Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai vowed to keep up US sanctions calls after security law introduced, urged Apple Daily to ‘influence discourse’, court hears

He added the tycoon pushed back against suggestions to diversify content and insisted the spotlight be cast only on the mainland to keep a sharp focus.

“The national security law was in effect, and Mr Lai felt that Hong Kong and Apple Daily were hanging by a thread, so he had a tight grip on the English version,” Cheung said.

Messaging records submitted to the court suggested Lai was displeased to see the platform run an article in August 2020 about the United States presidential election.

Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai told staff to run ‘pro-resistance’ stories: trial

“Do we need this kind of news that has nothing to do with China and all major English newspapers have published it?” Lai said in a message addressed to Fung Wai-kong, then managing editor of Apple Daily’s English edition.

Fung countered by saying that publishing a variety of international news stories was necessary for “a full-fledged news channel”, but Lai was not convinced.

“I don’t think this kind of news is needed since whenever they come their local news media should have covered it. I rather think that we should focus on Chinese news and be known for it without dilution,” Lai said.

Cheung recalled seeking Lai’s permission to publish “soft” articles on the English platform, covering topics such as food, travel and culture.

The Jimmy Lai trial so far: daily updates on his Hong Kong national security case

Mr Justice Alex Lee Wan-tang, who is among three High Court judges on the bench, questioned whether Lai had overstepped his authority, but Cheung noted it was normal for media outlets to have their own stances and editorial policies.

Lai, 76, has denied two conspiracy charges of collusion with foreign forces under the Beijing-decreed national security law, and a third count of conspiracy to print and distribute seditious publications under colonial-era legislation.

One of the foreign collusion charges targets an alleged anti-China campaign linked to Apple Daily, over which Lai allegedly had complete editorial policy control.

Prosecutors highlighted four English articles published by Apple Daily which they deemed offensive.

Another article by Germany-based Hong Kong activist Glacier Kwong Chung-ching slammed the high-profile arrests of 53 leading opposition figures in January 2021, comparing it to Taiwan’s crackdown on democracy advocates during its martial law era in 1979.

Cheung said those critiques were in line with Lai’s request for the tabloid to draw foreign readers’ attention to the central government’s “oppression” on the city.