Only the UDN and the Kung Lun Pao, run by the Taiwanese democratic activist Li Wan-ju, dared print cautiously worded support for Lei, but even then they suffered a boycott from the military. The space for press freedom was further narrowed.
案發後僅聯合報和當時台籍民主報人李萬居的公論報以措詞謹慎的社論為之聲援，事後還受軍方杯葛退報，台灣言論的天空顯然更為窄小了。