Podcasting provides a space for free thought in China
Amid a broader media clampdown, there are still a few corners where discussion is welcome
MUXI MAKES cables that charge smartphones in a factory near Shanghai. The work is boring, he says, but at least his boss lets him wear Bluetooth earphones. That way, for six days a week, 11 hours a day, as his hands fly across the assembly line, his mind fills. First, the 24-year-old listened to audiobooks. Then, online classes. Now, he prefers podcasts. As the Communist Party has tightened control over media, and China’s vapid pop culture has become ever more shallow in response, podcasts have become a niche where thinking people can find unexpected, and sometimes controversial, content.
This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “Listening in”
From the August 29th 2020 edition
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