Audio, History
Jeremiah Jenne
What can the end of the Ming Dynasty tell us ...

Trump's re-election disappointed many in the U.S. and abroad. To help them process, Jeremiah and David talk with literary translator and Pennsylvania voter Brendan O’Kane about Zhang Dai, the Ming-Qing transition, and living through an age of upheaval.

What can the end of the Ming Dynasty tell us about the election of Donald Trump and what comes next
Contemporary China, History, Audio
Jeremiah Jenne
Historical Battles: Rewriting China's Past to ...

Jeffrey Wasserstrom joins Barbarians at the Gate to discuss the legacy of the Hong Kong protests, Xi Jinping’s patriotic education law, and how Beijing’s control over historical narratives is reshaping academic engagement with China.

Historical Battles: Rewriting China's Past to Shape the Future
Audio, History
Jeremiah Jenne
Dan Snow's History Hit: The Creation of the ...

How China transitioned from imperial rule to Chinese Socialism and all about the key characters whose opposing visions for China's future created so much chaos along the way.

Dan Snow's History Hit: The Creation of the People's Republic of China
Book Reviews, History
Jeremiah Jenne
Philip Kuhn: Sorcery and Bureaucracy in Qing ...

A supernatural crisis pits an anxious autocrat against his own functionaries when a hunt for soul-stealing sorcerers turns into a political witch-hunt among 18th-century China’s “deep state.”

Philip Kuhn: Sorcery and Bureaucracy in Qing China
Audio, History, Travel
Jeremiah Jenne
Edge of Empire with author and journalist ...

In this episode of Barbarians at the Gates, Edward Wong of the New York Times joins David and me to discuss Ed's new book, At the Edge of Empire. We discuss frontiers, what the Qing Dynasty means for China, and the different generational perspectives on China's recent past.

Edge of Empire with author and journalist Edward Wong
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History Wars: The PRC pushes back against unsanctioned views of the past

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History Wars: The PRC pushes back against unsanctioned views of the past

David and I discuss what's going on with the Qing history project, a controversy about Genghis Khan in France, and how PRC continues punching back against potentially problematic pasts.

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Do you really need to learn to write characters to study Chinese?

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Do you really need to learn to write characters to study Chinese?

Hosting solo in this week’s episode, David takes a geeky deep dive into the digital revolution in Chinese language learning in conversation with Chinese language pedagogy expert Matt Coss. 

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Asymmetrical warfare in the battle over China’s past

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Asymmetrical warfare in the battle over China’s past

Chinese history — very distant and very near — is filled with people who did not, and do not, abide by the government's "official" version of events. Ian Johnson gives them a voice in his latest book, Sparks.

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A Career of Change Making: A Conversation with Isabel Nepstad of Bellaterra Consulting

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A Career of Change Making: A Conversation with Isabel Nepstad of Bellaterra Consulting

Isabel Nepstad, CEO of BellaTerra Consluting, takes time out of her busy schedule to drop by the Barbarians at the Gate studio to share her career journey, give advice to those looking to pursue their professional lives in China and discuss the challenges and opportunities in the environmental and agricultural sectors in China and around the world.

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Have Tunes, Will Travel: The Musical Adventures of DJ Bo

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Have Tunes, Will Travel: The Musical Adventures of DJ Bo

With David off on summer shenanigans, Jeremiah flies solo as DJ Bo drops by the BATG studio to talk about his adventures performing across China, what drives his passion for music, and the case for Shanghai as the birthplace of Rock n’ Roll.

A Great Leap Backwards?: The Closing of Cultural Spaces and the New Normal in Beijing

A Great Leap Backwards?: The Closing of Cultural Spaces and the New Normal in Beijing

Are China's cultural spaces shrinking? Expression is silenced, vibrant scenes fade, and exchanges stall. David and Jeremiah discuss the effects of this trend on China's soft power and the future of cross-cultural creative endeavors.

How the Whampoa Academy Gave Birth to Famous Enemies in Chinese Political History

How the Whampoa Academy Gave Birth to Famous Enemies in Chinese Political History

When classes first convened on June 16, 1924, China’s first modern military academy aimed to reunite a divided nation. It didn’t quite work out that way.

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Rocking China with Historian Andrew Field

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Rocking China with Historian Andrew Field

In this episode of Barbarians at the Gate, we welcome back Andrew Field to discuss his new book Rocking China: Rock Music Scenes in Beijing, Shanghai, and Beyond. We look back on the bands and people who helped to shape Indie Rock in Beijing and China.

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Tik-Tok-for-Tat: Jeremiah and David try to Fix US-China Relations

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Tik-Tok-for-Tat: Jeremiah and David try to Fix US-China Relations

Fueled by too many red bulls (Jeremiah) and some pretty good pharmaceuticals following an emergency root canal (David), our intrepid cohosts throw caution to the wind and attempt to fix US-China Relations in a single podcast.

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A Weekend Walks Guide to Managing the Spring Tourist Crush

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A Weekend Walks Guide to Managing the Spring Tourist Crush

Beijing travel is back, and so are the crowds. Here are a few tips for those looking to take advantage of the great weather as the city prepares for the May Day holiday crush.

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