Expats in Beijing may be partial to our rugged smogtropolis, but even the most diehard northerner will admit that Shanghai is the more romantic of the two cities, with its very name conjuring up images of 19th century opium dens, jazz bars in the 1930s, and a sort of transcendent cosmopolitanism that connects the mystique of the city's international past with its almost tangible hunger for the future. Yet it was only really in the early-to-mid-1990s that Shanghai pulled away from its status as a second-tier city and began re-establishing itself as the world's future city.Today on Sinica, we take our eyes off Beijing for a change, and direct our gaze to Pudong and Puxi, and talk about what Shanghai means to us, itself and others. Joining us for this discussion is Anna Greenspan, author of Shanghai Future. Among her other accomplishments, Anna is also a teacher of urbanism and cybernetic culture at NYU Shanghai, and is the founder of the Shanghai Studies Society and Hacked Matter. If you're living down south be sure to check them out! [standalone mp3 file]
matthew.phan
said on February 1, 2015
Great show, really interesting discussion touching on many issues; I liked the angle regarding cities and urban architecture. Am wondering if Sinica might be able to do a show on the state of Chinese journalism in China - not the Bloomberg's, NYTs, New Yorker's, but rather local media like Caixin, 21st Century Herald, etc. It doesn't strike me that local media is that censored and biased (of course a lot of incidents are unreported, but at least certain issues are being discussed?), but perhaps they have to find certain ways of presenting critiques? And then what are the ways that readers must look between the lines? Would also be interesting to hear views on how professional and skilled the top local journalists/publications are; my sense is that they report very thoroughly but are sometimes putting out too much news without sufficiently drawing the threads together to form a consistent narrative (I mean within a single feature/publication; of course the different publications would take different viewpoints). But would be interested to hear a more educated view than mine.
ShanMu
said on February 1, 2015
Another great show guys, touched on a topic that i wouldnt have gone out of my way to pay attention to if i werent an avid listener, very interesting. eWhile we are on requests, it would be nice to hear a show on the bye gone protests in Hong Kong; and the outcome if the recent Free Trade Zone or Special Economic Area (can't remember the exact name) that was introduced by The Communist Party last November.
howiesnyder
said on February 5, 2015
For someone with a family, Pudong is eminently more livable than Puxi. Just as first-time foreigners in Beijing long to live in a Hutong, foreigners in Shanghai longingly look at the shikumen which are basically run down slums these days.....
ianfinnesey
said on February 6, 2015
All this talk about Blade Runner, future visions of China and Shanghai and no one mentions the Diamond Age.
viccui
said on February 13, 2015
I read the interview of Chai Yan Leung on hongkongmagazine.com after listening to this episode. Now I wonder what Jeremy's comments are.
