Sharp China Podcast

On today's show Andrew and Bill reunite after the holiday break and begin with the continued reopening process around China. Topics include: the tragedy of the past several weeks, calls for more transparency from the CCP, dubious testing requirements for Chinese travelers, the government reportedly pressing pause on some of its chip investments, and why it may take a few months before reopening yields any meaningful shift in economic data. Then: Xi's New Year's address and reactions to a spate of articles related to his standing in China. At the end: Formula 1 may be returning to China, Qin Gang goes from the Washington Wizards to the Central Committee, and TikTok's future is murkier than ever after some news that was not-quite-buried before the Christmas holiday.To email the show: [email protected]; Transparency; Stimulating real estate demand; US-China — SinocismCovid reopening and growing concerns about lack of transparency; Marcos meets Xi; Propaganda work — SinocismReopening; Testing PRC travelers; Wang Qishan in Brazil; More weak economic data; 辱华 — SinocismChina Condemns Its People to Relive the Nightmare of 2020 — BloombergChina threatens ‘countermeasures’ over other countries’ Covid travel restrictions — The GuardianBattered by Covid, China Hits Pause on Giant Chip Spending Aimed at Rivaling US — BloombergChina can see a ‘light of hope’ in Covid battle, says Xi Jinping in New Year’s message — SCMPXi Jinping’s credibility ‘badly wounded’ as China’s Covid death toll mounts — Financial TimesUpdate: 2023 Chinese Grand Prix return inches closer — RacingNews365New Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang: What I learned in America — Washington PostWhy China’s new foreign minister could be a problem for Biden — PoliticoQin Gang 秦刚 on Twitter — @AmbQinGangEXCLUSIVE: TikTok Spied On Forbes Journalists — ForbesBiden signs TikTok ban for government devices, setting up a chaotic 2023 for the app — NBCLeaked Audio From 80 Internal TikTok Meetings Shows That US User Data Has Been Repeatedly Accessed From China — Buzzfeed NewsChina's Bayi Rockets vs NBA champions Washington Bullets in 1979 — YouTube This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sinocism.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.comOn this week's show Andrew and Bill begin with the landscape in China one week after the widespread elimination of covid restrictions. Topics include: Early reports from Beijing and other major cities, best and worst case scenarios for case numbers, what Westerners can and can’t know, and how this process (and the protests) might change perceptions of t…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.comTo email the show: [email protected]; Shifting the Covid messaging; Jiang Zemin; CEWC; Saudi Arabia — Sinocism Reopening; Jiang Zemin; Xi to Saudi Arabia; TikTok — Sinocism Rocky road to re-opening; Downplaying Omicron; Jiang Zemin, Xi meets Michel; Zhao Lijian — Sinocism 60 Minutes Archives: An interview with China's Jiang Zemin — YouTube

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.comWe recorded this episode Tuesday afternoon DC time, and at the end we discuss what might happen when Jiang Zemin died, given the recent rumors, but before the official announcement today that he has passed. To email the show: [email protected]; PCR testing troubles; Protests and cracking down; Huawei -- Sinocism Protests; Covid; Xi's diplomacy; N…

COVID lockdowns at Foxconn and elsewhere in China, a survey of the near-daily rumors of a looming policy change, glimpses of what these policies have meant for Chinese citizens, and reactions to the latest report seeking clarity as to COVID-19’s origins. To listen the full episode go to https://sinocism.com/s/sharpchina***To email the show: [email protected]***Rumors of change in Covid policies; Lockdowns; Two Establishes 两个确立 vs. Two Upholds 两个维护 — [Sinocism]Xi's message to the PRC's youth; Busy week of foreign visitors; Covid lockdowns — [Sinocism]Workers flee China’s Covid restrictions at Foxconn’s largest iPhone factory — [Financial Times]Coronavirus: Chinese authorities race to contain new waves of ‘dire and complicated’ outbreaks — [South China Morning Post]‘We’re on That Bus, Too’: In China, a Deadly Crash Triggers Covid Trauma — [New York Times]Young Chinese Are Despairing of a Zero-COVID Future — [Foreign Policy]Chinese city accused of ‘performative lockdown lifting’ — [The Guardian]"A Chinese business consultant in a Ted-style talk justified zero-Covid policy by saying that in 10 years the West will be brought to its knees b/c long-Covid" — Twitter: @YanzhongHuangVisitors to Shanghai Disneyland were blocked from leaving the compound as Chinese authorities imposed a snap lockdown —COVID-19 Origins: Investigating a “Complex and Grave Situation” Inside a Wuhan Lab — [ProPublica] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sinocism.com/subscribe

COVID lockdowns at Foxconn and elsewhere in China, a survey of the near-daily rumors of a looming policy change, glimpses of what these policies have meant for Chinese citizens, and reactions to the latest report seeking clarity as to COVID-19’s origins. To email the show: [email protected]***Rumors of change in Covid policies; Lockdowns; Two Establishes 两个确立 vs. Two Upholds 两个维护 — [Sinocism]Xi's message to the PRC's youth; Busy week of foreign visitors; Covid lockdowns — [Sinocism]Workers flee China’s Covid restrictions at Foxconn’s largest iPhone factory — [Financial Times]Coronavirus: Chinese authorities race to contain new waves of ‘dire and complicated’ outbreaks — [South China Morning Post]‘We’re on That Bus, Too’: In China, a Deadly Crash Triggers Covid Trauma — [New York Times]Young Chinese Are Despairing of a Zero-COVID Future — [Foreign Policy]Chinese city accused of ‘performative lockdown lifting’ — [The Guardian]"A Chinese business consultant in a Ted-style talk justified zero-Covid policy by saying that in 10 years the West will be brought to its knees b/c long-Covid" — Twitter: @YanzhongHuangVisitors to Shanghai Disneyland were blocked from leaving the compound as Chinese authorities imposed a snap lockdown —COVID-19 Origins: Investigating a “Complex and Grave Situation” Inside a Wuhan Lab — [ProPublica] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sinocism.com/subscribe