Best Berkeley Engineering Podcasts (2025)

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The Engineering State and the Lawyerly Society: Dan Wang on his new book "Breakneck" 1:32:43

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22h ago1:32:43

1:32:43

This week on Sinica, I'm delighted to be joined by Dan Wang, formerly of Gavekal Dragonomics and the Paul Tsai Law Center at Yale University, now with the Hoover Institute's History Lab. Dan's new book is Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future, and it's already one of the year's most talked-about books. In this conversation, we go beyond w…

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Chinese and U.S. AI Applications in Public Administration: Lessons and Implications for Ukraine 1:18:46

8d ago1:18:46

1:18:46

Artificial intelligence has been a frequent topic on Sinica in recent years — but usually through the lens of the two countries that have produced the leading models and companies: the United States and China. We’ve covered generative AI, national strategies, governance frameworks, and the geopolitical implications of AI leadership. This webinar, b…

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From lawless spaces to true liberty: rethinking AI's role in society 1:38:37

9d ago1:38:37

1:38:37

Welcome back to Generally Intelligent! We’re excited to relaunch our podcast—still featuring thoughtful conversations on building AI, but now with an expanded lens on its economic, societal, political, and human impacts. Matt Boulos leads policy and safety at Imbue, where he shapes the responsible development of AI coding tools that make software c…

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Nuclear Weapons, Ukraine, and Great-Power Competition 1:12:49

10d ago1:12:49

1:12:49

Join me for a conversation with four fantastic panelists about nuclear safety and security issues brought on by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and more broadly on the state of nuclear security globally during this era of dramatic change. This program was made possible by the Ukrainian Platform for Contemporary China and the Center for Sla…

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The World AI Conference in Shanghai: Two tech veterans share their impressions 1:26:01

16d ago1:26:01

1:26:01

This week on Sinica, Paul Triolo of DGA Albright Stonebridge and tech investor Ryan Cunningham join to talk about their observations and insights from the World AI Conference (WAIC), held in July in Shanghai, and what it tells them about China's ambitions in the fast-moving world of artificial intelligence. Don't miss this one! 04:21 - Ryan on his …

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Chinese Cooking Demystified: Chris Thomas and Stephanie Li visit Shaxi! 1:17:54

23d ago1:17:54

1:17:54

This week on Sinica: On my final two days in Shaxi in Yunnan, Chris Thomas and Stephanie Li, the hosts of the marvelous YouTube channel Chinese Cooking Demystified, joined me for some cooking and lots of chatting about food! We recorded this show together and focus our conversation on their heroic attempt at a taxonomy of different Chinese cuisines…

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Adam Tooze Climbs the China Learning Curve 1:03:28

1M ago1:03:28

1:03:28

I'm in Shaxi, a wonderful little town in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, and I was joined here by the Columbia economic historian Adam Tooze, who shared his thoughts on what he sees happening on the ground in China. Adam's been in China for the last month and reflects on his experiences learning about the country — and even attempting the langu…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 10: Nuclear Engineering 11:05

2M ago11:05

11:05

In this episode of Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley, we dive into the powerful and often misunderstood world of Nuclear Engineering. Undergraduate students Conrad Buck and Isaac Duarte Valdez share how curiosity—and a little serendipity—led them into a field full of untapped potential. Then, hear from Professor Ellie Tubman, a fusion researcher…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 09: Mechanical Engineering 13:29

2M ago13:29

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What does a robot-fetching chicken, baking, and diagnosing breast cancer have in common? Mechanical engineering! In this episode of Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley, host Laura Vogt talks with Aashray Manchanda, a recent graduate of the M.E.T. program, Michael McNabb, an alum with a passion for invention, and Professor Lydia Sohn, who bridges p…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 08: Materials Science and Engineering 17:22

2M ago17:22

17:22

In this episode of Exploring Engineering, we dive into the dynamic and often overlooked world of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE). Faculty member Mary Scott reveals the wide range of career paths in the field—from biomaterials to aerospace and electronics—while undergraduate Ava Daniels shares how a high school summer camp led her to discove…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 07: Industrial Engineering and Operations Research 14:44

