Shen Bao

Shen Bao (Chinese: 申報; lit. 'The Report', romanized contemporarily as The Shun Pao) was a Chinese daily newspaper published by the Shenbaoguan (申報館; 'Shen Bao Office') in Shanghai from 1872 to 1949. It was one of the most influential Chinese newspapers for much of its publication, achieving particular dominance during the late 1800s and the 1920s, interrupted by bouts of financial and political difficulties. It alternated between periods of reformist and conservative political leanings. Founded by the English merchant Ernest Major in the Shanghai International Settlement, Shen Bao quickly became the most popular newspaper Chinese-language newspaper in the city. It was able to operate free of censorship from the Imperial government due to its location within a foreign concession, but circulated throughout China. It was more focused on domestic matters than other foreign-sponsored papers in China, and advocated for moderate westernization as part of the Self-Strengthening Movement. It faced little competition until the 1890s, when the Xinwen Bao and smaller reformist papers emerged. The more conservative Shen Bao faced financial difficulties, prompting its sale to a Chinese businessman in 1909. Following the 1911 Revolution, a group of businessmen acquired the paper and hired Shi Liangcai as its manager. Shi acquired ownership of the paper after a 1915 legal dispute. He sought to maximize advertising revenue, expanded the paper's distribution network, and avoided a crackdown on dissident papers under Yuan Shikai's rule. The paper launched various supplements and by 1929 had become the most successful newspaper in China. Shi consolidated much of the Shanghai press industry under his ownership, but faced political pressure from the Kuomintang government, which had him assassinated in 1934. After the Battle of Shanghai in 1937, the paper was transferred to American ownership to avoid repression, but was seized by Imperial Japanese forces in 1941 and pushed...