Thanks for sharing this and writing it up! It’s so sad to hear stories like this, but also important for others to know it’s not an isolated experience. Happy you’re still writing 💙
Thanks for your story. It seems to confirm what Noam Chomsky said about “selection bias” results in Western media having journalists who un unaware of their prejudices.
Unfortunately, I’ve encountered it many times when trying to present the both sides of the story about China. It’s just so much easier to live in a world where someone is good and the others are bad.
In your case it’s especially explicit because media needs to push a clear message, but going into all the nuances only confuses people.
It’s not only about China, or the US, or Russia. It’s just about the world being more and more separated from each other and people just choosing not to listen.
I wish you to stay strong, keep writing and sharing unbiased (and unpopular) views. This makes the world a better place.
As a French citizen living in England I often experience this kind of ignorance.
My life changing experience happened when I went to live for 4 wonderful years in Beijing, the best, by far, of my long life.
It was an eye opening experience, and one of the reason I am following you... I need more real and actionable news from this region I love.
I understand your feeling, but I don't believe we can categorise these people are racists. It is a bit like classes in society, they are just not interested, believe arogantly in their superiority and love the comfort of their ignorance.
Seing how China, or any other country really is would shatter their confidence in themselves & their own little world. They are sad little human being.
I sometimes blame myself when, in an idiotic way, I find myself in their shoes...
When it happens, just try to change perspective and ask yourself: what do I know better than them, who am I to be condescending and ignore their view?
Everyone is biased, everyone makes assumptions. Some more than others. This is human nature.
When business news becomes political scalp counting exercises, it's easy to see why decision making in the USA has gone to the dogs. My consulting engineer firm quit buying expensive Bloomberg Reports when we found they were riddled with gross errors about easily checkable facts on China, and that nearly all of the errors in these reports were detrimental to China's image/ability to attract foreign investment. I'm afraid you were not battling just racism, but also old money/finance capitals use of the NED and CIA's control over newsrooms to carry out unconventional war against China.
Thanks for sharing. Aviation news reporting often follows familiar patterns—which is part of what motivated me to start my own newsletter. There’s still a noticeable lack of meaningful effort to understand the complex dynamics of the Asia-Pacific region, including China, with much of the coverage stuck in a Western-centric echo chamber. Cross-cultural missteps in Western reporting are frequent—and yet, rarely acknowledged or examined.
I am not Asian, but growing up a British citizen in the US, I know this feeling. Good on you for writing this. I still remember the time in health class a teacher told everyone all women in Europe don't shave.
Nice write up - there's quite a few of us in that area where we're too American for Asians and too Asians for Americans. It's a hollowed up sector but I hope you are able to find some solace in writing out your frustrations here and connecting with other individuals with storied backgrounds like yourself that's rooted in some degree of oppression and opportunism. It's like opening a book only to find the pages are frayed and rattled.
I sympathize with you not only for having these bad experiences, but for having your career aspirations derailed.
And I’m glad you’ve found a great niche for your interests and talents.
And racism is real and unacceptable.
But there are several “buts” in my initial responses to your story.
My impression is that any bias was more ideological than ethnic.
Legacy media is corporate owned, and many in decision-making positions are still fighting the Cold War between American “free enterprise” and Chinese “socialism”, even though Deng abandoned “state ownership of the means of production” in favor of “the market mechanism” many decades ago.
And besides the economics of Cold War ideology, there is the politics of it. Although it is difficult to make the case that America is a democracy, when the decision-making is oligarchic in nature, it is difficult to make the case that China, or any political system with only one party, is “democratic”.
I have found that the more I escape the biases of ideology and stereotyping, the more I come up against the harsh and unjust realities of both MOST workplaces, and most of the domestic and foreign policies of most nations.
We live in a cruel and toxic world.
And in my opinion, AI is one of the few hopes we have of improving the human condition.