2M ago14:44

14:44

Welcome to Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley! In this episode, we dive into the fascinating world of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research — better known as IEOR. Join host Laura Vogt as she talks with UC Berkeley faculty member Rhonda Righter, current student Kenny Wongchamcharoen, and alum Nanavati Low. Discover how IEOR blends math, …

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 06: Engineering science program 8:28

2M ago8:28

8:28

What do contact lenses, Newton rings, and computer science all have in common? For Jacqueline Thibault, a fourth-year Engineering Mathematics and Statistics major at UC Berkeley, they all came together in her first internship. In this episode of Exploring Engineering, host Laura Vogt sits down with Jackie to talk about what it means to be part of t…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 05: Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences 20:14

2M ago20:14

20:14

What do robotics, video game mods, and chip design have in common? They’re all part of the incredibly broad and exciting world of EECS at UC Berkeley. In this episode, you’ll hear from faculty member Claire Tomlin, a MacArthur “Genius” and former chair of the EECS department, as well as undergraduates Robert Nochez, Julian Rickenbach, and Evan Sand…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 04: Civil and Environmental Engineering 21:10

2M ago21:10

21:10

In this episode of Exploring Engineering, host Laura Vogt guides us through the many layers of civil engineering. You’ll hear from faculty, recent grads, and alumni who’ve carved out careers in transportation, public service, and cutting-edge construction. Parson Galicia (City of Oakland), Kimberly Leung (San Francisco MTA), and Nelson Jurado (stud…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 03: Bioengineering 15:10

2M ago15:10

15:10

What does it mean to merge engineering with biology? In this episode of Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley, we dive into the world of bioengineering—a field that’s as interdisciplinary as it is impactful. You'll hear from Na’im Pierce, a recent graduate with a passion for genetic engineering and neurosurgery; Professor Kevin Healy, who shares his…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 02: Aerospace Engineering 16:26

2M ago16:26

16:26

Ever wonder what it’s really like to study rocket science? In this episode, we dive into UC Berkeley’s newest engineering major: Aerospace Engineering. Hear from current students Evan Smart and Maxwell Stolarz, who share what inspired them to pursue aerospace and how broad and exciting the field really is. You'll also get insights from Professor Pa…

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Exploring Engineering Ep. 01: What’s Engineering? 10:34

2M ago10:34

10:34

Welcome to Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley—a new podcast series where we uncover what it means to be an engineer and dive into the paths that lead there. Hosted by Laura Vogt, director of student communications for Berkeley Engineering, this first episode features an inspiring conversation with Tsu-Jae King Liu, former dean of Berkeley Enginee…

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Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley trailer 1:03

2M ago1:03

1:03

Debuting Tuesday, July 8, Exploring Engineering at UC Berkeley is your introduction into each of the academic departments and programs that are part of UC Berkeley Engineering. For a transcript, please visit the episode page on the ESS podcast hubBy Berkeley Engineering

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Carnegie's Tong Zhao on the Expansion of China's Nuclear Arsenal 1:10:21

2M ago1:10:21

1:10:21

This week on Sinica, in a show taped in early June in Washington, Kaiser chats with Tong Zhao (赵通) of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a leading expert on Chinese nuclear doctrine, about why the PRC has, in recent years, significantly increased the size of its nuclear arsenal. Zhao offers a master class in the practice of strategic e…

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The Strange Afterlife of an American Football Story from China 45:20

2M ago45:20

45:20

In 2014, the writer Christopher Beam published a humorous, heartwarming story in The New Republic about an unlikely team of American football enthusiasts in Chongqing who went on to defeat their archrivals in Shanghai to win a championship. The piece was optioned by Sony Pictures, and had some big names attached, but was ultimately never made — not…

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The Raider: China and the Life of Evans Carlson, with Historian Stephen Platt 1:22:06

2M ago1:22:06

1:22:06

This week on Sinica, I chat with Stephen Platt, historian at UMass Amherst and author, most recently, of the book The Raider: The Untold Story of a Renegade Marine and the Birth of U.S. Special Forces in World War II. Like his previous works, Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom and Imperial Twilight, it offers a compelling narrative history of an overlo…

