World Cup, World Expo, And “Third World” Links,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
World Cup, World Expo, And “Third World” Links
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
This is shaping up to be a big year for cities of the Global South (or what in the past was more often called the “Third World”) to serve as first-time hosts for mega-events, whether of the top-tier variety (defined here as those, like the Olympics, that involve or at least could involve more than a hundred countries) or of the second-tier type (those like, say, the Pan-American Games, that draw in nations belonging to just one region or having something else specific in common). Starting with a pair of second-tier but still major sporting events, October will find New …
Reading Round-Up, 7/10/10,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Reading Round-Up, 7/10/10
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Apple is opening its first Shanghai location this weekend, the kickoff to what one analyst describes as a planned “major invasion” of China (Apple projects that it will open twenty-five stores on the mainland in the next eighteen months). Read a New York Times article on the new store here; see here for pictures of the store up at Shanghaiist. The Wall Street Journal’s China Real Time Report blog has an account of the store’s launch party here.
“The Heritage Of Shanghai”,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
“The Heritage Of Shanghai”
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Read about all things Shanghai in the latest issue of China Heritage Quarterly, now online. In the “Features” section, you’ll find a photo essay on “Shanghai Modern” by Lois Conner
Where To Begin: New Perspectives On Chinese Labor,
2010
University of Oklahoma
Where To Begin: New Perspectives On Chinese Labor, Mark W. Frazier
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Studies of labor in China have taken an exciting turn in recent years with the publication of numerous rich and revealing portraits of workers, their jobs, and their place in Chinese politics and in the global economy. As thousands of migrant workers employed in auto parts suppliers for Toyota and Honda went on strike in May and June of 2010, some headlines heralded a political coming of age for China’s migrant workers. While it’s too early to assess the impact of these strikes, it is clear that migrant workers have gained a level of organizational sophistication and political awareness to …
A Transcendent Moment In The Land Of Haibao,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
A Transcendent Moment In The Land Of Haibao
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
I’m finally in Shanghai, where the Gumby-like Haibao is amazingly even more omnipresent than the last time I was through (and then he seemed to be everywhere). I’ve come to check out the Expo, see some new sites, catch up with some old friends, do a bit of traveling, and, as I noted in an earlier post, take part in a dialog on World’s Fairs past and present with Nick Land (that took place a few days ago) and host a weekly series of “Cosmopolitan Conversations” with assorted writers at the Glamour Bar at M on the Bund (those are …
Over Exposure,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Over Exposure, Lisa Movius
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
“The Expo story that couldn’t be printed.” That’s what editors at Shanghai’s City Weekend magazine found they had on their hands several weeks ago, when Chinese censors deemed the story below “too negative” to run. A revised version was subsequently submitted, approved by the censors, and printed in the January 20, 2010 issue. City Weekend decided not to post the original story on its website as planned, as they were told it was inadvisable due to an official caution against publishing media reports critical of the Expo. Here, we are pleased to share with China Beat readers the full, uncensored …
Lessons From Sichuan For Haitian Survivors,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Lessons From Sichuan For Haitian Survivors, Sascha Matuszak
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
China has just sent its second medical team to Haiti, along with 20 tons of supplies and five Chinese peacekeepers to replace the four who died in the earthquake that destroyed Port-au-Prince on January 12th. The current group replaces a set of Chinese International Search and Rescue workers and sniffer dogs who arrived in Haiti the day after the disaster struck.
More On Google + China,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
More On Google + China
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Now that we’ve all had a few days to think deeply about the Google + China story, lots of commentaries and opinion pieces are coming across the wire. Here’s a sampling of those that caught our attention over the weekend:
Five C’S On China, Censorship, And Cyberspace,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Five C’S On China, Censorship, And Cyberspace
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
We’re continuing to track the Google and China story, and wanted to call your attention to these particularly good pieces of writing — each of which brought a “c” adjective to mind:
Blogging Aas 2010 (2),
2010
University of Manchester
Blogging Aas 2010 (2), William Callahan
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
One of the pleasures of going to a conference is seeing what free goodies you can scam from various institutions. Lots of free pens were proffered by various publishers. A Chinese press was giving out some trinkets — but for some reason not to me. The International Institute for Asian Studies (Leiden) was once again giving out sheer canvas bags loaded with their newsletter and other readable items. UBC Press offered 50-year-old issues of Pacific Affairs for the antiquarians among us, as well as more recent issues.
