Nationalists attack Chinese journalist over emotional Shinzo Abe report

Name: Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event
Uploaded: 2022-07-08T13:42:19.000Z
Duration: 2 min 11 s
Description: Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event

Zeng Ying apologises for ‘unprofessional’ behaviour, says she will pray for peace between the two countries

Hawkish opinion leaders try to tamp down online sentiment and some platforms close comments

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Chinese journalist Zheng Ying spoke highly of Shinzo Abe in her report. Photo: Weibo

Liu Zhen

Published: 9:42pm, 8 Jul 2022

A Chinese reporter apologised after coming under attack from nationalistic critics over her emotional response to the assassination of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe on Friday.

Zeng Ying, a Japan-based reporter with online news portal ThePaper.cn, could be heard sobbing in a video report about the shooting.

Zeng also spoke highly of Abe, saying he opened the door to more Chinese tourists in Japan and tried to amend the Japanese constitution to be less dependent politically and militarily on the US.

Her comments and reaction drew ire from nationalistic internet users in China, who see Abe as representative of a Japanese right-wing in denial about the country’s war crimes.

“We don’t see any Japanese reporters crying for Abe. how come a Chinese journalist being so heartbroken?” one commenter said.

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Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event

Zeng later apologised on her social media account for being “unprofessional” by showing personal emotion on a public platform and “hurting everyone’s feelings”.