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• Violence as 'family dispute': culture and politics in China's domestic violence laws 05.07.2026 34мин

  After reading the story about a young woman abused and kidnapped by her family, I went down a rabbit hole to learn why police and judiciary avoid prosecuting what they consider to be 'family disputes'. In this episode, I unpack how domestic violence is routinely dismissed as a “family affair,” why police and courts avoid intervention, how cultural norms around shame and harmony shape reporting behaviour, and why China’s 2016 Anti‑Domestic Violence Law still has no real teeth. We cover clan an...
• Tongueless by Lau Yee-Wa Review | Sinobabble Book Club 28.06.2026 27мин

  For more on the book club, including upcoming books and where to buy them, head to this webpage. To support the show, head over to my Buy Me a Coffee page to give a one-off or monthly donations, if your discretionary entertainment funds allow! Support the show Support the show Sign up for Buzzsprout to launch your podcasting journey: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=162442 Subscribe to the Sinobabble Newsletter: https://sinobabble.substack.com/ Support Sinobabble on Buy me a Coffee: ...
• Media influence as foreign policy: China’s journalist training in Africa w/Dr Emeka Umejei 22.06.2026 51мин

  In 2022, Freedom House released a report titled “Beijing's Global Media Influence 2022”, highlighting the numerous ways in which the Chinese government seeks to influence media across the world. They stated that China’s main tactics were the mass distribution of content, harassment and intimidation of outlets that publish negative news, disinformation campaigns, and training for media workers and officials in different locales. The provision of free or subsidised training for local journalis...
• The Party's Interests Come First Review | Sinobabble Book Club 14.06.2026 39мин

  For more on the book club, including upcoming books and where to buy them, head to this webpage. To support the show, head over to my Buy Me a Coffee page to give a one-off or monthly donations, if your discretionary entertainment funds allow! Support the show Sign up for Buzzsprout to launch your podcasting journey: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=162442 Subscribe to the Sinobabble Newsletter: https://sinobabble.substack.com/ Support Sinobabble on Buy me a Coffee: https://www.buyme...
• [Preview] How Chinamaxxing foreigners are performing nationalism on Chinese social media 07.06.2026 14мин

  **This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers. If you would like to become a paid sub and receive bonus content, head over to Buy Me a Coffee using the link in the description, or upgrade your Substack account** An article in the Journal of Contemporary China inspire me to dip my toe in the Chinamaxxing trend and discuss how foreign influencers in China promote state approved nationalist narratives at home and abroad. We look at the different types of influencer (Western, non-Western, coupl...
• From victim to victor: Xenophobia and anti-Japanism as nationalism in China 24.05.2026 49мин

  Earlier this week, I read a Substack article discussing the rise in viral anti-Japanese content on Chinese social media. The gruesome posts and recent polling data all point to the fact that anti-Japanese sentiment is increasing among Chinese people, despite increasing economic ties and a move away from 'wolf warrior' style diplomacy. Why, when China seems to be more doveish, does Japan still draw so much ire? What is about the history, proximity, and perceived injustices between the two nati...
• Nationalism with International Characteristics w/Nick Zeller 17.05.2026 1ч 6мин

  Nick and I ramble about nationalism for about an hour. Follow the China Monitor and Nick on Substack Buy bookclub books here Buy me a coffee Latest Substack post Links to everything Support the show Sign up for Buzzsprout to launch your podcasting journey: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=162442 Subscribe to the Sinobabble Newsletter: https://sinobabble.substack.com/ Support Sinobabble on Buy me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Sinobabblepod
• Can an outsider truly portray an ethnic group faithfully? | Last Quarter of the Moon Review (Sinobabble Book Club) 10.05.2026 29мин

  A (late!) review of our April Book club book The Last Quarter of the Moon by Chi Zijian. A 90-year-old Evenki woman who has spent her life in the forests of northeast China herding reindeer recounts the story of her life, her people, and the encroachment of modernity and imperialism on how they live. A story of nature, love, loss, despair, and change, we also ask if someone who is not part of a particular ethnic group can truly capture their spirit, or are they doomed to orientalism at worst ...
• China's Ethnic Unity and Progress Law: A breakdown 19.04.2026 1ч 4мин

  In early March, the PRC's National People's Congress passed a law titled the P.R.C. Law on the Promotion of Ethnic Unity and Progress. According to the government the law, which has been in development since 2023, the law "lays out the overall requirements, important principles, and responsibilities and duties of relevant entities concerning the promotion of ethnic unity and progress. It also outlines specific measures to build a common cultural home, facilitate interaction, exchanges, and in...
• [Archive] Dreaming of East Turkestan: Xinjiang and China, c.700-1950 10.04.2026 46мин

  Over the Easter break, the next two episodes of the podcast will be archival episodes covering the medieval and modern history of Mongolia and Xinjiang. This is in preparation for an episode I'll be doing when I get back on the New Ethnic Unity Policy released by the Chinese government. Our book club book for this month is The Last Quarter of the Moon, also on the theme of ethnic minorities in China, so it's a very topical month! This episode discusses the historical background of the relati...
• [Archive] Why is Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia? (+Bonus Article) 03.04.2026 30мин

