Dong Yuyu (董郁玉) is a veteran Chinese journalist and former editor at Guangming Daily. He was detained in Beijing in February 2022 while having lunch with a Japanese diplomat, convicted of espionage in November 2024, and sentenced to seven years in prison.
The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that the Beijing High Court rejected Dong’s appeal in November 2025. In March 2026, according to his family as reported by CPJ, he was transferred from Beijing No. 2 Prison to Chaobai Prison in Tianjin.
CPJ reported in May 2026, citing Dong’s son, that Dong had been admitted to a prison-affiliated hospital after heart symptoms and that imaging found a mass in his left lung requiring further evaluation. These medical details are family-reported through CPJ and are not independently verified by FreeChina.live.
Dong previously worked as an editor and columnist and was a 2006–2007 Nieman Fellow at Harvard. His case has drawn international attention from press-freedom organizations and foreign governments. Chinese authorities have said the case was handled according to law.
Sources: Committee to Protect Journalists; Reuters; National Press Club; Nieman Foundation.
Media Profile & Archive: Dong Yuyu — Media Profile & Archive