Sinica Podcast

In this episode of the Sinica Podcast, taped live at the US-China Strong Foundation’s China Careers Summit in Washington, D.C., on May 31, Kaiser talks to former assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific affairs Kurt Campbell about his career, his critique of engagement, and the fascinating events that happened on his watch — including the extrication of blind activist lawyer Chen Guangcheng and the attempted defection of Bo Xilai’s former police chief in Chongqing, Wang Lijun. Recommendations: Kurt: Darkest Hour, a movie about Winston Churchill in the early 1940s that shows what is possible even in our darkest moments. Additionally, Kurt recommends The Narrow Road to the Deep North, a book by Richard Flanagan about an Australian POW’s experiences during World War II. Kaiser: Road to Unfreedom, a book by Timothy Snyder about the developments in Putin’s Russia and their implications for democracy and law across Europe, the United States, and other regions. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week’s show was recorded in Prague, where major developments in the continuing saga of a mysterious Chinese company called CEFC, with deep ties to the Czech president, Milos Zeman, unfolded during a recent visit by Kaiser. He spoke with Martin Hála of Charles University in Prague about the rise and fall of CEFC, and what this means not only for China’s efforts to expand its presence in Central and Eastern Europe, but also for China’s Belt and Road Initiative more broadly. Recommendations: Martin: An investigative journalistic piece on CEFC by Andrew Chubb. Kaiser: An Atlantic article on the class divide in America by Matthew Stewart, titled “The birth of the new American aristocracy,” and one in The American Interest by Damir Marusic, titled “The dangers of democratic determinism.” See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week’s Sinica Podcast features Andrew Chubb, a fellow at the Princeton-Harvard China and the World Program. Andrew writes extensively on Chinese foreign policy, especially on topics related to maritime disputes in the South and East China seas, Chinese nationalism, and Chinese public opinion. Kaiser and Jeremy chat with Andrew the question of how popular nationalism in China shapes the country’s maritime behavior, and why its impact on policy is not as large as you may think. The discussion on China’s maritime activity involves disputes with Japan, the Philippines, and Vietnam, showing the increasingly sophisticated methods China must take to influence public opinion as it gains international recognition. Recommendations: Andrew: NüVoices, a website that celebrates and supports China-related work done by women. It has a directory of nearly 500 female China experts, making it a great resource for event organizers and China enthusiasts alike. In addition to checking out the website, you can also listen to a Sinica podcast featuring the founder of Nüvoices, Joanna Chiu. Jeremy: Plantnet, an app that uses AI to identify plant species from photographs. After you have successfully identified your plant, you can then upload your photo to help improve the service’s recognition abilities. Kaiser: The People vs. Democracy: Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It, a book by Yascha Mounk on the recent surge of populist uprisings. It examines the contradiction between democratic liberalism and illiberal democracy, and describes the action needed to save democracy in an age of political distrust. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week’s episode of Sinica, Kaiser chats with Bonnie Glaser in a crossover show that will appear both on Sinica and on the ChinaPower Podcast from CSIS, the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Bonnie is a well-known specialist on China’s security issues, and this week, we tour several locations where the Chinese military has evolving plans: the Korean Peninsula, Japan, the South China Sea, and Taiwan. Recommendations: Bonnie: Two books that examine how China’s history influences its current push for global power: Everything Under the Heavens: How the Past Helps Shape China's Push for Global Power, a book by Howard French, and The China Order: Centralia, World Empire, and the Nature of Chinese Power, by Wang Fei-ling. Bonnie says that the latter is a more academic book with amazing sourcing from Chinese documents, and the two books provide phenomenal knowledge on China’s historical relations with its neighbors when paired together. Kaiser: Chinese Characters, a podcast series on BBC Radio 4 by Rana Mitter, which explores the lives of people who were significant or emblematic throughout Chinese history. Notable personalities include Deng Xiaoping, Empress Wu Zetian, and China’s factory girls. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Yasheng Huang, MIT professor, talks about trade, technology policy, and Chinese and Indian entrepreneurship. Topics include trade war with China, 'Made in China 2025' initiative, comparing Soviet Union and China's approach to science and technology, impact of Trump trade war on China, targeting in the trade war, and the relationship between tech and government in the US and China.

