A Hong Kong court convicts the publisher of The Wall Street Journal of deterring former reporter Selina Cheng from taking on a leadership role at the Hong Kong Journalist Association. The ruling finds Dow Jones Publishing Co (Asia) guilty of one charge related to preventing her from running for or exercising a role within the registered trade union.
The court clears the company of a second charge tied to Cheng’s dismissal shortly after she was appointed chair in 2024. Sources report that she was told her termination related to restructuring, including the WSJ’s shift of its Asian headquarters away from Hong Kong. Outlets frame the case as raising questions about press freedom and labour rights in the city, while differing mainly in emphasis—some focus on the press freedom implications, others on the specific legal outcomes of guilt versus acquittal.
Overall, all accounts agree that the conviction is limited to the deterrence issue, not an unlawful firing finding.
