English newspapers in British colonial Hong Kong: the case of the South China Morning Post (1903–1941)

Abstract

This article studies the South China Morning Post (SCMP) in British colonial Hong Kong. To be viable and profitable in the Hong Kong media market, SCMP had to meet the various needs of its Chinese and British readership, and in so doing, formed a combined reporting strategy. For example, British readers were serious sports fans so the SCMP endeavoured to be the preeminent newspaper to target a wealthy readership obsessed with lawn bowls. Chinese readers were generally merchants who were concerned about their businesses in China and Hong Kong. Although the Hong Kong government applied strict censorship against the Chinese press, SCMP was uniquely free, consequently, it could publish sensitive and important events that Chinese subscribers desired to read about and comment upon. The Chinese could express their concerns and attempt to mould the opinions of others. While the Chinese had limited influence on the British colonial government, SCMP played an important role in improving Chinese readers’ freedom of expression and their social position in the course of consensus building in Hong Kong. In this manner, SCMP had an economic, political and social function in the making of Hong Kong in the first half of the 20th century.