In China, a display of press courage
When China's president, Xi Jinping, visited the leading party and state news organizations Feb. 19, he demanded absolute loyalty to the Communist Party, saying the media must "have the party as their family name." His purpose was to cajole and intimidate. But for intimidation to work, it has to inspire fear. Last week, a Chinese news organization showed that it was not afraid.
The publication, Caixin Media, is headed by one of China's most respected journalists, Hu Shuli, who has often pioneered reporting that exposed failures by the state and private sector. Her journalism has pushed the limits of what's permissible in a nation where free expression and independent journalism are usually and routinely suffocated by the state.
On Tuesday, Caixin Media's English-language website reported that the Cyberspace Administration of China, which it described as a government censorship office, had ordered the removal of an article on Caixin's Chinese site, saying the article contained "illegal content."
The article quoted Jiang Hong, who advises the government on economic policy, as saying that people like himself should feel free to give their opinions to party leaders about economics, politics, cultural and societal issues.
To its credit, Caixin Media was not to be intimidated by the censor's hand or Xi's exhortations. Soon after the article in Chinese was removed, the news organization posted a new article on its English-language website, revealing the censorship, accompanied by a photograph of a mouth that had been sealed with tape. Caixin also interviewed Jiang again. He described the censorship as "baffling," "terrible and bewildering" and said he examined the original article and "I couldn't see anything illegal."
If Xi believed that his demands for loyalty would be met with obsequious passivity, Caixin Media has demonstrated otherwise. In this case, Caixin decided to confront the censor with the most potent response available: sunlight. It was a display of courage, however brief.
This story was originally published March 11, 2016 at 3:08 PM with the headline "In China, a display of press courage."