  Over the Easter break, the next two episodes of the podcast will be archival episodes covering the medieval and modern history of Mongolia and Xinjiang. This is in preparation for an episode I'll be doing when I get back on the New Ethnic Unity Policy released by the Chinese government. Our book club book for this month is The Last Quarter of the Moon, also on the theme of ethnic minorities in China, so it's a very topical month! The second episode of three on the CCP’s incorporation o...
• How to glaze your billionaire bestie | The Troublemaker Book Review | Sinobabble Book Club 27.03.2026 1ч 2мин

  This episode is the third installment in our book club, we’re doing well guys. The Troublemaker: How Jimmy Lai Became a Billionaire, Hong Kong’s Greatest Dissident, and China’s Most Feared Critic certainly tries to live up to its name. It covers the “‘extraordinary life story’ (Publishers Weekly) of the billionaire businessman Jimmy Lai, a leading Hong Kong democracy activist fighting for freedom of speech who became China’s most famous political prisoner.” My review of this book is very, ver...
• Internal agitprop & 'minimum compliance' in Chinese governance 20.03.2026 31мин

  A look at three recent papers published in the China Quarterly, and what they say about local governance, internal propaganda and the politics of 'getting things done' in modern China. Buy bookclub books here Buy me a coffee Latest Substack post Support the show Sign up for Buzzsprout to launch your podcasting journey: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=162442 Subscribe to the Sinobabble Newsletter: https://sinobabble.substack.com/ Support ...
• Down to the countryside 2.0 & the myth of the rural reset 13.03.2026 51мин

  China’s post 90s and 00s generation are burnt out, mentally and emotionally drained, and apparently are not getting enough sunlight. While grinding in the city seems to have led to a law of diminishing returns -- typically referred to as ‘involution’ -- many young hopefuls are still seeking opportunity elsewhere. In this episode I explore the phenonmenon of the ‘rural reset’, the idea that one can up sticks and move down to a beautiful rural idyll and live out the dream life running a coffee ...
• Consumption as identity and politics in China w/Yaling Jiang 06.03.2026 1ч

  Today's guest is Yaling Jiang. Yaling is a former journalist who currently uses her research and reporting skills to provide businesses with insights and analysis on the Chinese consumer market. She is the founder of research agency Aperture China, alongside which she runs the newsletter Following the Yuan on Substack, which provides nuanced takes on Chinese consumer trends. We discuss how Chinese people see themselves as consumers first and political citizens second, the CCP's attempts to in...
• Sex and irreverence during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution | "Serve the People!" Review (Sinobabble Book club) 27.02.2026 40мин

  This is a recording of the livestream of our monthly book club. In this livestream we discuss the book Serve the People! by Yan Lianke, a banned book set during the Cultural Revolution in China. If you would like to find out more about the book club and which books we’re reading, please click here. Buy me a coffee Links to everything Support the show Sign up for Buzzsprout to launch your podcasting journey: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=162442 Subscribe to the Sinobabble Newslette...
• [Archive] 20th Century History Episode 48 | The Cultural Revolution part 8: The end of the Cultural Revolution 26.02.2026 43мин

  Part 8 of reuploading classic history episodes in the run up to our book club review of Serve the People! by Yan Lianke. The death of Mao Zedong and the trial of the Gang of Four are traditionally used as the signifiers of the end of the Cultural Revolution. The violent and turbulent 10 year period came to a sudden stop as political in-fighting continued until Deng Xiaoping was able to quash his foes and come out on top. In this episode, we cover how the Cultural Revolution finally came to a...
• [Archive] 20th Century History Episode 51 | The Cultural Revolution part 7: Culture 25.02.2026 44мин

  Part 7 of reuploading classic history episodes in the run up to our book club review of Serve the People! by Yan Lianke. In this episode, we discuss the changes made to China's cultural realm during the Cultural Revolution. As the main target of the Cultural Revolution Group, cultural production including art, literature, theatre, and film were all subject to the new rules of the decade. But were those rules made to last? And were the CRG able to impose their will completely when they relied ...
• [Archive] 20th Century History Episode 50 | The Cultural Revolution part 6: Economy, Education & Everyday Life 24.02.2026 42мин

  Part 6 of reuploading classic history episodes in the run up to our book club review of Serve the People! by Yan Lianke. In this episode we look at how the economy and educational system fared during the Cultural Revolution decade. We discuss how a period of chaos led into a period of stagnation, where things neither got much better nor much worse. We also talk about differences between the countryside and the cities, and how every day life was irrevocably impacted by the social turmoil that ...
• [Archive] 20th Century History Episode 49 | The Cultural Revolution part 5: The death of Lin Biao 23.02.2026 45мин

  Part 5 of reuploading classic history episodes in the run up to our book club review of Serve the People! by Yan Lianke. In this episode we explore the mysterious and complex character of Lin Biao, and his even more mysterious demise. We ask how he rose to prominence so quickly after being a largely background figure in the party for so many years, and what effect his vice-chairmanship and sudden death had on the Cultural Revolution. *I accidentally say Liu instead of Lin at around the 22:30...