CNN sneaks first Western reporter into Libya

Ben Wedemen, a reporter for CNN, is the first Western journalist to report live from Libya, as the increasingly violent protests in that country mount. Libya has banned all foreign reporters from entering the country, making the situation even more difficult to cover than the Egyptian and Tunisian riots in recent weeks and months.

Wedemen has been broadcasting since yesterday, from an undisclosed location in the east of the country, controlled by anti-Gaddafi forces. He showed live video footage of the massive protests still rocking the country. According to his reports, the border is patrolled by untrained young men with AK-47s, not following any clear diplomatic or passport procedure. 

Journalists' struggles to cover the recent wave of uprisings in the Middle East have brought to mind another interesting question: as we move towards online news, dismembering the traditional print-media reporting model, has our ability to cover international news events decreased? It seems like a decade ago, we would have been able to use a team of reporters already on the ground in Cairo, rather than sending Anderson Cooper to sneak his way in.