This week on Sinica, UPenn legal scholar Neysun Mahboubi talks about his recently concluded trip back to China — his first time back since the outbreak of the pandemic. Neysun talks about the importance of in-person, face-to-face scholarly exchange, and despite concerns over the more restrictive political space in China, sounds a hopeful note about what the restoration of in-person exchange might mean for the future of U.S.-China relations.
BBC correspondent John Sudworth left China in 2021 after years of harassment for his reporting on human rights abuses in Xinjiang and COVID. His latest project is a podcast on the origin of COVID-19, and it’s a fascinating look into one of the most polarizing issues of our time.
A long-standing stereotype about China’s Silver Economy consumer is someone who is frugal, inactive, and busy looking after their grandchildren. But the three-year pandemic has been a catalyst for many Chinese seniors to ‘treat themselves,’ embrace a fun-oriented lifestyle, and spend more.
Provincial- and city-level governments in China are straining under unsustainable debt habits decades in the making, which were exacerbated by the costs of COVID-zero. Teachers and other public service employees are paying the price.
Crowds of elderly Chinese people took to the streets in Wuhan and Dalian to protest local healthcare reforms. While protests aren’t that rare in China, such public anger at its cash-strapped healthcare system may signal waning trust in the government.
When a rapid spread of COVID-19 engulfed Beijing and caused severe delays in package delivery, an army of couriers from other cities were relocated to alleviate the problem. Their bravery has led to a national conversation about privilege and the role of essential workers.
Deborah Seligsohn, assistant professor of political science at Villanova University, talks about her time spent in Shanghai and Beijing between October 2022 to early January 2023. She shares her firsthand experience with quarantine, testing, and lockdowns — as well as witnessing the protests and China's sudden reopening.
Clay Baldo, creator and host of the Strangers in China podcast, talks about the third season on the chaotic Shanghai lockdown of 2022.
As China grapples with an unprecedented COVID-19 surge following its relaxation of strict virus-control measures, people have to make their own fun while avoiding face-to-face interaction.
Pandemic fatigue is driving many Chinese social media users to pull out a popular phrase, in hopes of warding off the wave of COVID infections washing over the nation.