Sinica Podcast

With the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue kicking off in Singapore on Friday, June 2, Kaiser chats with the organizer’s managing director for Asia, James Crabtree, about the history, structure, and significance of this Asian answer to the Munich Security Conference, James, who joined the Institute for International Strategic Studies in 2018, offers a great sneak-peek and a curtain raiser on the three-day event, which will bring ministers and secretaries of defense together from all over the region and beyond.05:54 – What are the differences between the Munich Security Conference and the Shangri-La Dialogue?10:21 – Notable past Shangri-La Dialogues14:42 – Who are the guests of this year’s Shangri-La Dialogue?19:53 – The programming of the Shangri-La Dialogue26:48 – The Chinese participation in the event and the background of China-US and Sino-Japanese relations34:16 – European delegations in recent years attending the event and the challenges they face37:42 – The connotation of Indo-Pacific as opposed to the Asia-Pacific41:17 – The dynamics on the axis China-India-US and a multipolar vision for Southeast Asia52:33 – The current intentions for the bilateral relationship between the United States and China?A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.Recommendations:James: The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 by Christopher Clark; and The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life by John le CarréKaiser:  A Perfect Spy: A Novel by John le Carré Mentioned:The Billionaire Raj: A Journey Through India’s New Gilded Age by James CrabtreeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, Harvard’s eminent sinologist William Kirby joins Kaiser to talk about his book Empires of Ideas: Creating the Modern University from Germany to America to China, and to share his views on the state of higher education in China and the U.S，03:12 – Wissenschaft and the German contribution to the creation of the modern research university06:30 – The decreasing number of Chinese students willing to study in the U.S. and the defunding of American public universities12:17 – What is the current state of higher education in China?18:19 – Continuities between the old imperial civil service examination system and the current higher education system in China23:08 – The state of Chinese universities before the Cultural Revolution29:23 – How China revived higher education on the model of American universities in the early years of Reform and Opening33:00 – Why does China maintain the gaokao examination despite its great unpopularity?41:38 – Differences between the two leading universities in China: Peking University and Tsinghua University44:00 – Institutional entrepreneurship at Tsinghua University50:01 – The origins of Nanjing University and how it evolved over the years57:21 – The importance of governance and management in the example of the University of Hong Kong1:05:23 – What is the future of the joint programs between American and Chinese universities? A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.Recommendations:Bill:Made in Hong Kong: Transpacific Networks and a New History of Globalization by Peter E. HamiltonThe Dean of Shandong: The Confessions of a Minor Bureaucrat at a Chinese University by Daniel A. BellThe Real World of College: What Higher Education Is and What It Can Be by Wendy Fischman and Howard Gardner9,000 Years of Wine: A World History by Rod PhillipsRed Mandarin Dress: An Inspector Chen Novel by Qiu XiaolongKaiser: Adventures of Horatio Hornblower by Entertainment RadioMentioned: Empires of Ideas: Creating the Modern University from Germany to America to China by William C. KirbySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on the Sinica Podcast, Kaiser is joined by The China Project's CEO Bob Guterma, who just so happens to have served at Chief Compliance Officer (and later Managing Director for Europe and the U.S.) for the expert network Capvision. Capvision, as listeners may well be aware, was the Shanghai-based company whose offices in China were raided by Chinese law enforcement, resulting in the detention of two experts for allegedly passing on military secrets to foreign companies. Does this signal a major crackdown on consultancies? And what are the implications for foreign businesses in China? Bob shares his insights — and things are more complicated than you might think.03:39 – Background information on Capvision10:29 – The national security concerns in the Capvision case.12:27 – Is there a connection between the case of Capvision with the previous cases of Bain and Mintz?20:13 – Is there changing optics for Western companies doing business in China?22:13 – The possible connection between the Capvision case and the Espionage Law32:22 – The context of bigger changes in the past three years in China in light of achieving government goals.34:34 – The inner workings of a compliance officer in expert networks36:44 – Media outlets’ misconceptions and a lack of diligent research regarding the Capvision case A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.Recommendations:Bob:  Energy and Civilization: A History by Vaclav SmilKaiser: Mr. Bungle’s debut album Mr. BungleSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, Kendra Schaefer, a partner specializing in technology at China-focused consultancy Trivium, and Jeremy Daum, Senior Research Scholar in Law and Senior Fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center. discuss the new draft