Kriti Gandhi is one of the Claire Hollingworth Fellows for Foreign Correspondents' Club of Hong Kong, in this episode she sits down with Laurel Chor, an acclaimed Hong Kong-born journalist and visual storyteller known for her incisive reporting and striking photography. Laurel opens up about her dynamic career journey-from her early days at TIME OUT Hong Kong and Coconuts where she sharpened her writing and multimedia production skills, to her pivotal role at VICE. In 2018, Laurel made the bold decision to leave her full-time position to pursue freelancing, allowing her to focus on her passion for photography and independent storytelling.

Laurel delivered the closing keynote address at the 2025 journalism conference at the FCC in Hong Kong, as well as appearing on a panel discussing mental health challenges and practical solutions for journalists.

She candidly discusses the challenges of burnout in the fast-paced media world and shares valuable insights on the necessity of rest, setting boundaries, and maintaining mental health. She offers practical advice for young journalists on cultivating a personal brand and harnessing social media to amplify their voices in an increasingly crowded digital landscape, focusing on Instagram. The conversation also delves into the ethical complexities journalists face, especially when reporting from conflict zones like Ukraine. Laurel reflects on the responsibility of truth-telling under pressure and the delicate balance between storytelling and sensitivity.

Find Laurel Chor on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurelchor/

Written and produced by Jarrod Watt

Theme music composed by Allen Youngblood

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Generative AI is changing our newsrooms, but how do we explain to the audience when it's being used, and how? As deepfakes become ubiquitous, how are newsrooms combating faked photos and video? How do journalists and editors handle photos and video sent in by the public if their phones are now enabled with AI to adjust or remove elements of the original image? Globally, there is a three cornered contest on AI regulation between Beijing, Washington and the EU: what of Hong Kong, where American, European and Chinese news organisations operate? Upon the 2025 FCC Journalism Conference this episode brings you conversations with three journalists at the forefront of the emerging frontiers of generative AI in journalism.

Daniel Funke is the head of digital investigation for the Asia-Pacific region for Agence France Press

Claudia Hinterseer is the lead video producer at the South China Morning Post as well as lecturer in Generative AI in Journalism for the masters of international journalism program at Hong Kong Baptist University

Lynn Walsh is an Emmy Award-winning journalist with 15 years experience in investigative, data and TV journalism, former president and former Ethics Chair for the Society of Professional Journalists and currently Assistant Director at Trusting News, working with US-based newsrooms to develop ethical AI policies and strategies.

Produced by Jarrod Watt

Theme music composed by Allen Youngblood

Trusting News: trustingnews.org/trustkits/ai/

AFP Chrome plug-in for image verification:

chromewebstore.google.com/detail/fake-…eenfhe?hl=en

AFP watermarking of photos via their Nikon cameras

www.afp.com/en/agency/inside-af…enticity-its-photos

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Grace Shao is a journalist covering the AI industry from Hong Kong, focusing on China's tech companies and the commercialisation of AI. She talks about the "Deep Seek moment" over the Lunar New Year holiday in 2025, how it upended the accepted paradigm of generative AI development, and analyses how the traditional media narrative of a "race" and "conflict" between the US and China limits the understanding of what is happening with AI development. She also reflects on how this narrative impacts personally on a journalist born and raised in a Chinese family in Canada, educated in the US and working from Hong Kong, often travelling to mainland China. She discusses the advantages for Hong Kong-based journalists to bridge the culture and knowledge gaps in newsrooms in London and New York, as well as her journey from traditional media publications to developing her own Substack, and how this business model changes the presumptions of what is to be expected from journalists.

Find Grace Shao on Substack: https://aiproem.substack.com/

Produced and presented by Jarrod Watt

Theme music composed by Allen Youngblood

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lee Williamson discusses the results of the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Hong Kong 2025 Press Freedom survey and the upcoming annual journalism conference with Robin Ewing, broadcaster on RTHK3 and director of the Masters of International Journalism program at Hong Kong Baptist University. The annual press freedom survey revealed increased pressure and self-censorship among journalists, with 62% feeling their environment worsened since the last survey. The survey also noted a decline in sources' willingness to speak on record. Despite this, CNN is expanding in Hong Kong, and the FCC has seen an increase in members. Hear more about the guest speakers and panels at the upcoming annual journalism conference, themed "The Way Forward," which will focus on building skills, networking, and addressing issues like AI's impact on journalism.

