The latest poll conducted by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Programme (HKPOP) shows that the net satisfaction with press freedom in Hong Kong is minus 25 percentage points, the lowest since records began in 1997, while the net satisfaction with responsible reporting by the Hong Kong media is minus 16 percentage points, the lowest since 2007.
The results of the telephone survey, which was conducted by real interviewers with a random sample of 1,006 Hong Kong residents from late September to early October, also show that, among various news media, the Internet and television continue to be the main sources of news for the public, the percentage of people who get news mainly through newspapers is at its lowest since records began in 2000, and the percentage of people who get news through radio has dropped significantly.
The survey also showed that the credibility rating of the media dropped significantly by 5.14 marks, also the lowest since the handover. Hong Kong Journalists Association Chairman Yang Jianxing criticized the police for intentionally smearing the media, and the pro-establishment camp’s overwhelming attacks on journalists, which has affected the credibility of the media.
According to the survey, the satisfaction rate and dissatisfaction rate of Hong Kong’s freedom of the press are 29% and 54% respectively, with a net value of negative 25 percentage points, the lowest since records began in 1997; the percentage of those who consider Hong Kong’s news media to be responsible in their reporting is 19%, and 35% irresponsible, which is also the lowest since 2007.
Yang said that the decline in satisfaction with press freedom coincides with the general political climate and the downward trend in Hong Kong, and criticized the regime and the police for imposing restrictions on journalists’ access to the press, causing a rapid regression in press freedom. Yang pointed out that the Hong Kong government refused to renew the working visa of the Financial Times journalist and former Acting President of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Hong Kong, Ma Kai, and set restrictions on journalists’ interviews, and some people even proposed to license the media, etc., plus the police search of the Next Media building specified that only some journalists are allowed to interview, all reflect the government’s restrictions on press freedom.
The survey also found that among a variety of news media, the Internet and television continue to be the main source of news for the public, with 70% and 66% respectively, the percentage of news through newspapers is only 37%, a record low since 2000, and the percentage of news received through radio also plummeted by 12%. Television and the Internet were the most trustworthy sources of news, while newspaper news accounted for 12%, up 2% from the last survey.
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