Beijing's Charm Offensive

In this episode of GREAT POWER PODCAST, host Michael Sobolik interviews Josh Kurlantzick about the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) public diplomacy, its malign activities around the world, and what it means for the United States.

Guest Biography

Joshua Kurlantzick is senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). He is the author, most recently, of Beijing's Global Media Offensive: China's Uneven Campaign to Influence Asia and the World. Kurlantzick was previously a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he studied Southeast Asian politics and economics and China's relations with Southeast Asia, including Chinese investment, aid, and diplomacy. Previously, he was a fellow at the University of Southern California Center on Public Diplomacy and a fellow at the Pacific Council on International Policy. He is currently focused on China’s relations with Southeast Asia, and China’s approach to soft and sharp power, including state-backed media and information efforts and other components of soft and sharp power. He is also working on issues related to the rise of global populism, populism in Asia, and the impact of COVID-19 on illiberal populism and political freedom overall.

Resources from the Conversation

Read Josh's new book, Beijing's Global Media Offensive
Read Josh's previous book about China's public diplomacy
Read reporting from Politico about Beijing's charm offensive
Read reporting from The Wall Street Journal about China-Australia relations
Subscribe to AFPC's Indo-Pacific Monitor