Jeremiah Jenne

Why are international travelers turning away from China?

Posted by Jeremiah Jenne | Aug 10, 2017 | Culture, Columns, Featured | 1

Differing attitudes toward historical preservation and a surging domestic tourism market are among the reasons

Kowtow and Get Out: How I Was Almost Ejected from the Forbidden City

Posted by Jeremiah Jenne | Jul 26, 2017 | Culture, Featured | 0 |

In 1793, the British diplomat Lord George Macartney nearly scuttled his trade mission when he famously refused to kowtow to the Qianlong Emperor. He was just one in a long line of foreign visitors to China who had to make the decision of whether to take a deep knee bend and satisfy imperial etiquette or remain standing and risk looking like a pretentious barbarian.

China’s Latest Proposal to Block Internet VPNs Still Doesn’t Make Sense

Posted by Jeremiah Jenne | Jul 12, 2017 | Daily Drip, Columns, Featured | 1

The “VPNs are going to be blocked in China” story seems to get written at least once a year. Eventually, it might actually come true. In a story first reported by Bloomberg (citing anonymous government sources) but since corroborated by South China Morning Post, China’s major state-owned telecom companies have been ordered to block access to VPNs beginning February 1, 2018. If you’re living in China and reading Radii, then you probably already know what a VPN is, but for anyone else reading (Hi, Mom! I’ll be home for your birthday!), a VPN refers to a Virtual Private Network. This is a system that...

Telling “The Story of China” in Six Hours is Futile, But Give BBC Credit for Trying

Posted by Jeremiah Jenne | Jul 5, 2017 | Culture, Columns, Featured | 0 |

It’s hard to fault the producers of the BBC Two documentary “The Story of China” (being broadcast this summer in the US on PBS, viewable online) for perhaps falling into the trap of the old Chinese saying, “走马看花” — to view flowers while racing a horse — i.e. attaining a superficial understanding through cursory observation.