Newspaper>> Corruption • China
A Chinese daily, which had campaigned for the release of one of its journalists, has issued an apology. The Guangdong-based New Express said a preliminary police investigation found that its reporter, Chen Yongzhou, had accepted money to publish numerous false reports. He was arrested over claims that he defamed a partly state-owned firm, Zoomlion, in articles exposing alleged corruption. Chen wrote several articles alleging financial irregularities at the construction-equipment company. Zoomlion denies the allegations.
The paper’s front-page apology came after the journalist confessed to the wrongdoing on state TV. “The newspaper was not strict enough about checking the draft of the report,” a spokesperson of New Express said. The paper promised to ensure that its reporters and editors “comply with professional journalistic ethics and regulations”.
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