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The eight-magnitude quake affected the whole country and blasted Sichuan province, with up to 70,000 feared dead and all media have been toned down as a mark of respect, with many newspapers using black ink instead of their usual lurid colours. "Public recreational activities will be stopped during the period," ran a statement from China's ruling State Council.
Cinemas have been closed for three days of mourning which began on Monday, marked with a three-minute memorial for the victims around the country, during which car horns and air raid sirens set up an eerie wailing all over the country and people downed tools to commemorate the dead. Entertainment programs on television, radio, mobile phones, IPTV, and the Internet would be rebroadcast, authorities said, while theaters were closed and concert performances rescheduled. Karaoke bars and dance halls were closed, and there was to be no background music in restaurants and tearooms. The Olympic torch relay was also suspended for the mourning period. The quake has also born witness to an astonishing openness in the country's media, with blanket coverage of the disaster Until a couple of years ago this was impossible, as reporting natural disasters was banned. The Tangshan earthquake in 1976, which killed up to 300,000 people, was scarcely reported in China. Regular programming on TV, including cable, has had to make way for 24-hour news coverage from CCTV of the disaster, which has captured the public imagination and caused a widescale outpouring of grief in the country.
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