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Industrial Policy, "Overcapacity," and U.S.-China Trade: A Conversation with Cambridge's Jostein Hauge 1:08:02

2M ago1:08:02

1:08:02

This week on Sinica, I chat with Jostein Hauge, political economist and an Assistant Professor in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge, based at the Centre of Development Studies and the Department of Politics and International Studies, and author of the book The Future of the Factory: How Megatrends are Changing Industrialization. 3:…

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Seeking the Next DeepSeek: the Chinese Generative AI Algorithm Registry, with Kendra Schaefer 1:03:57

3M ago1:03:57

1:03:57

This week on Sinica, I speak with Kendra Schaefer, the partner at Trivium China who heads their tech practice. She recently published a fascinating paper looking at the Cyberspace Administration of China's comprehensive database of generative AI tools released in China, and she shares the insights and big takeaways from her research on that databas…

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Bonus Ep: Rubio's Visa Revocations, with Jeremy Goldkorn [Explicit] 49:42

3M ago49:42

49:42

Jeremy Goldkorn joins for this largely unedited throwback to the early, sweary days of the show. We talk about the announcement made on Wednesday, 28 May 2025, on the "aggressive" revocation of Chinese student visas for students with Party "connections" or who study "critical fields." You've been warned! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/priv…

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Ukraine, China, and the Emerging Geopolitics of Resource Security 1:28:57

3M ago1:28:57

1:28:57

A bonus episode this week. On May 22, I moderated a panel organized by Vita Golod and the UNC Center for Slavic, Eurasian, and East European Studies. The focus was on the U.S.-Ukraine Mineral Security Partnership, and it features Ivan Us, Chief Consultant at the Center for Foreign Policy at the National Institute for Strategic Studies; Jim Mullinax…

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House of Huawei: Eva Dou of the Washington Post on Her New "Secret History" of Huawei 1:08:40

3M ago1:08:40

1:08:40

This week on Sinica, I chat with Eva Dou, technology reporter for the Washington Post, about her terrific new book about Huawei. From its prehistory to its fight for its life under tremendous U.S. pressure, she tells its story in a way that's both deeply engaging and very evenhanded. 04:53 – Meng Wanzhou’s case and its impact on media interest in H…

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Solving the CRISPR delivery problem using a proprietary peptide-based platform 1:05:53

3M ago1:05:53

1:05:53

Dana Foss and Ross Wilson are the cofounders of Editpep, a biotech startup focused on developing CRISPR-based therapeutics. They are using a proprietary peptide-based delivery platform that enables targeted delivery to specific cell types, particularly for hard-to-reach areas like the brain. While Dana Foss is the CEO, Ross Wilson is also an Assist…

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NEW! China Talking Points Ep. 1: Trade Truce, J-10C Dogfight, and What Comes Next 1:04:49

3M ago1:04:49

1:04:49

The Sinica Network proudly presents a new podcast: China Talking Points, featuring Kaiser Kuo (host of the Sinica Podcast), Eric Olander (host of the China-Global South Podcast and China In Africa Podcast) and Andrew Polk, co-founder of Trivium China and host of its podcast. We'll be joined regularly by Lizzi Lee, Fellow on Chinese Economy at the A…

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China's DeepSeek Moment — a talk given April 17 2025 at Carnegie Mellon 30:45

3M ago30:45

30:45

I had scheduled a show to record while I was in Providence last week, but it fell through and had to be rescheduled, so please give this talk I delivered at Carnegie Mellon last month a listen! Hope you enjoy. Kaiser See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.…

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Broken Engagement: Veteran China reporter Bob Davis on his new collection of interviews 1:15:47

4M ago1:15:47

1:15:47

This week on Sinica, I chat with veteran Wall Street Journal reporter Bob Davis, who has covered the U.S.-China relationship for decades. He recently published a new book called Broken Engagement, which consists of interviews with U.S. policymakers who were instrumental in shaping American policy toward China from the George H.W. Bush administratio…

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The EU-China Relationship in the Age of Trumpian Disruption, with Finbarr Bermingham of the SCMP 1:06:46