Today, we bring you a special live panel discussion from the 2018 Harvard College China Forum on China's international relations. The panelists are: Jiang Changjian – associate professor of international studies, Fudan University; host, The Brain (最强大脑 zuìqiángdànǎo) Ira Kasoff – senior counselor, APCO Worldwide; former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of commerce Anthony Saich – professor of international affairs, Harvard Kennedy School; director, the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation The discussion of today's China and its influence in the world often centers on this question: How much has China's foreign policy changed since Deng Xiaoping famously advocated in the 1980s that the country should "conceal its strengths and bide its time" (韬光养晦 tāoguāngyǎnghuì), and how much does the recent change originate from Xi Jinping? Our panelists have different interpretations of the question, and address it from many angles, including, of course, the big ones: U.S.-China trade, the Belt and Road, the South China Sea, and the Korean nuclear crisis. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What challenges do women face in the workplace in China? What fears, motivations, and priorities do women in China have, and how are they different from men’s? How can we help women to overcome barriers and achieve success in all areas of their life? Answering and addressing these questions is the full-time work of the highly talented Virginia Tan, who has helped found three organizations that are dedicated to empowering women. These are: Lean In China, a Sheryl Sandberg–inspired women’s network that now has about 120 chapters across China, and tens of thousands of members. She Loves Tech, a global initiative focusing on technology by women and technology for women, which houses the world’s largest competition for women tech entrepreneurs, held across more than 10 international locations. Teja Ventures, a venture capital fund targeting women-impact early-stage ventures in Asia. Lean In China recently published a white paper titled “Women, Work and Happiness: Impact of Women in the Workplace in a Digital Age,” which used survey data to understand many key issues for women working in China. Virginia sat down with Kaiser Kuo and David Moser on April 13 at the Yenching Global Symposium in Beijing for a live Sinica podcast, and discussed the organizations she leads and the work she is doing for women’s empowerment in China and beyond. Recommendations: David: The ChinaEconTalk podcast, hosted by Jordan Schneider. Also, the Peking University campus, as it is a popular tourist attraction and has made many renovations in the lead up to the 120th anniversary of the university. Virginia: David and Goliath, by Malcolm Gladwell, which takes some conventional wisdom about “strength” and “weakness” and turns it on its head. Also, Yiqi, a social dating app that recently became #7 in China, which analyzes a recording of your voice to help you find a partner. Two-thirds of its users are women! Kaiser: The Romance of the Three Kingdoms podcast, by John Zhu. John was interviewed about his project to tell the classic Three Kingdoms tale in vernacular English in this Sinica podcast last year. Kaiser just did a guest recording for Episode 150. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Big news: The Sinica Podcast network is expanding! Today, we introduce a new podcast: TechBuzz China by Pandaily, a weekly show about technology, innovation, and startups in China, created by Pandaily, a China-focused tech news site. The show is co-hosted by Rui Ma and Ying-Ying Lu, seasoned China-watchers with years of experience working in tech in China. They discuss the most important tech news from China every week, and include commentary from investors, industry experts, and entrepreneurs. Subscribe to TechBuzz China on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, or Stitcher, or click here for the RSS feed. Right after the TechBuzz preview episode (the third of the series; subscribe to listen to previous episodes), Joanna Chiu of Agence France-Presse joins Kaiser to discuss the illicit wildlife trade in Hong Kong and Guangzhou. Joanna went undercover in the two cities to search for stores that would illegally sell her two items in particular: scales of the endangered pangolin — the most heavily poached mammal in the world — and rare totoaba swim bladders. Click on the links to read her AFP reports on her investigations. Recommendations: Joanna: Crime and the Chinese Dream, by a leading criminologist of China, Børge Bakken, who discusses different examples of how Chinese people are sometimes pushed into a life of crime, as they feel the “Chinese Dream” is unattainable for them by normal means. Kaiser: “Homo Orbánicus,” by Jan-Werner Müller in the New York Review of Books, an analysis of how the strongman Viktor Orbán came to power and maintains power in Hungary. Also, “The Right to Kill,” an essay by Cleuci de Oliveira in Foreign Policy, which asks the question, “Should Brazil keep its Amazon tribes from taking the lives of their children?” 