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Hong Kong politics
OpinionHong Kong Opinion
Ronny Tong
Opinion
Ronny Tong

Jimmy Lai case shows press freedom is not a get-out-of-jail-free ticket

To ignore or condone the Jimmy Lais and Apple Dailies of the world is to encourage the hypocrisy and abuses seen in news reporting today

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Correctional Services Department vehicles leave the West Kowloon Court where former media boss Jimmy Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison for violating the national security law, on February 9. Photo: Eugene Lee
Ronny Tong
Ronny Tong, SC, was chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association from 1999 to 2001, and was first elected a member of the Legislative Council in 2004.
The death of Ted Turner, who founded CNN in 1980 as the world’s first 24-hour television news channel, is a poignant reminder of the glory days of the fourth estate. CNN made day-and-night news coverage, including at the front line of battlefields, an everyday experience for many people.

The rise of the internet and ever more channels of news delivery has enabled a global audience of news consumers, attuned to reports delivered from all around the world. This has turned the most successful news providers into some of the most powerful and influential communication tools of our time.

Such power and influence are not lost on political leaders and interest groups. Nowadays, it is hard to imagine a major news outlet not taking a side in politics or having behind it some powerful political figure. For the high-minded, this is, of course, a disappointing turn of events for the journalistic profession.

In one of the Spider-Man films, Peter Parker’s Uncle Ben tells him: “With great power comes great responsibility.” For those in the news business, any abuse of that power not only represents a denial of responsibility but also a betrayal of journalistic values. Sadly, such cases exist.

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