Foreign Relations & International Law

ChinaTalk: Sci-fi Mecha Wu Zetian, YouTube on China and C-drama Fails

Jordan Schneider
Wednesday, January 5, 2022, 10:45 AM

Published by The Lawfare Institute
in Cooperation With
Brookings

NYT bestselling YA author Xiran Jay Zhao (@XiranJayZhao) joins me to talk about her new book, Iron Widow, a Pacific Rim meets Handmaiden's tale sci-fi retelling of the story of Wu Zetian. Co-hosting is ChinaTalk's editor Callan Quinn (@quinnishvili).

We discuss:

  • Chinese history Easter eggs in Iron Widow
  • Going viral and Youtube China content
  • How censorship is stifling creativity in C-dramas
  • Why Xiran thinks Confucius was an arsehole

Click here to listen to ChinaTalk in your favorite podcast app.

Link to Iron Widow:

https://www.amazon.com/Iron-Widow-Xiran-Jay-Zhao/dp/0735269939

Rhodium' careers site: https://rhg.com/careers/

Outtro Music: Lexie Liu's Manta: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fvUnPl5_BA

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Jordan Schneider is the host of the ChinaTalk podcast and newsletter. He previously worked at Kwai, Bridgewater and the Eurasia Group. His Chinese landscape paintings "show promise."

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