Editing Apple Daily (section)

== Content ==
The newspaper was modelled after ''[[USA Today]]'', with printing in full colour and concise writing.<ref name="Lee2000"/> It also extensively used [[written Cantonese]],<ref>{{Cite book|title=Hong Kong: The Anthropology of a Chinese Metropolis|first=Maria|last=Tam|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|year=1997|page=19}}</ref> when most Hong Kong newspapers used [[written vernacular Chinese]],<ref name="Snow">{{Cite book|title=Cantonese as Written Language: The Growth of a Written Chinese Vernacular|first=Donald|last=Snow|publisher=Hong Kong University Press|year=2004|pages=166–168}}</ref> and a focus on reporting crime, [[Entertainment journalism|celebrity news]], eroticism, gambling, and drug use.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Challenge of Hong Kong's Reintegration with China|editor1-first=Ming|editor1-last=Chan|chapter=Media Structure and Regime Change in Hong Kong|first=Chin-Chuan|last=Lee|publisher=Hong Kong University Press|year=1997|page=131}}</ref> It carried at least three pages of entertainment news at the beginning but this was increased to eight pages by 2000.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Leung |first1=Wing-fai |title=Multimedia Stardom in Hong Kong: Image, Performance and Identity |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-62505-5}}</ref>{{rp|64}}

''Apple Daily'' is described to have introduced [[tabloid journalism]] to the Hong Kong market.<ref name=wsj_944517810654>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB944517810654941374|title=Hong Kong Investigators Raid Apple Daily; Reporter Arrested|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=2 December 1999|url-access=subscription|quote=The Apple Daily, which gives readers a heavy diet of sex and violence, has been attacked for bringing tabloid journalism into Hong Kong homes|access-date=19 March 2019|archive-date=3 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201003083701/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB944517810654941374|url-status=live}}</ref> The focus on large colourful graphics and more [[Sensationalism|sensationalist stories]], such as celebrity scandals, racist targeting of mainland immigrants, traffic accidents and deaths, quickly made ''Apple Daily'' Hong Kong's second most popular newspaper.<ref name="Weisenhaus2005">{{cite journal |last1=Weisenhaus |first1=Doreen |title=Newsgathering Practices: Hong Kong Journalists' Views and Use of Controversial Techniques |journal=Global Media Journal |year=2005 |volume=4 |issue=7 |url=https://www.globalmediajournal.com/open-access/newsgathering-practices-hong-kong-journalists-views-and-use-of-controversial-techniques.php?aid=35164 |language=en |issn=1550-7521 |access-date=31 May 2020 |archive-date=29 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929212437/https://www.globalmediajournal.com/open-access/newsgathering-practices-hong-kong-journalists-views-and-use-of-controversial-techniques.php?aid=35164 |url-status=live }}</ref> This type of journalism has also been replicated by other newspapers in Hong Kong.<ref name="Weisenhaus2005"/>

