COMM 317: Bong HiTS for China?

In class yesterday, we mentioned the protests timed to coincide with Olympic torch relay ceremonies worldwide, seen as a way for protesters to reach a built-in audience. This year's appear to be more seriously conceived than the "Bong HiTS 4 Jesus" incident in Juneau, Alaska, we studied earlier this semester. Since China is hosting this year's Olympics, the protests now concern human rights abuses. But the publicity-seeking dynamic is the same.

This story from today's San Francisco Chronicle tells of politicking in city government in advance of the Olympic relay there next week, as the Board of Supervisors (like our city council) released the route to the public. The money graf(s):

People who plan to protest the torch's presence in the city had demanded for weeks to know its route so they could begin organizing the thousands of demonstrators expected when the Olympic symbol is carried through the streets on April 9.

Protesters are expected to gather in large public squares and along the route, which will start at McCovey Cove, run both ways along the Embarcadero and make a short turnaround in the Marina district. The torch lighting ceremony in Greece was disrupted by demonstrators last week, and protests are expected in cities the torch visits around the world.