Long before social media and camera lenses, ancient China had its own “paparazzi” who wielded ink, paper and a sharp tongue to unsettle the lives of the powerful.
In those days, gossip was more than idle chatter; it formed an informal information network linking teahouses, stage stations, street tabloids and officialdom.
During the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220), the imperial court established the Censorate, a body charged with monitoring official conduct.
Its censors watched for misconduct that…
How gossip spread in ancient China before advent of printing when newspapers reported on scandals
