The " ` ` put CNN on the map , '' said former CNN bureau chief Mike Chinoy . Reporters had flooded Beijing to cover the overthrow of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev . Huge groups of students demanding reform had occupied Tiananmen Square and had launched a hunger strike just days before the Soviet leader 's visit was about to begin . For the first time , a TV network beamed its own live pictures from China . As protests continued , Chinese authorities ordered CNN to stop transmitting .
The " ` ` put CNN on the map , '' said former CNN bureau chief Mike Chinoy . Reporters had flooded Beijing to cover the overthrow of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev . For the first time , a TV network beamed its own live pictures from China . As protests continued , Chinese authorities ordered CNN to stop transmitting .