regulations published in April by the Cyberspace Administration of China that will, when passed, govern generative AI in China. Will it choke off innovation, or create conditions for the safe development of this world-changing technology?04:36 – What is the difference between deep synthesis internet services and generative AI?06:17 – Areas affected by the set of newest regulations: recommendation algorithms, deep fakes11:15 – Major national regulations governing generative AI in China vs. in the West.15:35 – The question of the privacy policy in China18:25 – How far along are the tech companies when it comes to truly applying generative AI?24:16 – Main areas of concern about ChatGPT raised in China and the US. What are the government and companies doing to deal with these issues?28:04 – Is the idea to label AI-generated content sufficient?38:28 – Requirements and concerns for training data for generative AI. Questions of accuracy and authenticity.47:21 – Will the generative AI stay in the social media landscape, or spread toward the industrial sector?50:12 – To what extent will export restrictions affect the development of generative AI in China?A transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.comRecommendations:Kendra: Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives by Siddharth KaraJeremy: The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine ChanKaiser: The Earth Transformed: An Untold History by Peter Frankopan; Belafonte: At Carnegie Hall by Harry Belafonte; and Belafonte Returns to Carnegie Hall (Live) by Harry BelafonteSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, Kaiser chats with Andrew Stokols, a Ph.D. researcher at MIT who has been studying the “techno-natural utopia” that the Chinese government is now building a hundred kilometers southwest of Beijing: Xiong’an. Andrew breaks down why he sees it as an urban manifestation of the fundamental ideas embodied in Xi Jinping’s ideological vision for China.02:02 - Xiong’an New Area as a bold vision for China07:36 - Planned stages for the development of Xiong’an. Milestones in 2035 and 2050.12:03 - Cities as expressions of political ideas15:32 - Different facets of the Xiong’an as the legacy of Xi Jinping20:03 - The elements of ecological civilization intended to be built into the new city27:41 - Technologies employed with the intention of making Xiong’an a smart city31:56 - The idea of incentivizing the digital yuan into the city of Xiong’an34:55 - Xiong’an as an expression of Chineseness40:05 - How is Xiong’an discussed in the English-language press outside of China?47:59 - Approaches to technology and nature in Western and Chinese discourses. The  concept of techno-naturalism.A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.comRecommendations:Andrew:  The Institutional Foundation of Economic Development by Shiping TangKaiser:  Five Families by Selwyn RaabMentioned:Andrew’s article on Xiong’an:  Chinas techno-natural utopia: A deep dive into Xiong’anShanghai Future: Modernity Remade by Anna GreenspanSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, an Earth Day special: Kaiser chats with Marilyn Waite, managing director of the Climate Finance Fund; Alex Wang, a UCLA law professor who specializes in China climate and environmental law; and Deborah Seligsohn, a political scientist at Villanova University who served as the Environment, Science, Technology and Health Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. This episode was taped live on Thursday, April 20, as a webinar from The China Project.5:24 – Taking stock: Where have we come since the first Earth Day in 1970?14:24 – Is the Inflation Reduction Act an unalloyed good for the environment and climate?17:17 – The good and the bad of China’s recent record on climate20:45 – The unmet need for climate finance globally, and what China’s PbOC is doing right27:54 – Should we roll our eyes when China speaks of “ecological civilization”?31:57 – Embracing the JEDI approach in addressing climate change35:30 – Can the U.S. and China harness competition to drive better climate outcomes?39:54 – Why pushing each other won’t work, and cooperation is still needed45:15 – Addressing hard-to-abate sectors like agrifood50:30 – Balancing cooperation and competition between the U.S. and China on climateA complete transcript of this episode is available at TheChinaProject.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on the Sinica Podcast, Jeremy and I chat with Mike Chinoy, the legendary award-winning TV newsman who helmed CNN in Beijing for many critical years. Mike talks about the video documentary series and accompanying book Assignment China: An Oral History of American Journalists in the People’s Republic, for which he interviewed about 130 journalists whose careers spanned an 80-year period, from the 1940s to the present.04:08 – The genesis of the Assignment China project11:15 – Editorial decisions: What was included, and what wasn’t16:13 – The big takeaways for Mike on finishing this project25:13 – The role of contingency and the observer effect32:52 – How Tiananmen really made CNN and changed the future of cable news36:30 – Tough ethical calls in the reporting of China 42:42 – Structural biases in American reporting on China…50:50 – …and what news consumers can do to adjust for those baked-in biases52:54 – Does where the reporters are actually determine what the story is?1:02:17 – What went wrong with TV news?A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.Recommendations:Mike:  Who by Fire: Leonard Cohen in the Sinai by Matti FriedmanJeremy: From the Jewish Provinces: Selected Stories by Fradl Shtok, translated by Jordan Finkin and Allison SchachterKaiser: Father's Laszlo Ladany's "Ten Commandments" on China-watching, and playing around with ChatGPT 4See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, Kishore Mahbubani, who served as Singapore's UN Ambassador and has written extensively on ASEAN and the U.S.