The more China tries to control its image and contain adverse publicity, the more those measures grab headlines in the world media. Dissident writer Yang Tianshui was last month given a 12-year sentence because of articles he posted on websites. Hong Kong journalist Ching Cheong has been held on the mainland for more than a year on spying charges. These cases are just two in what seems to be a recent harder line by Beijing on the mainland media.
Add to this the controversy over Google's compliance with Chinese web search censorship rules, and recent fears that Hotmail and Yahoo may have provided Beijing with copies of clients' e-mails, to be used in legal cases against perceived dissidents, and concerns over media freedoms appear justified.
But long-serving journalists based on the mainland say these high-profile arrests and clamps on internet privacy are blips on what is becoming an ever stronger flow of information within China's borders and out to a global audience.
The issue came to a head at a meeting in London this week of senior writers and broadcasters based on the mainland, with the overriding view being that China's domestic media are becoming more daring in tackling controversial issues - encouraged by rising awareness of the active role the press plays in other countries. The optimism is also based partly on the view that authorities will need to become more media savvy as the 2008 Olympics brings the largest wave of foreign journalists seen in China.
'I've been living in China for 35 years and I see a sea change in the flow of information,' said Jaime FlorCruz, CNN's Beijing bureau chief. 'Regulations have been tightened in recent years, especially concerning the internet. But that does not change my sense that the Chinese media has shifted from lapdog to watchdog. More abuses and corruption are being exposed.
'It's just dawning on Beijing that thousands of journalists will descend upon China - and they won't just be watching the games. The authorities are panicking now. They're sending officials abroad for media training in the US, at Duke University, and have invited over Australian and Greek officials to learn from their experiences. These Olympics will change China.'