''Apple Daily'' attracted public criticism in 1998 for a report about a woman who jumped off a building after pushing her children out the window. The woman's husband was widely reported to have little remorse for the deaths of his wife and children. ''Apple Daily'' published a photo of the man with two prostitutes soon after the deaths. It was then revealed that the newspaper had paid the man to pose for the photograph, for which ''Apple Daily'' issued an apology after public outcry.<ref name="Weisenhaus2005"/> In the same year, ''Apple Daily'' ran a front-page article claiming that lawyer Jessie Chu Siu Kuk-yuen absconded with more than {{HKD|2 million}} of clients' money for her law firm. ''Apple Daily'' was ordered by a court to pay Chu more than {{HKD|3.6 million}} in damages for defamation.<ref name="SCMP-def">{{cite news |url=https://www.scmp.com/article/366792/36m-lawyer-defamed-paper |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |title=$3.6m for lawyer defamed by paper |date=21 December 2001 |access-date=15 May 2020 |archive-date=4 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004044922/https://www.scmp.com/article/366792/36m-lawyer-defamed-paper |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2000, an ''Apple Daily'' reporter was sentenced to 10 months in jail for bribing police officers for information on criminal cases.<ref name=on_20030527>{{Cite web|url=https://the-sun.on.cc/channels/news/20030527/20030527022754_0001.html|title=《蘋果日報》記者賄警囚10月|work=[[The Sun (Hong Kong)|The Sun]]|location=Hong Kong|access-date=17 December 2012|archive-date=12 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812052828/http://the-sun.on.cc/channels/news/20030527/20030527022754_0001.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Journalism scholar Paul Lee said the establishment of ''Apple Daily'' has changed the Hong Kong newspaper ecosystem by transforming broadsheet newspapers into tabloids.<ref name="paullee">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZuoqDwAAQBAJ|script-title=zh:香港傳媒新世紀|script-chapter=zh:一國兩制下的社會與媒介變遷|trans-title=New Perspectives on Hong Kong Media|trans-chapter=Media Transformations and the Society Under One Country Two Systems|edition=2nd|editor-first=Paul Siu-nam|editor-last=Lee|first=Paul Siu-nam|last=Lee|pages=4–7|language=zh-hk|publisher=[[The Chinese University Press]]|date=2015|isbn=978-962-996-668-3|orig-date=1st pub. 2003|via=Google Books preview|access-date=15 June 2020|archive-date=30 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200630005436/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZuoqDwAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> Lee said newspapers with a high circulation, such as ''Apple Daily'', ''The Sun'' and ''Oriental Daily'', are known for their tabloid journalism as well as making mainstream reporting (see [[middle-market newspaper]]).<ref name="paullee"/> ''Apple Daily'' did not join the self-regulation panel of the [[Newspaper Society of Hong Kong]].<ref name="paullee"/>

''Apple Daily'' is also known for its coverage of breaking news and current affairs in Hong Kong<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iXK0AAAAQBAJ|script-title=zh:新聞與香港社會真相|edition=增訂本|pages=71–77|author=黃天賜|publisher=Chung Hwa|location=Hong Kong|language=zh-hk|via=Google Books preview|date=2013|isbn=978-988-8181-99-5|access-date=15 June 2020|archive-date=30 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200630005438/https://books.google.com/books?id=iXK0AAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> and China.<ref name="Steinberger1996" /> The newspaper had exclusive reports on political scandals, including member of the [[Legislative Council of Hong Kong|Legislative Council]] [[Cheng Kai-nam]] not reporting [[conflict of interest]] in 2000,<ref name=scmp_324502>{{cite web|url=https://www.scmp.com/article/324502/dab-deputy-denies-passing-secret-information-clients|title=DAB deputy denies passing secret information to clients|first=Jimmy|last=Cheung|work=[[South China Morning Post]]|date=24 August 2000|access-date=24 June 2021|archive-date=25 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210625131724/https://www.scmp.com/article/324502/dab-deputy-denies-passing-secret-information-clients|url-status=live}}</ref> and former Financial Secretary [[Antony Leung]] for avoiding tax when purchasing a car.

