Music lovers in China have been banned from accessing and using Apple’s iTunes store because 46 Olympic athletes downloaded a Tibet protest album. The government is said to be behind the blocking of the site. Athletes from Beijing, North America and Europe used iTunes to download “Songs For Tibet” which was offered for free from the United States-based International Campaign for Tibet.

The album was produced by a band, The Art of Peace Foundation, and is about the rights of Tibetans. Artists on the album include Sting, Moby, Damien Rice plus others. It launched a few days before the opening ceremonies.

China is known for blocking “politically sensitive content” and Apple won’t explain but did acknowledge the block. Plenty of Chinese are offended by the album and are planning protests. What else could they possibly ban next?

The Olympic torch relay is at present, struggling it’s way down an alternate route in Downtown San Francisco after protesters scared organizers away from the original planned route:

The procession of the Olympic torch through San Francisco descended into farce today when the flame-holders ran only a few yards before disappearing into a warehouse, then re-emerging on a bus.

After furious clashes throughout the morning between ‘Free Tibet’ protestors and pro-China demonstrators, the authorities seemed to panic, and by 1.20pm, local time - 20 minutes after the published start time - even the TV news helicopters were confused. Then, for a few seconds, the runners were glimpsed, but within seconds they had disappeared from the starting point at McCovey Cove and disappeared into a nearby Pier 48 warehouse. Finally, there were reports of the procession leaving the warehouse on a bus.

However, the protesters are starting to catch up. Keep up with the latest news in pissed hippies and even more pissed cops and Chinese government officials on SFGate’s Torch Page.

As the Olympic Torch is scheduled to make its way through San Francisco on Wednesday, protestors are already gearing up for their message of peace and freedom for Tibet. Today, three people scaled the suspension cords of the Golden Gate bridge with huge banners that read, “One World. One Dream. Free Tibet.” Four others were arrested. Protestors in Paris caused such a disruption that they had to cancel part of the torch’s route. More are expected in the coming days as it passes through SF.

“We want it to be peaceful. But it will be large,” said Dasang, 22, during a phone interview in which he said he was near the bridge. “I heard from Tibetans that now live all over the U.S. and even abroad who are coming here.”

Be careful out there, brave protestors.

Amy Winehouse was turned away from a jailhouse visit with her husband Blake today. This is big news considering it’s probably the 5th time its happened. After getting turned away she “went for a sandwich.” Oh, she’s also recording with Mark Ronson and doing a track for the Quantum Of Solace which is the 22nd James Bond film.

In other news there’s still major civil unrest in Tibet and um… there’s a crooked war going on too but we’d rather talk about the pregnant dude in Oregon.

Tibetans in LA held a rally and Xeni Jardin of Boing Boing covered the event and did a few interviews:

As the Tibet riots and protests continue AP is reporting that Chinese officials are placing virtual ‘Wanted’ posters for 21 rioters in Tibet on the several major Chinese web portals - a link to one is here.
The Chinese are cranking down hard on the region in attempt to manage the situation that’s been brewing since 1949. Plus with it being the year the Chinese are hosting the Olympics I’m sure they’re more than slightly freaking out.

From AP:

China might bar live television broadcasts from Tiananmen Square during the Beijing Olympics, apparently unnerved by the recent outburst of unrest among Tibetans and fearful of protests in the heart of the Chinese capital.

A ban on live broadcasts would wreck the plans of NBC and other major international networks, who have paid hundreds of millions of dollars to broadcast the Aug. 8-24 games and are counting on eye-pleasing live shots from the iconic square.

The rethinking of Beijing’s earlier promise to broadcasters comes as the government has poured troops into Tibetan areas wracked by anti- government protests this month and stepped up security in cities, airports and entertainment venues far from the unrest.

In another sign of the government’s unease, 400 American Boy Scouts who had been promised they could onto the field following a March 15 exhibition game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres were prevented from doing so by police.

“It was never specifically mentioned to me it was because of Tibet that there were extra controls, but there were all these changes at the last minute,” said a person involved in the Major League Baseball event who asked for anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The communist government’s resorting to heavy-handed measures runs the risk of undermining Beijing’s pledge to the International Olympic Committee that the games would promote greater openness in what a generation ago was still an isolated China. If still in place by the games, they could alienate the half-million foreigners expected at the games.

Like the Olympics, live broadcasts from Tiananmen Square were meant to showcase a friendly, confident China—one that had put behind it the deadly 1989 military assault on democracy demonstrators in the vast plaza that remains a defining image for many foreigners.

“Tiananmen is the face of China, the face of Beijing so many broadcasters would like to do live or recorded coverage of the square,” said Yosuke Fujiwara, the head of broadcast relations for the Beijing Olympic Broadcasting Co., or BOB, a joint-venture between Beijing Olympic organizers and an IOC subsidiary. BOB coordinates and provides technical services for the TV networks with rights to broadcast the Olympics, such as NBC.

Earlier this week, however, officials with the Beijing Olympics Organizing Committee, or BOCOG, told executives at BOB that the live shots were canceled, according to three people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

“We learned that standup positions would be canceled,” one of these people said. “No explanation was given for the change.”

Sun Weijia, the BOCOG official in charge of dealing with BOB, declined comment, referring the matter to press officers, three of whom also declined to comment. IOC offices were closed Friday for the Easter holiday; two spokeswomen did not immediately return e-mails and phone calls seeking comment.

The decision by BOCOG may not be final. The change was relayed verbally, one person said. All three hoped that IOC President Jacques Rogge and other leading IOC officials, expected in Beijing next month for regularly scheduled meetings, may be able to prevail on BOCOG to change its mind.

If the decision stands, it would be a blow to the TV networks whose money to buy the right to broadcast the games accounts for more than half the IOC’s revenues. The biggest spender is NBC. It paid $2.3 billion for the rights for three Olympics from 2004 to 2008—Athens, Turin and Beijing.

NBC planned to use Tiananmen as the site of its morning “Today” show.

Officials at NBC did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

The unrest—which broke out March 10 in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa and has since spread across western China—and the government’s harsh response underscores the communist leaders’ unease as the Olympics approach.

Take some action