Chinese officials shut down Dutch reporter’s live shot outside National Stadium in Beijing

A Dutch journalist had his live broadcast abruptly stopped by Chinese officials as he reported outside the National Stadium on Friday.

NOS Nieuws reporter Sjoerd den Daas was in the middle of a live shot, when a Chinese security guard attempted to stop his report by trying to push him out of view.

It’s not clear what den Daas was reporting on or why Chinese officials suddenly tried to stop his broadcast.

“Our correspondent @sjoerddendaas was pulled away from the camera by security guards at 12.00 pm live in the NOS Journaal,” the station tweeted.

“Unfortunately, this is increasingly becoming a daily reality for journalists in China. He is fine and was able to finish his story a few minutes later.”

In a clip posted to social media you can see another security guard approaching the cameraperson and trying to block the camera’s view of the altercation.

Beijing has warned Olympic athletes not to protest or make any mention of human rights abuses, Taiwan, diplomatic boycotts and other topics the Chinese deem “inappropriate.”

“We’ve been in touch with NOS, the state broadcaster,” said International Olympic Committee (IOC) spokesman Mark Adams. “It was an unfortunate circumstance; someone was being overzealous.”

Adams noted after the situation was resolved, the Dutch reporter was able to do his piece. “I hope it’s a one-off,” he said at the daily IOC/Beijing Organizing Committee (BOCOG) briefing to reporters. “We assure you that within the closed loop you’ll be able to carry on your work.”

Yan Jiarong, the BOCOG spokeswoman, added that organizers would honor the host city contract.

“We welcome all the international media to cover and we will protect legal rights,” she said, adding they would “provide as many conveniences to enable you to cover the Beijing Games.”

Around the Rings Karen Rosen contributed to this story

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