A Hong Kong court has convicted Dow Jones Publishing, parent company of the Wall Street Journal, of deterring journalist Selina Cheng from taking up a trade union role, in a ruling that has intensified concerns over press freedom in the city. Cheng was fired in July 2024, weeks after becoming chair of the Hong Kong Journalist Association (HKJA, the city's oldest journalist union, founded in 1968), with her employer citing restructuring; magistrate David Cheung found her dismissal was instead driven by the firm's wrongful insistence that she seek prior approval to hold the position. The conviction carries a maximum fine of HK$100,000 (about $12,750), with sentencing to follow, and comes as Hong Kong has dropped 67 places in Reporters Without Borders' global press freedom index since Beijing imposed a national security law on the city in 2020.