China's state news agency Xinhua has issued a correction after it referred to President Xi Jinping as "China's last leader", in what was an apparent copy-editing error. The agency then had to ask other media outlets to also change the reference to "China's top leader" after the errant copy was widely reused, reported the BBC. Though the two phrases have just one different character in Mandarin, they are pronounced differently.

Chinese media is heavily regulated by the government, especially since Jinping came to power in 2013, reported PTI. The president recently toured newsrooms in Beijing, calling for "absolute loyalty" to the Communist Party, the report said. Similar typos in the past have had serious consequences for the journalists involved. In December, four journalists were suspended after the China News Service – also controlled by the ruling party – accidentally reported the president's "resignation" (ci zhi) instead of "speech" (zhi ci) during his tour of Africa.