China newspaper pleas for release of reporter Chen Yongzhou A woman reads the New Express newspaper that carried a full-page editorial with headline "Please release our man," in a library in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong province. Hong Kong: A newspaper in the southern Chinese city Guangzhou on Wednesday published a bold front-page appeal for the release of a detained reporter, prompting an outpouring of support online and sympathetic statements from prominent news media and business figures. Under a huge three-character headline, "Please Release Him," The New Express said one of its reporters, Chen Yongzhou, had been held since Friday by the Changsha police for his investigation of the finances of Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Co., China's second-largest construction equipment maker. Mr Chen was formally detained on Saturday under "suspicion of damaging commercial reputation," said the police in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province and home to Zoomlion's headquarters. The New Express, a scrappy tabloid, had run a series of articles questioning Zoomlion's revenue and profit figures. Zoomlion, which is partly owned by the Hunan government, has denied allegations that it faked its results. Trading in the company's shares in Shenzhen, a major Chinese economic zone, and in Hong Kong was temporarily suspended in May after The New Express accused Zoomlion of doctoring sales numbers. The Changsha police say Mr Chen fabricated allegations that the company had improperly privatised state assets, spent $US84.3 million on "abnormal marketing" and falsified sales and financial information, according to a report by Xinhua, the state-run news service. The New Express said Wednesday that it had reviewed 15 articles that Mr Chen had written about the company and found only one small error. "We always thought you only need to report responsibly and you won't have any problems," the newspaper said. The facts confirm that we were too naïve. The newspaper said Mr Chen was summoned to a Guangzhou police station and taken into custody by police officers visiting from Changsha, 700 kilometres to the north. Mr Chen was put inside a Mercedes-Benz and driven away, The New Express reported, quoting Mr Chen's wife. On Wednesday morning, screen shots of the front page were circulating widely on Sina Weibo, which is similar to Twitter, and other social media websites in China. The response was similar to the burst of public support for another Guangzhou-based publication, Southern Weekend, after it raised concerns about growing press constraints earlier this year. At least one newspaper, The Beijing News, posted a statement of support. "Changsha police must not remain silent," it said. Please show what evidence you have in the light of day. Please let the law decide whether to detain him or free him, not who has more power or the loudest voice. The New Express article was noteworthy for both its public appeal and its sharp tone, said David Bandurski, a researcher with the University of Hong Kong's China Media Project. "I can't remember anything like this, a front-page editorial that's quite acerbic and pretty snarky," he said. The newspaper stressed that it had gone public with the story only after exhausting other channels. "First they would try to deal with the authorities, with government officials," Mr Bandurski said. They would try to resolve the conflict. They don't want to be seen as having built it up into something bigger or trying to make a fuss or make it a larger issue of justice. This is when you get into trouble. Mr Chen is the second journalist from The New Express to be detained in recent months. The first, Liu Hu, was held in Beijing in August on defamation charges for his articles alleging corruption by local government officials, including a former vice mayor in Chongqing, the southwestern Chinese city, and the police chief in Shaanxi province.