China News on NPR This Week

Filed in archive Information Sources on May 25, 2007

While it is a long way from being my only source of news, or even my primary source of news, some of the most stimulating information and analysis that I see (or hear, in this case) in the course of a week comes from National Public Radio, or NPR.

NPR appeals to me for a couple of reasons. The first is that it makes use of what might otherwise be lost time for me. I listen to NPR most days during my 30-minute commute to work. But NPR also has the advantage of having multiple avenues of access and an extensive searchable archive. Their website provides links to text versions of many stories they run as well as audio files that can be heard again online if you miss the broadcast.

With a Chinese delegation in the U.S. for trade talks and some health issues concerning exports from China both getting media attention recently, NPR ran a number of interesting stories on China issues over the last week. Among the headlines:

• Chinese Play Market By Their Own Rules - A 45-second story about how individual investors in China make stock decisions.
  
  


• As Imports Increase, a Tense Dependence on China - Eight and a half minutes on the growing reliance in America on food products from China and how the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is having difficulty monitoring the incoming products.
  
  


• Fears Rise of Chinese Stock Implosion - A three minute piece on the possibility that the bulls will eventually stop their run on the markets in Shanghai and Hong Kong, and the effect that could have on U.S. stocks.
  
  


• U.S., China Talks End with Little Progress - A one minute round up of the trade talks.
  
  


• A Booming China Spells Trouble for America - One of the most interesting pieces this week, this 91 minute debate among six China experts examines the impact of China's growing prosperity on America. An edited 50 minute version is also online.
  
  


• Hoffa: Labor Conditions Must Improve in China - A four minute interview with Teamsters President James hoffa, who was visiting Beijing.
  
  


• Air Pollution Grows in Tandem with China's Economy - About eight minutes on a serious problem created by China's modern industrial revolution.
  
  


• China's Blackstone Buy Shows a New Angle - A look at why China is putting three billion dollars into this U.S. firm, and how they're going about it.
  

All of these are stories that have been published by NPR just within the last week. While their China Desk is not always this busy, their searchable archive makes NPR a great starting place from China research and analysis.