-China rift, returns to the show to discuss his recent essay in Foreign Affairs, and to advocate for the pragmatic approach that's held ASEAN together for over five decades of continuous peace and growing prosperity.4:36 – Kishore talks about Macron’s state visit to China and the controversy around his comments in media interviews8:53 – How the Ukraine War has highlighted divisions between the West and the Global South11:45 – Pragmatism: is this a euphemism for amorality?15:26 – ASEAN as a template for multipolarity19:38 – Cultural relativism, moral absolutism, and the shift in the American intelligentsia24:56 – How does ASEAN handle specific issues of U.S.-China tension?29:12 – Investment and trade: China and ASEAN vs. U.S and ASEAN — guns and butter40:04 – The Belt and Road Initiative and American attitudes toward it44:10 – Kishore’s “three rules” for U.S. engagement with ASEAN49:49 – China’s recent diplomatic efforts: Saudi-Iran, and the Ukraine War52:34 – How receptive has the American strategic class been to Kishore’s ideas?A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.Recommendations:Kishore: John Rawls, A Theory of JusticeKaiser: The Silk Roads: A New History of the World by Peter FrankopanSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, something different: Kaiser asks over a dozen scholars of various facets of China studies to talk about their work and make some recommendations! You'll hear from a variety of scholars, from MA students to tenured professors, talking about a bewildering range of fascinating work they're doing. Enjoy!3:00 – Kristin Shi-Kupfer — recommendations: this essay (in Chinese) by Teng Biao on Chinese Trump supporters; Han Rongbin's work on digital society; and Yang Guobin's work on digital expression on the internet in China.7:48 – Lev Nachman — recommendation: Ian Rowen, One China, Many Taiwans: The Geopolitics of Cross-Strait Tourism; and the city of Taichung, and especially its night market food on Yizhong Street and the Fang Chia Night market.9:27 – Lin Zhang — recommendation: Victor Seow, Carbon Technocracy: Energy Regimes in Modern East Asia; and Gary Gertle, American Crucible: Race and Nation in the 20th Century15:32 – Maura Dykstra — recommendation: Richard von Glahn's contribution to the Oxford History of Modern China about registration in imperial China19:00 – Jonathan Elkobi — a Rand Corporation study on economic cooperation between Israel and China; the fusion band Snarky Puppy22:22 – Seiji Shirane — Seediq Bale (Warriors of the Rainbow) and Lust, Caution25:18 – Zhu Qian — Rebecca Karl, Staging the World: Chinese Nationalism at the Turn of the 20th Century, and two films: Hou Hsiao-hsien's A City of Sadness and Jia Zhangke's A Touch of Sin31:23– Fabio Lanza — Sarah Mellors Rodriguez, Reproductive Realities in Modern China: Birth Control and Abortion, 1911–2021; and Leopoldina Fortunati, The Arcane of Reproduction: Housework, Prostitution, Labor and Capital by Leopoldina Fortunati 33:04 – Catherine Tsai —:Hiroko Matsuda’s The Liminality of the Japanese Empire34:46– Lena Kaufmann — Technology and Gender: Fabrics of Power in Late Imperial China and other works by Francesca Bray39:05 – Josh Freeman — Works of Uyghur poetry by Ghojimuhemmed Muhemmed, Ekhmetjan Osman, Tahir Hamut Izgil, Perhat Tursun, Dilkhumar Imin, Abide Abbas Nesrin, Erkan Qadir, and Muyesser Abdul'ehed Hendan.41:32 – Susan McCarthy — Joanna Handlin Smith, The Art of Doing Good: Charity in Late Ming China49:18 – Brian DeMare — William Hinton, Fanshen50:47 – Juliet Lu — Maria Repnikova, Chinese Soft Power, and Samuel L. Jackson reading Adam Mansbach's Go the F--k to Sleep 58:29 – Sabina Knight — Wu Ming-Yi, The Man with the Compound Eyes, translated by Darryl SterkA complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on Sinica, Kaiser chats with Chris Marquis, a professor at Cambridge University’s Judge Business School, and formerly at Cornell’s business school, about the book he co-authored with Kunyuan Qiao, Mao and Markets: The Communist Roots of Chinese Enterprise. In it, they examine how even in China's private sector, socialization into the ideology of the Chinese Communist Party among some entrepreneurs has left an enduring legacy that is visible in some of the ways Chinese private enterprises conduct business.3:35 – Motivation for Mao and Markets5:34 – Enduring elements of Maoism in contemporary Chinese enterprise12:35 – Variation among “Maoist” entrepreneurs20:40 – Differentiating superficial and authentic Maoist entrepreneurship35:04 – Is today’s China ideological or simply nationalistic?39:17 – Xi’s Maoist revival: real or imagined?44:30 – Chris’s transition from business and sociology to Chinese politics47:09 – Chris’s experience as a Thousand Talents recipientA complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.Recommendations:Chris: The Entrepreneurial State and The Big Con by Mariana MazzucatoKaiser: This calendar of lunar phases from theoriginallunarphase.com, and Mongolian salty milk tea, or sūūtei tsai which is easy to make at homeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.