Tracy Quek gets the lowdown on a rehearsal leak on South Korean TV.

In Beijing

PERFORMERS have been made to sign confidentiality agreements, officials are tight-lipped every time they are asked about it, directors shake their heads and say it’s a surprise.

In every sense, the Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony has been treated as a top secret event – up till tonight, that is.

During a full dress rehearsal, a South Korean television crew from Seoul Broadcasting System (SBS) somehow managed to enter the National Stadium, film the rehearsal and then broadcast the footage on TV.

The Beijing Olympics organisers were not happy. The International Olympics Committee officials said they were "disappointed'' at the leaked scenes.

But it was online that Chinese netizens really unleashed the full force of their anger and outrage at the "betrayal''.

According to a survey by sina.com, one of China's largest web portals, 63 per cent (77,000) of netizens said they "strongly denounced'' SBS' actions. Some 47 per cent (58,000) said SBS "violated journalistic ethics'', 33 per cent (40,000) said SBS should be "investigated for responsibility''.

Some called for a boycott of all Korean goods, others said that legal action should be taken for leaking a state secret. Others called said the TV crew were traitors to the Chinese nation.

Not everyone took things so seriously though with 7 per cent (9,000) saying they didn’t care.

As one commenter reasoned: "So what if they leaked some scenes? It should serve to generate even more interest and act as a tantalizing advertisement for the event.'