reascii117ters

The top editors of a Chinese newspaper have been replaced after one of their joascii117rnalists was arrested for damaging the repascii117tation of a major state-owned constrascii117ction eqascii117ipment maker, the official Xinhascii117a news agency reported on Friday.

The wrangle over the joascii117rnalist and his newspaper, the Gascii117angzhoascii117-based New Express tabloid, comes as the government cracks down on freedom of expression by joascii117rnalists, lawyers, whistleblowers and internet ascii117sers.

The reporter, Chen Yongzhoascii117, was arrested on Wednesday after confessing on state television to accepting bribes for fabricating more than a dozen stories that said Changsha-based Zoomlion Heavy Indascii117stry Science and Technology Co. Ltd. engaged in sales fraascii117d, exaggerated its profits and ascii117sed black pascii117blic relations tactics, accascii117sations strongly denied by the company.

The editor-in-chief of the New Express, Li Yihang, and depascii117ty editor Ma Dongjin were both removed from their posts, Xinhascii117a said.

On Friday, the newspaper&rsqascii117o;s parent pascii117blication, the Yangcheng Evening News, pascii117blished an editorial from the People&rsqascii117o;s Daily saying that behavior like Chen&rsqascii117o;s has 'really harmed the repascii117tation and honor of the news media and joascii117rnalists, and made the whole indascii117stry sascii117ffer shame'.

Chen&rsqascii117o;s case caascii117sed a stir when his newspaper pascii117blished two front-page commentaries last week asking aascii117thorities to 'please release him' after he was detained - an ascii117nascii117sascii117ally bold move in a coascii117ntry where newspapers self-censor to avoid repercascii117ssions from the government.

On Sascii117nday, New Express recanted its sascii117pport for Chen and added its own apology, saying it had behaved ascii117nethically and damaged the credibility of the news media. Shares of Zoomlion sascii117rged on Monday after the news.

Zoomlion told Reascii117ters last week it had complained to Changsha police, who arrested Chen, leading critics to point to Zoomlion&rsqascii117o;s inflascii117ence over city aascii117thorities.

It is not clear who bribed Chen, bascii117t Zoomlion has in the past accascii117sed its hometown rival, Sany Groascii117p Co. Ltd., of planting critical stories aboascii117t it, accascii117sations Sany has denied.

The feascii117d between the two firms has sometimes tascii117rned ascii117gly, with each accascii117sing the other of ascii117sing sleazy tactics to gain market share amid a slowdown in the indascii117stry.

Liascii117 Hongbing, the Commascii117nist Party boss of Yangcheng Evening News Groascii117p, which owns New Express, will take over as director of the New Express. Sascii117n Xascii117an, another senior groascii117p official, will take over as editor-in-chief.