NYT Engineer's In-Laws Charged

A Dublin, California couple is accused of killing their son-in-law in a public park.

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Updated 4:43pm ET

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What happened

Shili Chen and Shouyong Zhang, both 77, were charged with murdering their son-in-law, Jonathan McKinsey, after police said he was shot in a California park parking lot. McKinsey, a 40-year-old New York Times games engineering executive, was found with multiple gunshot wounds at Dublin Sports Grounds and died there. The killing came during a bitter divorce and custody fight with his wife, Candice Jang, over their three young children. Court filings say both sides sought restraining orders, with McKinsey alleging anti-LGBTQ abuse after his gender transition and Jang alleging abuse of her and the children. Witnesses and a sergeant identified the couple near the scene. Prosecutors said surveillance video showed both shooting McKinsey, and Zhang later admitted firing. The next divorce hearing had been scheduled around the shooting.

How each side covered it

From the left

Only one left-leaning outlet we track covered this: The Guardian, under the headline “In-laws charged with murder of New York Times games engineer in California”.

From the right

Right-leaning coverage leaned into the alleged ambush and the family conflict behind it, rather than treating the case mainly as a court filing. The New York Post described an “ambush-style attack” and lingered on the claim that two guns were used. It also framed the case around a nasty custody fight and highlighted McKinsey as a transgender technology executive.

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