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 Sinica, Kaiser is live at the Princeton US-China Coalition Global Governance Forum, where he speaks with Gao Yutong (Tony Gao) about the wunderkind entrepreneur's experience as a Chinese student in the U.S. from age 16 to his present 23. Gao is the founder and CEO of Easy Transfer, which Chinese students use to pay their college tuition from Chinese bank accounts without all the hassle, paperwork, and expensive fees. He was named last year to the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list. Gao talks about his time amidst the cornfields (in his sophomore year of high school, he attended an all-boys Catholic boarding school in Lincoln, Nebraska), his stint as president of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association at the University of Southern California, and how students from China might prepare themselves better for the experience of study in the U.S. If you like this episode, be sure to check out — or re-listen — to another recent episode: The Chinese student experience in America, with Siqi Tu and Eric Fish. Recommendations: Gao: A recommendation for college students to pick the thing they like most. Also, to take the advice of Jack Ma: “When you are 20 to 30 years old, you should follow a good boss [and] join a good company to learn how to do things properly. When you are 30 to 40 years old, if you want to do something yourself, just do it. You still can afford to lose, to fail. When you're 40 to 50 years old, my suggestion is you should do things you are good at. When you are 50 to 60 years old, spend time training and developing young people, the next generation. When you are over 60 years old, you better stay with your grandchildren." Kaiser: The podcast of the UPenn Center for the Study of Contemporary China, specifically, the recent episode with Damien Ma on China’s political economy. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week's podcast was recorded live on March 13 at The Bookworm in Beijing as part of the Bookworm Literary Festival, which is why you'll notice the prolonged and decidedly rambunctious audience pop at the start of the show. No matter where Sinica goes, it'll always be most enthusiastically received in the city where it began. The entire episode is a hoot, as SupChina Asia managing editor Anthony Tao sat in for Kaiser and Jeremy to talk music with longtime jazz musicians David Moser (no stranger to Sinica listeners) and Jess Meider. Moser is associate dean of Yenching Academy at Peking University, but his true passion is jazz. He studied music as an undergrad in the U.S. before moving to China, where he happened upon a band at a place called Maxim’s in 1993. You’ll need to listen to get the story. Other highlights include his explaining of swing (11:25), retelling of particular adventures translating for Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (22:30 mark), and what makes for good jazz (31:45 — including a Charles Mingus anecdote, featuring one of the three times we had to press the bleep button on him). Jess Meider has spent more than two decades singing in China, and can still be seen (and heard) around Beijing. She was previously the resident jazz artist at East Shore Jazz Club and booker/resident artist at Chao Hotel. She’s worked with Cui Jian, the father of Chinese rock ‘n’ roll, and voiced a part in his movie Blue Sky Bones. She talks about that experience just before the 19-minute mark. Also listen to what she has to say about playing with Chinese musicians (30-minute mark) and her thoughts on the future of jazz in China (39:45). Be sure to stick around for the musical performance at the end. Recommendations: David: The young Chinese jazz pianist A Bu 阿布 (real name Dai Liang 戴梁), who is a prodigy. “Very modest and unassuming, but the future of Chinese jazz right there,” Moser says. “He grew up listening to it.” Check out videos of him playing here and here. Jess: Contemporary jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, who is relatively new on the scene but is amazing. (She won a Grammy last year for her album Dreams and Daggers; here she is singing You’re My Thrill from that album.) Anthony: Three recommendations: 1. The American Jazz Museum coupled with the Negro Leagues Museum in the 18th and Vine District of Kansas City, Missouri. (Tao grew up in Kansas City — though on the Kansas side of State Line.) 2. Contemporary poetry: Poetry 180 (a project of former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins, highlighting contemporary poems) and the Poetry Foundation podcast. 3. The Bookworm Literary Festival: May we all spread the lore of The Bookworm and the Bookworm Literary Festival ever far and forever. It is truly special. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.