=== Editorial position ===
''Apple Daily'' favoured the Hong Kong [[Pro-democracy camp (Hong Kong)|pro-democracy camp]].<ref name="So1999">{{Cite book|last=So|first=Clement Y.K.|title=Power Transfer and Electoral Politics: The First Legislative Election in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region|publisher=The Chinese University Press|year=1999|editor1-last=Kuan|editor1-first=Hsin-chi|pages=185–214|chapter=Fairness of Press Coverage: Four Factors Compared|editor2-last=Lau|editor2-first=Siu-kai|editor3-last=Louie|editor3-first=Kin-sheun|editor4-last=Wong|editor4-first=Timothy Ka-ying}}</ref>{{rp|205–206}} Its criticism of the Hong Kong government has been described as a marketing strategy.<ref name="LeeLin2006">{{cite journal |last1=Lee |first1=Francis L.F. |last2=Lin |first2=Angel M.Y. |title=Newspaper editorial discourse and the politics of self-censorship in Hong Kong |journal=Discourse & Society |year=2006 |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=331–358 |doi=10.1177/0957926506062371|hdl=10722/92430 |s2cid=53127938 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> According to Fung (2007), the newspaper is also said to have sensationalised politics and produced public dissent.<ref name="Fung2007">{{cite journal|last1=Fung|first1=Anthony Y. H.|date=June 2007|title=Political Economy of Hong Kong Media: Producing a Hegemonic Voice|journal=Asian Journal of Communication|volume=17|issue=2|pages=159–171|doi=10.1080/01292980701306530|s2cid=153994013}}</ref>{{rp|168}} In 2003, ''Apple Daily'' was critical of the [[Second term of Tung Chee-hwa as Chief Executive of Hong Kong|second Tung Chee-hwa administration]], encouraging readers to participate in [[2003 July 1st protest|pro-democracy demonstrations]] with its front-page headline.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Chan |first1=Joseph M. |last2=Lee |first2=Francis L. F. |s2cid=145449091 |title=Media and Large-scale Demonstrations: The Pro-democracy Movement in Post-handover Hong Kong |journal=Asian Journal of Communication |date=June 2007 |volume=17 |issue=2 |pages=215–228 |doi=10.1080/01292980701306639}}</ref> It launched a social media campaign in support of students in the [[2014 Hong Kong protests]]<ref name="Lin2017">{{cite journal |last1=Lin |first1=Zhongxuan |title=Contextualized Transmedia Mobilization: Media Practices and Mobilizing Structures in the Umbrella Movement |journal=International Journal of Communication |year=2017 |volume=11 |pages=48–71 |url=https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/viewFile/5372/1886 |access-date=1 June 2020 |archive-date=1 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001042331/https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/viewFile/5372/1886 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{rp|58}} and its social media presence was considered a mainstream pro-activist community.<ref>{{cite conference |url= https://hub.hku.hk/bitstream/10722/211040/1/Content.pdf |title= Networked Collective Action in the 2014 Hong Kong Occupy Movement: Analysing a Facebook sharing network |first1= King Wa |last1= Fu |first2= Chung Hong |last2= Chan |year= 2015 |conference= The 2nd International Conference on Public Policy |conference-url= https://www.ippapublicpolicy.org/conference/icpp2-milan-2015/8 |location= Milan |access-date= 1 June 2020 |archive-date= 23 June 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210623163045/https://hub.hku.hk/bitstream/10722/211040/1/Content.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref> The paper was also infamous for its xenophobic rhetoric against mainland Chinese people, which escalated during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=JN |date=2020-02-07 |title=Discrimination Isn’t Helping to Contain the Coronavirus |url=https://www.thenation.com/article/world/coronavirus-xenophobia-hong-kong/ |access-date=2025-04-25 |language=en-US |issn=0027-8378}}</ref> <!-- It was at the forefront of the [[Umbrella Movement]] protests in 2014, helping to rally support for the [[Occupy Central with Love and Peace]] protests and pushing back against the Chinese government's proposal for full suffrage (with all candidates vetted by the Chinese government). Editor-in-chief and largest shareholder of parent company Next Media [[Jimmy Lai]] was forced to step down in 2014 after his arrest for refusing to leave a key protest site in the central business district of Hong Kong. Ip Yut-kin, print media CEO of Next Media, succeeded him. --> <!-- Please provide a source for the commented section. -->

Critical of the Chinese government,<ref name="Fung2007"/>{{rp|169}} it was the only newspaper in Hong Kong that expressed optimism when [[Chen Shui-bian]] was re-elected [[President of the Republic of China]] in 2004.<ref name="Fung2007"/>