4M ago1:06:46

1:06:46

This week on Sinica, I chat with SCMP Senior Europe Correspondent Finbarr Bermingham, who joins from Brussels where he's been covering the EU-China relationship in fantastic depth and with great insight. 3:17 – EU-China relations in early 2025: the effect of the 2021 sanctions, who advocated for engagement versus confrontation with China, and the i…

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Live at Pitt: CMU's Benno Weiner on the Evolution of China's Minzu Policy 52:07

4M ago52:07

52:07

This week on Sinica, in a show recorded at the University of Pittsburgh, I speak with Benno Weiner, Associate Professor of History at Carnegie Mellon University, about how China's policy toward its minority nationalities (or minzu) have shifted from their older, Soviet-inspired form to the policies of assimilation we now see. 2:29 – How the so-call…

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Sinica Live at Columbia University, with Yawei Liu and Yukon Huang 58:15

4M ago58:15

58:15

This week on the Sinica Podcast, I chat with Yawei Liu, Senior Advisor for China at the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia, and Yukon Huang, former China country head of the World Bank and now Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The show was taped live at the 2025 Columbia China Summit at Columbia University, put on by t…

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Life, Love, and Loss in China: Hazza Harding's story of resilience 1:19:20

5M ago1:19:20

1:19:20

This week on Sinica, I chat with Hazza Harding, a young Australian who began learning Chinese and made his way to China where he became a pop singer with hits on Chinese pop charts and a state media newscaster — and also lost his husband tragically, suffered through the COVID lockdowns while grieving for his loss. Yet he remains committed to furthe…

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Is China Gaining Ground in Technology Diffusion? A Conversation with Jeffrey Ding 45:52

5M ago45:52

45:52

This week on Sinica, I chat with Jeffrey Ding, author of Technology and the Rise of Great Powers, a book that argues that a nation's ability to invent foundational technologies matters ultimately less in its overall national power than its ability to diffuse those "general purpose technologies," like electricity, digital technology, the internet, a…

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Evolutionary Psychology and International Relations, with Jeremy Garlick 1:26:24

5M ago1:26:24

1:26:24

This week on the Sinica Podcast, I chat with Jeremy Garlick, Director of the Jan Masaryk Centre for International Studies, Prague University, and a scholar of China’s international relations. Jeremy is the author of the book Advantage China: Agent of Change in an Era of Global Disruption, but the book we're talking about this week is his new Cambri…

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Live in Berkeley: Jessica Chen Weiss and Ryan Hass on the U.S. and China in 2025 1:02:08

5M ago1:02:08

1:02:08

This week, a special episode taped live at the University of California, Berkeley — my alma mater — on March 6 and featuring Jessica Chen Weiss of Johns Hopkins SAIS and Ryan Hass of the Brookings Institution, both well-known to people who follow U.S.-China relations. This episode was made possible by the Center for Chinese Studies at UC Berkeley's…

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Altitude Lab Fund- Supporting healthcare founders in challenging times 51:41

6M ago51:41

51:41

Chandana Haque is the Executive Director of Altitude Lab, a healthcare startup accelerator building a community of diverse entrepreneurs in Utah. Altitude Lab was cofounded in 2020 by Chandana and Chris Gibson, the co-founder & CEO of Recursion in Salt Lake City. They recently announced the launch of a pre-seed venture fund aimed at supporting earl…

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Introducing the Trivium Podcast, now on the Sinica Network 1:18:29

6M ago1:18:29

1:18:29

This week, I'm proud to announce a new collaboration with Trivium, a China-focused strategic advisory firm you've probably heard of. They've got offices in DC, London, Shanghai, and Beijing, and they focus on analyzing and forecasting Chinese policy developments for multinational companies and institutional investors across a range of verticals -- …

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Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art — Part 2, with Alice Miller and Joseph Fewsmith 1:23:23

6M ago1:23:23

1:23:23

This week: Part 2 in a series of podcasts in conjunction with the China Research Center at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The series, titled "Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art," ran from September to November 2021, and featured four eminent "Pekingologists," or specialists in Chine…

