Inside China

Update: There are times when SCMP reporters get a surprising amount of free reign both in terms of tone and content, but there are also plenty of times when it’s clear that it’s under mainland ownership now, and that HK has changed significantly post return. The 2024 ‘Two-Sessions’ episode is a good example of fairly strong mainlander, pro-Beijing bias, with limited understanding of Western perspectives (sadly, many mainland Chinese have about as poor an understanding of the West as people in the West do of China; some SCMP journalists are better informed and more experienced with the West than others). That doesn’t mean SCMP content isn’t worth listening to, it often is, but it’s worth knowing what you’re getting. — Re: The Huawei Episode This episode took place in three acts: Act 1: Repeat the name Huawei over and over again, slowly and carefully. Apparently they are really tired of hearing everyone mispronounce it. I get it, but it still felt like a bit much. Act 2: Give a little bit of background, mostly by way of telling us that it’s complicated and we don’t know why Trump’s administration seems so butthurt about Huawei. People who should know say it could be used for spying, but won’t tell us how. Maybe it’s not true, or maybe it’s because the US likes to spy and doesn’t like it when the tables are turned. Act 3: Reluctantly and briefly admit that some people say bad things about Huawei (that may be true), but quickly move on and talk about how unfair this all is for for the poor, lovely, and admirable pack of wolves that is Huawei. The whole thing was, like too much of most Chinese coverage related to Huawei, very one sided. Often SCMP still manages to do good work, but this is a time when Ma’s ownership (or, perhaps, the implications of the new national security law) was showing.

Listened to several episodes. I will say this; well produced and well done propaganda. You need to listen closely. The average layman won’t notice it but if you truly listen it’s very clear. The dead giveaway is the constant juxtaposing of China vs USA and the passive aggressive anti-USA positioning. Most news sources just report basic facts. The interviews have a very Chiba slant. It’s nuanced but it is there. Well done propaganda. Kudos.

This was an excellent discussion on several topics, but mainly on U.S.-China relations and each country’s views on Taiwan. As an American, I appreciated hearing the Chinese point of view, as one doesn’t always get the full picture here in the U.S. The Chinese-U.S. relationship is of huge global importance and should not be allowed to descend into vitriol and closed-off dialogues. I’m hopeful that the recent Xi-Biden meeting can be extended in order to further warm relations between our countries. My hope is that wisdom can prevail in China that its collective intelligence and - hopefully - patience allows Taiwan to eventually rejoin an integrated China, but only if that can be achieved peacefully and with the support of the majority of the Taiwanese themselves. Force should not be used under any circumstances; not by China, and not by the U.S.

The guest stated that the Russians interfered in the 2016 election. That is a bald faced lie.