Once again, the title of this post is without sarcasm (via the China Herald).

In an unprecedented protest, almost 2,500 Chinese journalists have written to the Guangdong High People’s Court to voice opposition against the detention of their colleagues at the Guangdong Metropolis News, reports the China Digital Times.
"We are journalists from the Southern Metropolis News, Beijing News, First Financial Daily, Evening News, Shanghai Youth Daily, Sina.com and Sohu.com… we believe this is an unjust case…"

I had lunch with a reporter from one of Shanghai’s business papers today. Amid various points of conversation, she mentioned that she would never consider working for the state press: "There’s  not enough freedom."

China’s critical independent press has been developing for a while, especially in financial media. But an "organized" and upset independent press seems new.