The editorial position against the Hong Kong and Chinese governments has resulted in advertising boycotts. In 2003, several major [[property developers in Hong Kong]] ended their advertisements in the newspaper. According to Mark Simon, an executive of [[Next Digital]], [[HSBC]], [[Hang Seng Bank|Hang Seng]] and [[Standard Chartered]] stopped advertising in the newspaper in 2013 due to pressure from the Chinese government's [[Hong Kong Liaison Office|Liaison Office]]. However, the Liaison Office denied it had contacted the banks,<ref name=wsj_1402923219>{{cite news |last1=Curran |first1=Enda |last2=Yung |first2=Chester |title=Hong Kong Newspaper Says HSBC, Standard Chartered Pulled Ads |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-daily-says-hsbc-standard-chartered-pulled-ads-due-to-chinese-government-pressure-1402923219 |access-date=31 May 2020 |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=16 June 2014 |archive-date=20 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200820111934/https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-daily-says-hsbc-standard-chartered-pulled-ads-due-to-chinese-government-pressure-1402923219 |url-status=live }}</ref> and the banks said they pulled advertising for commercial reasons.<ref name=economist_21607879>{{cite news |title=Tamed Hounds |url=https://www.economist.com/news/china/21607879-press-hong-kong-though-still-free-has-lost-its-bite-tamed-hounds |access-date=3 May 2020 |newspaper=The Economist |date=17 July 2014 |archive-date=6 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170206135449/http://www.economist.com/news/china/21607879-press-hong-kong-though-still-free-has-lost-its-bite-tamed-hounds |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=reuters_20141031>{{cite news |title=Thousands denounce HSBC board member's likening of Hong Kong people to freed slaves |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-china/thousands-denounce-hsbc-board-members-likening-of-hong-kong-people-to-freed-slaves-idUSKBN0IK0DV20141031 |access-date=1 November 2019 |website=reuters.com |date=31 October 2014 |language=en |first1=Anne Marie |last1=Roantree |first2=Lisa |last2=Jucca |archive-date=1 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191101042147/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-china/thousands-denounce-hsbc-board-members-likening-of-hong-kong-people-to-freed-slaves-idUSKBN0IK0DV20141031 |url-status=live }}</ref>

''Apple Daily'' also said Chinese-sponsored hackers have attacked it almost every week.<ref name="Reuters2015-AppleDaily">{{cite news|title=On China's fringes, cyber spies raise their game|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cybersecurity-hongkong-insight-idUSKBN0TI0WF20151130|website=reuters.com|date=30 November 2015|access-date=2 December 2015|last1=Bladwin|first1=Clare|last2=Pomfret|first2=James|last3=Wagstaff|first3=Jeremy|archive-date=2 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151202001227/http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/30/us-cybersecurity-hongkong-insight-idUSKBN0TI0WF20151130|url-status=live}}</ref> [[FireEye]] said in 2014 that [[denial-of-service attack]]s on ''Apple Daily'' were professional [[cyberattack]]s that may have been coordinated by the Chinese government.<ref name="Reuters2015-AppleDaily"/>

===2020 US presidential election misinformation===
{{main|January 6 United States Capitol attack}}
The newspaper inclined toward pro-[[Donald Trump]] misinformation during the [[2020 United States presidential election]], which was believed to relate to the former and current president's [[Anti-Chinese sentiment|anti-Chinese]] [[xenophobia]].<ref name=":6">{{cite news |last1=Mahtani |first1=Shibani |last2=Yu |first2=Theodora |last3=Shih |first3=Gerry |title=Hong Kong democracy activists confront their Trump dilemma |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/hong-kong-trump-democracy-election/2021/01/15/5d07a9c0-54db-11eb-acc5-92d2819a1ccb_story.html |access-date=3 June 2024 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> In an opinion piece, it falsely claimed that "a vote for Trump is not only for the Americans' own interests, but it is also one that is for the survival of the free world"; in another commentary, it misleadingly criticized the Democratic Party and a "leftist ideology permeated in Western academia and journalism".<ref name=theatlantic_616891>{{cite news|author=Timothy McLaughlin|title=Trump Is a 'Necessary Evil' for Some|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2020/10/democracy-activists-who-love-trump/616891/|work=The Atlantic|date=31 October 2020|access-date=23 June 2021|archive-date=24 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124121010/https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2020/10/democracy-activists-who-love-trump/616891/|url-status=live}}</ref> Although the position of the newspaper and Jimmy Lai was echoed by many democracy activists in Hong Kong, Taiwan and exiled Chinese dissidents living in the United States,<ref name=theguardian_20201101_trump>{{cite news|title=Trump finds unlikely backers in prominent pro-democracy Asian figures|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/01/trump-finds-unlikely-backers-in-prominent-pro-democracy-asian-figures|work=The Guardian|date=1 November 2020|access-date=23 June 2021|archive-date=24 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210324104251/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/01/trump-finds-unlikely-backers-in-prominent-pro-democracy-asian-figures|url-status=live}}</ref> democracy experts in the US like [[University of Kentucky]] professor Sharon Yam and [[Los Angeles]]-based [[Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month|AAPI]] activist and writer Promise Li considered these views problematic for the pro-democracy movement and agreed that they not only benefitted the mainland Chinese government, but were also instrumental in the organization of the [[January 6 United States Capitol attack]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-01-20 |title=Hong Kong's democracy activists see kindred spirits in the US Capitol insurrection |url=https://qz.com/1959099/hong-kong-activists-grapple-with-affinity-for-trump-after-capitol-attack |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=Quartz |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Li |first1=Promise |title=It's time for Hong Kong to reckon with its far-right |url=https://lausancollective.com/2020/hong-kong-reckon-with-far-right/ |website=Lausan Collective |date=29 November 2020 |access-date=3 July 2024}}</ref>

