Veteran Hong Kong journalist launches crowdfunded news agency

The founder of a news agency created this week by crowdfunding said “public interest” would be the primary value of his team.

Ng Hiu-tung, who has worked as a reporter and editor since 1990 for the likes of TVB and Cable TV,  was speaking on an RTHK radio programme a day after he announced the creation of FactWire, which he described as “an investigative news agency founded by the Hong Kong public”.

Ng sought to raise money through a crowdfunding website in June with the aim of raising HK$3 million in three months. Ng said by yesterday, he had already raised HK$3.3 million from at least 1,200 donors.

 FactWire has become the latest player to emerge in the media industry in recent months. Earlier this month, a new media website called The Initium Media was launched, while another website, Hong Kong Free Press, was set up by crowdfunding in June. It has managed to raise almost HK$590,000.

It is understood that former Ming Pao chairman Yu Bun-hoi is planning to launch a new media website, tentatively named Hong Kong 01.

Ng said because of privacy issues, he would generally not know the identity of donors. But he checked details of one big donor from the crowdfunding site. “The largest donation was from a person who gave HK$100,000. I checked that person’s address, phone number and name and it’s not a person I know,” he said, adding that he would not accept donations that were given for political reasons.