Ian Johnson
@iandenisjohnson
China civil society, religion, politics. 2024-25 fellow @wiko_berlin. Founder @mjdanganguan. Pulitzer for international reporting. Author three books on China.
I couldn’t be prouder of this piece that we published in @MinjianArchives by Cui Weiping on her translations of Havel and Michnik, and her interactions with the recently departed Fu Guoyong. An exclusive essay, bilingual, no paywall. open.substack.com/pub/chinaunoff…
“Without his son [Xi Jinping]’s ascent to power, Xi Zhongxun would probably have been remembered as a rising star whose career came to an early halt thanks to a curiosity—a historical novel.” —@iandenisjohnson go.nybooks.com/3Ujjcdy
In this review essay for @nybooks I look at two bios of senior Chinese leader: Hu Yaobang and Xi Jinping. Hu might have been more consequential but @JosephTorigian’s bio shows us how Xi Jinping was raised and how he runs China.👍👍 nybooks.com/articles/2025/…
Hong Kong’s dark night: how a young Hong Kong journalist struggled with inner demons to write the definitive account of the city’s descent into lawlessness. The latest @MinjianArchives newsletter, free and bilingual. open.substack.com/pub/chinaunoff…
Why did the death a Chinese writer who held no prestigious positions or write bestsellers trigger an outpouring of grief and emotion inside and outside China? To find out, read the lastest @MinjianArchives on the great independent historian Fu Guoyong. chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/e2c?utm_camp…
Today
This Sunday, July 13, is the eighth anniversary of the death of Nobel Peace prize laureate Liu Xiaobo. In our newsletter, Ian Johnson talks about Liu Xiaobo's legacy and why Liu's relevance only increases with passing time. chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/3a9…
《刘晓波去世八周年，重温他留给中国人的精神遗产》。中国民间档案馆刊发张彦@iandenisjohnson 的中英文双语文章，以志永远的纪念。 chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/3a9?source=q…
These career American diplomats served our country well, were non-partisan and did not deserve to be fired at the height of their careers. We’ll be weaker without them. Historic mistake.
HAPPENING NOW!! Moving scene - tears, hugs, and cheers - inside the State Dept HQ tonight, as diplomats gathered in the lobby to clap out their laid off colleague, some of which have served for decades 👇🏻
.@iandenisjohnson: “It will be 20 years before the new Dalai Lama can weigh in on public debates. By then, it’s not clear what will be left of Tibetan culture anyway, especially with China racing forward with efforts to eradicate the language.” chinafile.com/conversation/d…
Get ready for two Dalai Lamas: my take on the looming succession struggle for the 90-year-old Dalai Lama. A @ChinaFile conversation with @RobbieBarnett @isabelhilton @tashirabgey and yours truly chinafile.com/conversation/d…
A Mao-era Inquisition: 70 years on, why the PRC's first literary witch hunt is still a template for how the Communist Party tries to control writers. The latest @MinjianArchives newsletter looks at the tragic case of Hu Feng. Bilingual, free of charge: chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/fb8?utm_camp…
So Zelensky did everything Trump asked him to do, signed away mineral rights, agreed to an unconditional ceasefire, and the U.S. still cut off previously funded weapons supplies, leaving Ukrainian cities defenseless against Russian missile strikes. A lesson to all here.
BREAKING: White House confirms it has halted weapons that Ukraine was scheduled to receive, including PAC3 Patriots, 155mm artillery rounds, GMLRS, Stinger, AIM-7, and Hellfire missiles. @AnnaKelly47 tells me: “This decision was made to put America’s interests first following a…
Who was behind one of the most important magazines in the history of the PRC? How did it get its start? This bilingual essay by @MinjianArchives tells the backstory to "China Through the Ages" (炎黄春秋). It's free. Read it. Like it. Subscribe to it. chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/efe?utm_camp…
One of our best essays so far: check out the latest @MinjianArchives newsletter on the rise and fall of the most influential political magazine of the Reform Era: “China Through the Ages” 炎黄春秋 open.substack.com/pub/chinaunoff…
As part of our efforts to include the erased histories of all ethnic groups in China, @MinjianArchives 's newsletter today discusses a key work of Uyghur resistance: A Land Drenched in Tears. The newsletter is in Uyghur, Chinese, English. Please subscribe! chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/a30?utm_camp…
