China's state media only carries bare bones reports on Ling Jihua corruption probe
Probe features prominently in mainland media, but most have kept to a short official statement
State-run media on the mainland have given prominent coverage to a short report about the corruption investigation into former presidential aide Ling Jihua, but have largely run only the brief statement from Xinhua.
More commercial newspapers such as The Beijing News and the Oriental Morning Post in Shanghai ran the story underneath their front page headline, but then, like other state media outlets, referred only to the one-sentence report issued by Xinhua on Monday evening.
The report said Ling was under investigation for corruption, but gave no further details. The Oriental Morning Post also referred to a graft investigation into other government officials with links to Shanxi, Ling’s home province.
Jin Daoming, a former deputy party chief in the province, and Shen Weichen, an ex-senior official in the provincial capital Taiyuan, are also the focus of corruption investigations.
Several sources have previously told the South China Morning Post that investigators are looking into the affairs of officials dubbed the “Shanxi gang”.