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China’s Strategy in Global Power Transitions: Challenges in a Turbulent World — A panel discussion 1:10:01

6M ago1:10:01

1:10:01

This week on Sinica: February 24 marks the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and as I’ve done for the last two years, I moderated a panel organized by Vita Golod, a Ukrainian China scholar who happens to be here in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, at UNC as a visiting scholar. She’s worked tirelessly to promote awareness of …

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The War for Chinese Talent in America, with David Zweig 1:14:00

6M ago1:14:00

1:14:00

This week on Sinica, I chat with David Zweig, a veteran China scholar who is Professor Emeritus from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. We discuss Davis'd latest book, The War for Chinese Talent in America, which looks at Chinese efforts to harness the intellectual firepower of Chinese scientists and engineers who studied abroad, e…

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Getting China Right: Senator Andy Kim at the Hopkins SAIS Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs 1:10:16

6M ago1:10:16

1:10:16

I’m delighted to bring you today the first in a series of conversations from a remarkable day-long session put on by the Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs, or ACF, at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The session was held on Monday, February 3, and was called “Getting China Right.” On today’…

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Back to the 80s: For Trump, is China the New Japan? with Andy Liu 1:05:14

6M ago1:05:14

1:05:14

This week on Sinica, I chat with economic historian Andrew B. Liu of Villanova University about how to understand Trump's thinking on China and tariffs. Andy wrote about this in an excellent piece on N+1 called "Back to the 80s? Trump, Xi Jinping, and Tariffs." Check it out and then listen to the show! 3:59 – How the U.S.’s current trade anxieties …

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Is the U.S. Experiencing a Narrative Shift on China? 1:02:12

7M ago1:02:12

1:02:12

This week as we enter the Year of the Snake, Sinica co-founder Jeremy Goldkorn makes a re-appearance on the show. It's been a year since his last, and much has changed — and indeed, if Jeremy is right, we may be at an inflection point in American attitudes toward China. With the "TikTok Refugees" on Xiaohongshu or "RedNote" taking in a view of Chin…

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The State of China, with Adam Tooze, Qing Wang, and Zichen Wang — Moderated by Finbarr Bermingham of SCMP 48:49

7M ago48:49

48:49

Happy Chinese New Year! This week, while I'm decompressing from 10 days in the Alps, my friends at the Asia Society of Switzerland have graciously offered to let me share a podcast recorded just after the U.S. presidential election in November at their annual State of Asia event. "The State of China" features three terrific guests: Wang Qing (王卿), …

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New Podcast Series – "Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art" from Johns Hopkins SAIS 1:15:23

7M ago1:15:23

1:15:23

This week, I bring you the first in a series of podcasts in conjunction with the China Research Center at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The series, titled "Studying China in the Absence of Access: Rediscovering a Lost Art," ran from September to November 2021, and featured four eminent "Pekingologists," or speci…

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Xiaohongshu's "TikTok Refugees," with Ivy Yang and David Fishman 1:03:52

7M ago1:03:52

1:03:52

I know I'd said last time there would be no show this week, but that was before this fascinating episode involving TikTok users signing up en masse to Xiaohongshu. Hilarity ensued, and my two guests — Ivy Yang, who runs Wavelet Strategy, an expert in cross-cultural communication, and David Fishman, Shanghai-based senior manager at Lantau Group who …

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Lizzi Lee on China's Economy and the Trump Presidency 1:20:52

7M ago1:20:52

1:20:52

This week on Sinica, I'm joined by Lizzi Lee, fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute and by my lights one of the most astute, well-informed people writing on China in the English-speaking world today. She has fascinating perspectives on China's preparations for the Trump administration, on China's reluctance to roll out large-scale cash stimul…

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Inside Shen Yun and the Epoch Times, with NYT's Nicole Hong and Michael Rothfeld 1:08:09

8M ago1:08:09

1:08:09

This week on Sinica, I speak with Nicole Hong and Michael Rothfeld, both investigative reporters at the New York Times, about a series of stories they've done, stretching between August and December 2024, on the Falun Gong-run performance troupe Shen Yun, and the Falun Gong-affiliated newspaper The Epoch Times. Read the latest two articles in that …