The national security law that the Chinese government adopted in June 2020, allowing it to intervene directly in Hong Kong in order to arbitrarily punish what it regards as “crimes against the state,” is especially dangerous for journalists. Jimmy Lai, the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily and an RSF Press Freedom Prize laureate, has been arrested and charged under this law and is facing a possible life sentence. The public broadcaster Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) is being subjected to a full-blown intimidation campaign by the government with the aim of restricting its editorial autonomy. Nonetheless, there is resistance. It is being led by a handful of independent online media such as Citizen News, Stand News, The Initium, Hong Kong Free Press and inMedia. They exist thanks to participative funding and their audience is growing.
