
ASIAN AMERICA: THE KEN FONG PODCAST
Ken Fong gets to the heart of Asian American culture, history, and spirituality. Through interviews with culture-makers and -shapers in the Asian American community -- some you know, others you've never heard of before -- prepare to laugh, cry, and be amazed.
Latest episodes

Jun 29, 2024 • 39min
EP 482: The Two Kens On Debate Postmortem - Is Biden Too Old?
In this episode podcasters Fong and Kemp gamely try to stay out of panic mode in light of President Biden's abysmal performance at the first presidential debate against former President Donald Trump. Did Biden just show 50 million viewers that he was past his prime? Or does a person's performance on a debate stage really tell us how he or she will lead or deal with challenges? Hypothetically, if Biden chooses to drop out, who might the Dems nominate that would not just energize and unite the Dems, but a majority of voters?

Jun 16, 2024 • 1h 1min
EP 481: CEO Libby Liu On Whistleblower Aid, NDAs & Radio Free Asia
Whistleblower Aid CEO Libby Liu has long been a tireless champion for giving as many people as possible access to what's really going on, pushing back against Goliaths like totalitarian governments or powerful corporations. We talk about how the non-profit she leads equips whistleblowers to step forward with courage and to survive the harrowing legal and personal gauntlets that lie ahead of them. She also explains why many NDAs are not nearly as enforceable as we think.

Jun 9, 2024 • 53min
EP 480: The Two Kens On A Convicted Felon Running To Be POTUS
With the conviction of former POTUS Trump on all 34 counts last week, you might think that that would catalyze many of even his most ardent supporters to call for him to drop out of the current race for the White House. Think again. Fong and Kemp try to discern why the majority of GOP "the party of law and order" politicians are crying foul, validating Trump's own bogus claim that he's a political martyr. But these two veteran podcasters also weigh in on how the Biden camp needs to capitalize on this first known instance when something has finally stuck to "Teflon Don."

Jun 1, 2024 • 60min
EP 479: Dr. Kenneth Wang On Learning How To Be Perfectly Imperfect
Clinical psychologist Dr. Kenneth Wang has spent the last 20 years researching the area of perfectionism, especially how it manifests itself in Asian Americans. This should come as no surprise, but most corporate executives are perfectionists. This trait is often one of the main reasons that they've risen to the top of their organizations, but it can also create a problematic work environment for those around them, and even lead to problems at home. Wang and I also spend time talking about how many Asian American parents bring a perfectionistic 'tiger' approach when it comes to raising children.

May 26, 2024 • 1h 2min
EP 478: Virginia Duan On K-pop And Overcoming Relational Trauma
In her debut novel Illusive, writer, blogger, and author Virginia Duan takes readers behind the scenes in the world of K-pop to explore the paralyzing aftereffects of relational trauma and what can be done to overcome them.

May 20, 2024 • 51min
EP 477: The Two Kens On United But Hopelessly Divided?
In this latest episode of the collaborative series between longtime friends, former pastors, and fellow podcasters Ken Fong and Ken Kemp, they talk about whether the recent decision by the United Methodist denomination to remove all barriers that had prevented LGBTQ+ persons from experiencing full inclusion is a lens through which to view and understand what's happening in America.

May 12, 2024 • 58min
EP 476: Jamie Jo Hoang On "My Father, The Panda Killer"
In writing My Father, The Panda Killer Vietnamese American Jamie Jo Hoang humanizes the costs and consequences of the Vietnam War through the experiences of three generations of a traumatized fictional family from South Vietnam.

May 5, 2024 • 53min
EP 475: Thomas Lee On How Bruce Lee Mastered Business, Confidence, and Success
Author and business journalist Thomas Lee has given us a refreshingly new and relevant way to appreciate the life and legacy of the late pop icon Bruce Lee. In writing The Bruce Lee Code: How the Dragon Mastered Business, Confidence, and Success, and in serving as the lead curator and editorial director of the We Are Bruce Lee exhibit in the Chinese Historical Society's museum in San Francisco, Lee has been able to humanize Bruce Lee by looking at him through four new lenses that prove that he is incredibly relevant today.

Apr 28, 2024 • 1h 3min
EP 474: Alexandra Chan On Loss, Myth & Magic
Alexandra Chan had excelled in life as a left-brain, logical and educated person. But the recent loss of her amazing father Robert Earl Chan showed her the inherent limitations of just using reason to deal with life's greatest challenges. In her new book, In the Garden Behind the Moon: A Memoir of Loss, Myth, and Magic she takes us all on this journey inward, while telling us about this actual 'most interesting man in the world.'

Apr 21, 2024 • 1h 3min
EP 473: Newton Cheng On Helping Breakdown The Stigma Surrounding Mental Health Struggles
Newton Cheng is the Director of Health + Performance at Google. He's a husband, a dad, and a champion powerlifter. From all appearances, he was doing great. Even better than great! But he was privately struggling with depression and burnout. It took his decision one day to take off his mask and openly talk about his struggles to set him on a course of getting better, but also pave the way for many other Googlers to step out of the shadows in search of solace and help.