Sharon Cheung

{{Short description|Hong Kong journalist}}

{{Use Hong Kong English|date = February 2019}}

{{Use mdy dates|date = February 2019}}

{{Infobox journalist

|name = Sharon Cheung

|image = Sharon Cheung-張寶華-Wikipedia-CC4.jpg

|native_name = 張寶華

|native_name_lang = yue-Hant

|pronunciation = {{IPAc-yue|z|oeng|1|-|b|ou|2|w|aa|4}}

|education = {{ublist|Chinese University of Hong Kong, B.A., 1995|Oxford University, Reuters Institute for Journalism, 2005}}

|birth_date =

|birth_place = Hong Kong

|years_active = 1995-present

|known_for = interviewing Jiang Zemin

}}

{{Infobox YouTube personality

| channel_id = UC4ABi-kCsS1rsAaJ-W4a3uA

| channel_display_name = Too simple sometimes naive

| silver_button = yes

| silver_year = 19 September 2022{{cite web |author1=sharon_po_wah123 |title=我呢個YouTube 十萬subscribers award |url=https://www.instagram.com/p/Cir63zPvr_w/ |via=Instagram |access-date=22 June 2023 |language=en, zh |date=September 19, 2022}}}}

Sharon Cheung ({{Lang-zh|t=張寶華|j=Zoeng¹ Bou²waa⁴|s=张宝华|p=Zhāng Bǎohuá|first=t, j}}, ) is a Hong Kong–based journalist and entrepreneur.{{Cite web|url=http://www.oxforduchina.org/sharon-cheung.html|title=Alumni Profiles: Sharon Cheung|date=July 2015|website=University of Oxford China Office|language=en-GB|access-date=February 16, 2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.scmp.com/culture/arts-entertainment/article/2042617/how-hong-kong-journalist-berated-jiang-zemin-turned-art|title=How Hong Kong journalist berated by Jiang Zemin turned to art|date=November 3, 2016|website=South China Morning Post|language=en|access-date=February 16, 2019}} She graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1995. She worked for the South China Morning Post from 1995 through 1998 and Hong Kong Cable Television News and Radio Television Hong Kong thereafter.

According to an interview conducted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong's The Varsity newspaper in April 2004, Cheung aspired to be a journalist since watching televised footage of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests of June 4, 1989. Sharon is quoted as saying “I was impressed by the hero who stood in front of the tanks, bravely striving for democracy.”

On October 27, 2000, Cheung interviewed then-Communist Party General Secretary of China Jiang Zemin. In this interview, after Jiang said he supported Tung Chee-hwa, Cheung questioned whether Jiang Zemin had appointed Tung in the election, which made Jiang Zemin angry and then denounced her and the Media of Hong Kong as "too simple, sometimes naïve"{{Cite web|url=http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2000/11/01/0000059500|title=No wonder Jiang became so angry - Taipei Times|date=November 1, 2000|website=www.taipeitimes.com|access-date=February 16, 2019}}{{Cite web|url=http://varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk/varsity/0405/people_sharon.htm|title=Good journalism is a tough job|last=Tam|first=Anthony|date=April 2004|website=varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk|access-date=February 16, 2019}}{{cite web|url=http://www.dw.com/zh/%E9%95%BF%E5%B9%B3%E8%A7%82%E5%AF%9F%E5%93%88%E5%93%88%E6%B1%9F%E6%B3%BD%E6%B0%91%E5%BD%A2%E8%B1%A1%E5%92%B8%E9%B1%BC%E7%BF%BB%E8%BA%AB/a-18803421|title=长平观察："哈哈"，江泽民形象咸鱼翻身？|date=2015-10-24|publisher=德国之声|language=zh-hans|access-date=2015-11-10}} The interview went viral and made her become famous, and has been dubbed as one of the three foundational works ({{lang-zh|s=蛤三篇|l=Three pieces about the Toad}}) of the Chinese internet subculture of "Toad Worship"."Toad" ({{Wikt-lang|zh|蛤}}; {{Lang|zh-Latn-pinyin|Há}}) is a nickname for Jiang Zemin, who is said to visually resemble a toad.{{cite web|url=http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/jiang-zemin-china-toad-xi-jinping/|title=Ridicule Turns to Affection as Chinese Social Media Embraces Jiang Zemin|author=AMY QIN|date=2015-10-20|work=New York Times|access-date=2016-08-25}}{{Cite web|url=https://eastweek.my-magazine.me/main/34471|title=Too smart, sometimes cautious... 張寶華 - 娛樂放題 - 留星語|website=東周網【東周刊官方網站】Eastweek.com.hk|language=zh-Hant-HK|access-date=2019-02-17}}

In May 2015, she set up the Lion Rock Spirit Fellowship for journalists from Hong Kong to pursue the Reuters Institute's Journalism Fellowship Programme at the University of Oxford.

Sharon Cheung went on to be a senior vice president of Media Asia Entertainment Group, and is now teaching journalism at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She advocates for press freedom in China and Hong Kong. In a 2004 interview, Cheung said “the mainland government sees the media as a propaganda tool, to promote its views. However, the Hong Kong government considers the media to be watchdogs that supervise what the government does.”

Cheung is now an entrepreneur and works to advise firms on their new media strategies.{{Citation|last=voicesfromoxfordUK|title=Sharon Cheung - From Journalist to Entrepreneur|date=2016-01-06|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pldvkU1nDPE|access-date=2019-02-17}}