Alibaba's Jack Ma pledges not to interfere in SCMP editorial independence

The South China Morning Post website and an image of Jack Ma, founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, are displayed on a computer in Hong Kong, China, in this November 23, 2015 file photo illustration. Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said it would buy publisher SCMP Group Ltd's media assets, including the South China Morning Post newspaper. The deal also includes licenses to several publications, including Hong Kong editions of Elle, Cosmopolitan and Harper's Bazaar. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/Files EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

SHANGHAI: The new boss of Hong Kong's South China Morning Post, Jack Ma, has promised not to interfere in editorial decisions, in an apparent bid to assuage concerns about the paper's independence under his e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. 

Critics have questioned Alibaba's intentions for the paper, speculating it may be an attempt to buy influence or toe the Chinese government's line in Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous former British colony that enjoys a high degree of press freedom.