In September and October 2020, the newspaper published a factually inaccurate 64-page report produced by Typhoon Investigations untruthfully alleging [[Hunter Biden]] had a "problematic" connection with the [[Chinese Communist Party]], which was widely cited by far-right influencers such as [[Steve Bannon]] and fellow anti-China activist [[Guo Wengui]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hvistendahl |first=Mara |date=2020-11-11 |title=Questions Mount About Controversial Hunter Biden-China Dossier |url=https://theintercept.com/2020/11/11/hunter-biden-china-dossier/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=The Intercept |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-11-02 |title=Explainer: Apple Daily, Jimmy Lai's aide, and the 'anonymous' Hunter Biden China dossier |url=http://hongkongfp.com/2020/11/02/explainer-apple-dailys-jimmy-lai-his-aide-who-quit-and-the-anonymous-joe-biden-china-dossier/ |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=Hong Kong Free Press |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-10-31 |title=Media mogul Jimmy Lai 'unknowingly funded' report discrediting Joe Biden |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3107892/chinese-media-mogul-jimmy-lai-unknowingly-funded-false-persona-report |access-date=2024-06-06 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref> A report by [[NBC News]] linked the Typhoon Investigations to a fake "intelligence firm" and claimed that the author of the document, a self-identified Swiss security analyst named Martin Aspen, was a "fabricated identity". The original poster of the document, Christopher Balding, admitted that he wrote parts of the document and later stated that the document had been commissioned by ''Apple Daily''.<ref name=nbcnews_1245387>{{cite news|title=How a fake persona laid the groundwork for a Hunter Biden conspiracy deluge|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/how-fake-persona-laid-groundwork-hunter-biden-conspiracy-deluge-n1245387|publisher=NBC News|date=29 October 2020|access-date=23 June 2021|archive-date=13 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513082330/https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/how-fake-persona-laid-groundwork-hunter-biden-conspiracy-deluge-n1245387|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Jimmy Lai]] later said that he had personally "nothing to do with" the report, but he admitted his senior executive, Mark Simon, had "worked with the project".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-10-30 |title=The Odd Link Between Hunter Dossier and Hong Kong Protests |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-strange-link-between-a-fake-hunter-biden-dossier-and-the-hong-kong-democracy-protests/ |access-date=2025-02-12 |website=The Daily Beast |language=en}}</ref> Simon resigned following the NBC News report and apologized for having "allowed damage to Jimmy on a matter he was completely in the dark on".<ref name=theguardian_20201031_jimmy>{{cite news|title=Jimmy Lai distances himself from report on Hunter Biden's alleged China links|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/oct/31/jimmy-lai-distances-himself-from-report-on-hunter-bidens-alleged-china-links|work=The Guardian|date=31 October 2020|access-date=23 June 2021|archive-date=12 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210212054134/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/oct/31/jimmy-lai-distances-himself-from-report-on-hunter-bidens-alleged-china-links|url-status=live}}</ref>