Written and produced by Jarrod Watt

Theme song composed by Allen Youngblood

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

FCC Correspondent Governor Jennifer Jett moderates a panel of Hong Kong-based shipping industry veterans to discuss the many challenges facing the global shipping industry, including the latest salvo in Trump's trade war with China, called Section 301, which states any ship built, owned or operated by China will be charged millions of dollars to dock at any US port.

Angad Banga is the Chief Operating Officer of Caravel group, the diversified Hong Kong headquartered conglomerate whose extensive interests include fleet ship management, one of the world's largest ship management companies, with over 650 ships under management. In addition the group trades and transports over 70 million tons of iron ore each year, and other investments under caravel management include retail, beauty products, breweries, healthcare and technology.

Olivia Lennox King is the Chief Operating Officer of Cetus Maritime and owner and operator of a fleet of over 40 bulk carriers, trading globally with a wide range of commodities and operating from nine offices around the world.

Tim Huxley, is the founder and chairman of Mandarin shipping limited, a Hong Kong-based shipping company which has been operating in the container feeder market.

In addition, Tim is a director of a number of shipping companies in Asia and Europe involved in the bulk carrier, oil tanker and marine insurance sectors, and he is also the FCC second vice president and long time treasurer.

Produced by Jarrod Watt

Theme music composed by Allen Youngblood

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Veteran broadcast journalist and FCC correspondent member governor Karen Koh convenes a panel discussion and an in-depth, personal and revealing QandA with the audience after a screening of "The M Factor: shredding the silence on menopause" documentary.

The panel includes: Christine Deschemin, a hypnotherapist and founder of the Menopause Festival; Maria Chau, COO of the Women's Foundation, and Brian Henderson, founder of Whole Business Wellness. They explore the physical, emotional, and mental health challenges of menopause and the need for cultural and workplace support. Menopause affects all women, and especially within a city like Hong Kong it is crucial to discuss how different cultures and workplaces can provide better support.

* Evercalm menopause app: https://www.evercalmmenopause.com/

* The Women's Foundation, Hong Kong: https://twfhk.org/

* Whole Business Wellness: https://www.wholebusinesswellness.com/

Theme music composed by Allen Youngblood

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Hong Kong was once the poster-child of artistic freedom in Asia as well as an unparalleled leader of the region's booming contemporary art market. However, despite growing uncertainties over the "red lines" of censorship, there are more world-class art institutions in the city than ever before and the market has proved resilient, with international auction houses and galleries continuing to expand their presence in the city. FCC President Lee Williamson speaks with South China Morning Post arts editor and FCC member Enid Tsui about her new book, Art in Hong Kong, where she analyses the Hong Kong art world's past, present and the possible paths forward as it strives to develop into an international art hub.

Presented by Kriti Gandhi and Jarrod Watt.

Theme music composed by Allen Youngblood

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Hong Kong categorises people who are not Chinese or caucasian as "ethnic minorities" and its media often portrays these people as an underclass of criminals, incapable of making contribution to mainstream society. In this panel discussion, journalist and FCC Clare Hollingworth fellow Jay Ganglani moderates a panel of two prominent trailblazers of African and South Asian heritage, along with a journalist who has covered many issues affecting ethnic minorities in Hong Kong.

You'll hear from Jeffery Andrews, Hong Kong's first ever ethnic minority social worker, a tireless contributor to a charity serving marginalised and disadvantaged communities and advisor at Diversity Hub, along with Innocent Mutanga, a former asylum seeker from Zimbabwe, now an investment banker and founder of the Africa Centre for Hong Kong, and South China Morning Post journalist Kathryn Giordano, who has filed many stories on Hong Kong's diverse ethnic minority community.

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.