunan rice...it all blends into; "What goes around comes around."

[easyrider1969]

Not David Greggory? His hair is so perfect. He's so good on his feet...

[kay]

I can't bear him anymore. He's one of the reasons I stopped watching cable news.

I just cringed when he defended his work after the Scotty book came out. So whiny and defensive.

What an ego. That's what he gleaned from that book: that it was a personal attack on his "honor". It's literally ALL about HIM. Yuck.

[BushBites]

China must have a shortage of stenographers.

[neesy08]

especially sense stenography does not exit anymore

[MissingAmerica]

And this is a shock HOW? Welcome to the most repressive regime in the world, the new home of Capitalism. China has not earned the respect of the global community, rather it has financed its way into the bank accounts of the world leaders, such as our own W. Personally, if they would like to lock him up for telling them they are wrong, go for it. Wouldn't it be hilarious if they ransomed our own president and nobody wanted to pay? Something right out of Hollywood! What a story that would be!

[SENCvoter]

I agree that capitalism is running amok in this country. We have sacrificed basic human values all in the name of free market and capitalism; people are losing homes because of the utter lack of regulations in the mortgage market, they are scrambling to feed their children because we for so long refused to do anything about the out-of-control grip of the big companies. The wealth didn't trickle down, it was presented to us packaged as credit, and we fell for it, thinking it was real. Bush sold all of this to us, saying he was a "compassionate conservative."

[cmp]

"Most repressive regime in the world" ? Did you forget Saudi Arabia ?

[paixa3]

..and most of Africa it seems. Ignorance abound.

[HermioneGranger]

So what? That's the normal treatment everyone, including international press, gets at the U.S. border. So now its suddenly a big deal because it concerns Americans?

[kay]

It's true, sadly. I don't have first-hand experience at our international entry points, but my son tells me we're treating people coming in horribly.

Including him, and he's an American. He used to believe there was some rhyme or reason, the reception changed according to where he was coming FROM but he says now that it's arbitrary. He's detained or not detained according to some "quota", he believes. Like they have to rack up "X"amount of detain/question per shift.

[ThunderclapNewman]

Did you not read the story?

"Typically, the White House press charter receives the "custom of the port," meaning reporters, photographers and camera crews are able to get off the plane right after landing, board buses and head to their hotels and work areas while U.S. State Department officials process immigration and customs details."

This was aimed at the Booosh admin, using the press corps as a weapon.

[SCG2]

I think it was aimed at our press, not Bush who eats out of their hands.

[HermioneGranger]

Yes. So, now, they are treated the same way foreign journalists are treated at the U.S. all the time. So what?

[moreupnorth]

What's the difference between China's treatment of it's own population and the current state of affairs facing most American's these days. What is the difference between China and Tibet as opposed to the US and IRAQ. What is the difference between the treatment of enemy combatants in the US and say political prisoners in China? What is the difference between the US's rendition program and the Chinese pratice of making political and idealogical opponents disappear. What is the difference between US and Chinese waterboarding?

To those who think the US holds the moral high ground, get over yourselves!

[Coattails]

There is a huge difference between Chinese treatment to dissidents to the US treatment to the "worst of the worst" detainees from the war on terror.

I believe it is estimated nearly 1 million Tibetans have died since China annexed that helpless nation nearly 50 years ago.

Don't forget that China will arrest you for freedom of speech, if you were to actually go to the games, and the right to assembly has never been allowed. People may joke about our government here and compare it to others freely on the Huffington Post, however, if this were China, it would all be either blocked or censored.

[ThunderclapNewman]

"People may joke about our government here and compare it to others freely on the Huffington Post, however, if this were China, it would all be either blocked or censored."

============================

Apparently, you don't do irony.

[HermioneGranger]

If you want to fight for the rights of indigeneous people, why don't you start here....

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/08/us/08indian.html?ref=us

[elderly]

The "worst of the worst"-who has decided that those being held represent the worst of the worst.

Suppose Osama bin Laden was suspected of having changed his appearance so that he is unrecognizable and hiding in Buffalo, New York and you lived there. The government then decides to put all of the people in Buffalo in Guantanemo and hold them to make sure that bin Laden could no longer do mischief.

Fair and just? Constitutional??

I sincerely hope that there aren't too many like you or pretty soon our system will be as repressive as that existing in China.

[cmp]

That's right. No difference.

[malrubius]

They can have the useless White House Press Corps.

[yappnmutt]

its unbelievable that there is no live coverage of the opening ceremonies in the usa.

its awesome, by the way but you'll have to wait until tonight to see it.

[gapanther]

Ummm.....Can you keep 'em? Please?