A wave of coordinated harassment has targeted dozens of journalists in Hong Kong, marking one of the largest organized intimidation campaigns against the press in recent years, according to the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA). The attacks, which took place between June and August 2024, involved threats directed not only at journalists but also at their families, landlords, workplaces, and schools.
At least 15 journalists from more than a dozen media outlets—including Hong Kong Free Press, InMediaHK, and HK Feature—were affected. Anonymous emails, letters, and social media posts were used to disseminate false claims, death threats, and warnings aimed at silencing their reporting. In some cases, landlords were pressured to evict reporters under threat of “unimaginable consequences,” and defamatory edits appeared on their Wikipedia pages before being taken down by volunteer editors.
HKJA Chair Selina Cheng described the scale of harassment as unprecedented, calling it “the largest we’ve seen so far.” The association believes the attacks are systematic and carefully coordinated, rather than isolated acts of aggression. Victims reported being bombarded with abusive messages across multiple platforms, including WhatsApp and Facebook, indicating a sustained effort to create fear and erode public trust in the media.
The campaign comes amid a broader erosion of press freedom in Hong Kong, following the imposition of the 2020 National Security Law. Independent outlets such as Apple Daily and Stand News have been shut down, journalists prosecuted for sedition, and tax audits weaponized against critical voices. This latest round of intimidation signals a shift from institutional repression to personal attacks meant to isolate journalists socially and economically.
While Hong Kong’s Security Bureau urged journalists to report incidents to law enforcement, press freedom groups, including the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), condemned the harassment and called for accountability. HKJA has filed formal complaints with police and the city’s privacy watchdog.
As media freedom in Hong Kong continues to shrink, this campaign of harassment serves as a stark warning: the suppression of journalism is no longer confined to the newsroom—it now extends to reporters’ personal lives, threatening their safety, livelihoods, and the future of independent media in the region.
