Press Freedom At New Lows, Feel Survey Respondents

The Hong Kong Journalists Association said on Monday that a survey it has conducted suggests people think the city’s press freedom deteriorated to a record low last year.

More than 1,000 Hong Kong residents surveyed by the association ranked the city’s press freedom index at 41.9 out of 100, a drop of 3.1 points compared to 2018.

Meanwhile, 327 journalists put the figure at 36.2, a decline of 4.7 points. One third of the journalists said their seniors had pressured them into dropping or reducing reporting on Hong Kong independence.

Both the public and journalists cited “threatened personal safety of reporters when covering news” and “difficulties encountered by reporters when gathering information” as their major concerns.

Meanwhile, two-thirds of the 222 journalists who participated in a separate survey said they had been treated violently by police or groups of people when covering news.