Capturing Chinese With Help From Lu Xun,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Capturing Chinese With Help From Lu Xun
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
We’ve run several posts on Lu Xun at China Beat recently (including this one by Julia Lovell and this one by Sean Macdonald). While Lovell’s new translation of Lu Xun’s stories caters to an Anglophone audience, Kevin Nadolny wanted to create a reader that made Lu Xun more accessible to Chinese-language learners. His new text, Capturing Chinese: Short Stories from Lu Xun’s Nahan, features a fully glossed text of Lu Xun’s short stories so that language learners can focus on reading and comprehension rather than their dictionaries. Here, Kevin answers questions about his motivations for creating the reader and his …
When Skinny Is Too Thin,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
When Skinny Is Too Thin
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Many Taiwanese are becoming increasingly concerned for the health of First Lady Chow Mei-ching 周美青 (Christine Chow Ma), who suffered a spinal injury after being bowled over by a group of overenthusiastic children while visiting a primary school in Pingtung 屏東 County on March 3. She was released from the hospital on March 16, but despite repeated Presidential Office reassurances that the First Lady is in good health doctors have ordered two months of additional bed rest, meaning that she had to miss the opening game of Taiwan’s professional baseball league on March 20 (the First Lady is an avid …
A New Book (Almost In The Bookstores) And Some Boston To Boulder Speaking Dates,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
A New Book (Almost In The Bookstores) And Some Boston To Boulder Speaking Dates
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Back when the “China Beat” was in its infancy (figuring that blog years should be reckoned like dog years, it is now solidly in its adolescence), those of us involved in launching it thought that a fair amount of its content might well end up taking the form of “Self-Promotion Saturday” posts (shamelessly touting activities we’d been involved in) or “Coming Distractions” reviews (discussions of books that were about to appear, films that were in the works, upcoming conferences, etc.). Thankfully, the content has turned out to be much more varied, so these two features have only made up a …
The End Of The Revolution: China And The Limits Of Modernity,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
The End Of The Revolution: China And The Limits Of Modernity
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
When the Association for Asian Studies meets in Philadelphia later this week, one of the keynote speakers will be Tsinghua University professor and noted public intellectual Wang Hui, whose talk on Saturday evening is free and open to the public. A former editor of Dushu(“Reading”), Wang’s writings include China’s New Order: Society, Politics, and Economy in Transition(Harvard, 2003), as well as a recently released collection of essays, The End of the Revolution: China and the Limits of Modernity (Verso, 2009). Here, we are pleased to share with China Beat readers an excerpt from the English edition introduction of The End …
Olympic Fever! From Beijing To Vancouver And Back,
2010
University of British Columbia
Olympic Fever! From Beijing To Vancouver And Back, David Luesink
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics are now over, and most of the athletes, media, and tourists have left my home city. If the media (particularly British media) began by focusing primarily on negative issues, the drama of national teams, and individual athletes and overall medal counts seemed to drown out the naysayers, much as in Beijing two years ago. Both host countries came off as excellent hosts, and both host countries carried home unprecedented numbers of medals. If for China their Olympics had been a coming out party, an end to a century of general humiliation, for Canada these games …
How Does China Help Africa?,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
How Does China Help Africa?, Angilee Shah
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
If the headlines are any indication, it’s time for a proper China scare. A sampling from recent news stories on China’s involvement in Africa include: “China throws birthday bash for Zimbabwe’s Mugabe” (Reuters), “Namibia Bans Chinese Investment in Beauty Salons” (Bloomberg), and “China Unicom Denies African Expansion” (Forbes).
China Learns From The Soviet Union: An Interview With Thomas P. Bernstein,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
China Learns From The Soviet Union: An Interview With Thomas P. Bernstein
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
Thomas Bernstein, professor emeritus of Government at Columbia University, has recently edited a new book with Hua-yu Li, China Learns from the Soviet Union, 1949-present (Lexington Books, 2010). Below, an interview we conducted with Professor Bernstein via e-mail, exploring the volume’s scope and how it came into being.
International Women’S Day: Readings Around The Web,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
International Women’S Day: Readings Around The Web
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
1. Shanghaiist has a Women’s Day post that includes an interesting Al Jazeera report on Wu Qing, a women’s rights activist and district People’s Congress representative. The video follows Wu Qing as she teaches at Beijing’s Rural Women Training School, instructing village women on their constitutional rights and encouraging them to pursue education and employment opportunities.
Behind The Wheel, About To Snap,
2010
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Behind The Wheel, About To Snap, Peter Hessler
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
. . . A photo, that is. Below, Peter Hessler shares some of the photographs he took while traveling across China doing research for his latest book, Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory. Read our review of Country Drivinghere; for other takes on the book, check out Jonathan Yardley’s review at theWashington Post, and Adam Daniel Mezei’s write-up at his blog.
Yo! Aas Is Coming To The City Of Brotherly Love,
2010
National Committee on U.S.-China Relations
Yo! Aas Is Coming To The City Of Brotherly Love, Maura Elizabeth Cunningham
China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012
I’d very much like to be in China this month, as several cities are hosting big literary events that feature many authors I’ve followed for the past several years, and whose names are probably familiar to regular China Beat readers. In Beijing, the Bookworm International Literary Festival is welcoming Graham Earnshaw (The Great Walk of China, March 6), Jonathan Tel (The Beijing of Possibilities, March 8; two excerpts are here and here), and Jeremy Goldkorn (Danwei, March 18). The Shanghai International Literary Festival is also boasting a program chock-full of talks I’d love to hear, such as Hyejin Kim on …
