This week on Peking Hotel, I'm publishing my oral history conversation with Ian Johnson. Ian is an eminent China watcher and Pulitzer-winning journalist Ian Johnson - who gave me 17 hours (!) of his precious time to generously share his thoughts and stories. Now you get to hear the first hour of our conversation, with more good stuff to come. In this episode, we discussed his first trip to China as an exchange student in Beijing in the 80s, his critical thoughts on China journalism by foreigners, and his shifting views on Chinese intellectuals, which ultimately led to his masterful book, Sparks. Enjoy!
Peking Hotel with Liu He
Finding relics among the ruins of the Cultural Revolution — with Ian Johnson