Thanks for sharing this and writing it up! It’s so sad to hear stories like this, but also important for others to know it’s not an isolated experience. Happy you’re still writing 💙
It’s very brave of you to share. Well done for not giving up on writing. 🤝
Thanks for your story. It seems to confirm what Noam Chomsky said about “selection bias” results in Western media having journalists who un unaware of their prejudices.
Unfortunately, I’ve encountered it many times when trying to present the both sides of the story about China. It’s just so much easier to live in a world where someone is good and the others are bad.
In your case it’s especially explicit because media needs to push a clear message, but going into all the nuances only confuses people.
It’s not only about China, or the US, or Russia. It’s just about the world being more and more separated from each other and people just choosing not to listen.
I wish you to stay strong, keep writing and sharing unbiased (and unpopular) views. This makes the world a better place.
As a French citizen living in England I often experience this kind of ignorance.
My life changing experience happened when I went to live for 4 wonderful years in Beijing, the best, by far, of my long life.
It was an eye opening experience, and one of the reason I am following you... I need more real and actionable news from this region I love.
I understand your feeling, but I don't believe we can categorise these people are racists. It is a bit like classes in society, they are just not interested, believe arogantly in their superiority and love the comfort of their ignorance.
Seing how China, or any other country really is would shatter their confidence in themselves & their own little world. They are sad little human being.
I sometimes blame myself when, in an idiotic way, I find myself in their shoes...
When it happens, just try to change perspective and ask yourself: what do I know better than them, who am I to be condescending and ignore their view?
Everyone is biased, everyone makes assumptions. Some more than others. This is human nature.
Loved this piece. Thank you for sharing your experience!
When business news becomes political scalp counting exercises, it's easy to see why decision making in the USA has gone to the dogs. My consulting engineer firm quit buying expensive Bloomberg Reports when we found they were riddled with gross errors about easily checkable facts on China, and that nearly all of the errors in these reports were detrimental to China's image/ability to attract foreign investment. I'm afraid you were not battling just racism, but also old money/finance capitals use of the NED and CIA's control over newsrooms to carry out unconventional war against China.
Thanks for sharing. Aviation news reporting often follows familiar patterns—which is part of what motivated me to start my own newsletter. There’s still a noticeable lack of meaningful effort to understand the complex dynamics of the Asia-Pacific region, including China, with much of the coverage stuck in a Western-centric echo chamber. Cross-cultural missteps in Western reporting are frequent—and yet, rarely acknowledged or examined.
I am not Asian, but growing up a British citizen in the US, I know this feeling. Good on you for writing this. I still remember the time in health class a teacher told everyone all women in Europe don't shave.
Nice write up - there's quite a few of us in that area where we're too American for Asians and too Asians for Americans. It's a hollowed up sector but I hope you are able to find some solace in writing out your frustrations here and connecting with other individuals with storied backgrounds like yourself that's rooted in some degree of oppression and opportunism. It's like opening a book only to find the pages are frayed and rattled.
Hope you find your niche here and good luck!
Your editor strikes me as being arrogant.
I sympathize with you not only for having these bad experiences, but for having your career aspirations derailed.
And I’m glad you’ve found a great niche for your interests and talents.
And racism is real and unacceptable.
But there are several “buts” in my initial responses to your story.
My impression is that any bias was more ideological than ethnic.
Legacy media is corporate owned, and many in decision-making positions are still fighting the Cold War between American “free enterprise” and Chinese “socialism”, even though Deng abandoned “state ownership of the means of production” in favor of “the market mechanism” many decades ago.
And besides the economics of Cold War ideology, there is the politics of it. Although it is difficult to make the case that America is a democracy, when the decision-making is oligarchic in nature, it is difficult to make the case that China, or any political system with only one party, is “democratic”.
I have found that the more I escape the biases of ideology and stereotyping, the more I come up against the harsh and unjust realities of both MOST workplaces, and most of the domestic and foreign policies of most nations.
We live in a cruel and toxic world.
And in my opinion, AI is one of the few hopes we have of improving the human condition.