China agrees to live Olympic broadcasting

Foreign television broadcasters will be able to offer live news coverage during the Beijing Olympic Games after reaching an agreement with the Chinese authorities, the Wall Street Journal reported. The accord, which allows broadcasts from Tiananmen Square, settles one of the remaining roadblocks to the games. Negotiations had been in a stalemate since May over the right to report live from outside Olympic venues. The agreement, reached Wednesday, allows broadcasters to roam freely with satellite trucks in Beijing and other Olympic cities in China. Broadcasts from China’s cultural sites, such as the Great Wall, will still require approval. Separately, state-run China Central Television announced on Tuesday that it would broadcast the games live without a technical delay.