Friday, June 13 | 3:30 – 5:00 pm in the Lindner Family Commons, Elliott School of International Affairs, Washington DC
The U.S.-China Education Trust invite you to a conversation with acclaimed historian Jeffrey Wasserstrom as he discusses his latest work, The Milk Tea Alliance, with Evan Osnos, award-winning staff writer at The New Yorker. This wide-ranging dialogue will explore the evolving landscape of public writing on China, the deep connections between China and Southeast Asia, and the art of engaging public audiences through scholarly and journalistic writing.
Throughout his career, Wasserstrom has provided nuanced perspectives on modern China’s social movements, cultural shifts, and political transformations. In his newest work, he expands his geographic focus, examining Southeast Asian societies and their complex relationships with China. Osnos, who served as The New Yorker’s Beijing correspondent from 2008-2013, witnessed China’s profound political, economic, and cultural upheaval firsthand. Like Wasserstrom, his focus has expanded beyond China to encompass East Asia, Southeast Asia, and U.S. domestic politics and social trends. Drawing upon their shared experiences as writers who have navigated the challenges of reporting on an increasingly complex region, this dialogue will examine the changing nature of covering Asia for American audiences in today’s geopolitical landscape.
Join us on June 13, from 3:30 to 5:00 PM, to explore these questions, examine China’s evolving relationships with its Southeast Asian neigbhors, and gain insight on the future of China scholarship and journalism.
Speaker Biography
Jeffrey Wasserstrom is Chancellor’s Professor of History at UC Irvine, where he also holds courtesy affiliations in Law and Literary Journalism. He holds a B.A. from UC Santa Cruz, an M.A. from Harvard, and a Ph.D. from UC Berkeley. Wasserstrom has written, coauthored, edited, or coedited more than ten books. His most recent works include Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink (2020) and the updated third edition of China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford, 2018), coauthored with Maura Elizabeth Cunningham.
In addition to contributing to academic journals, Wasserstrom writes for general interest outlets such as The New York Times, The Times Literary Supplement, and The Wall Street Journal. He is co-editor of the China Section at the Los Angeles Review of Books. He has served as a consultant for two award-winning documentaries by the Long Bow Film Group and appeared on camera in the film Joshua: Teenager vs. Superpower. He is also a former member of the Board of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations.
Evan Osnos has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 2008. From 2008 to 2013, he served as the magazine’s China correspondent, covering stories such as the reconstruction of a train crash that exposed corruption, a group of Chinese tourists on their first trip to Europe, and a barber’s quest to beat the house in Macau. He also wrote the “Letter from China” blog for newyorker.com for four years.
Osnos is the author of Wildland: The Making of America’s Fury, a New York Times bestseller, and Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China, which won the National Book Award. Prior to The New Yorker, he was a foreign correspondent for the Chicago Tribune, where he shared in two Pulitzer Prizes.
His upcoming book, The Haves and Have-Yachts: Dispatches on the Ultrarich, will be published in June 2025. He lives with his wife and children near Washington, D.C.
China Connections
Why should Americans be interested in China? USCET launches China Connections, a new monthly series hosting discussions with experts to explore their work, gain insights into current events, and learn what a career in the China field looks like today. These events highlight individuals with unique expertise on China to provide students, young professionals, and members of the public a deeper understanding of current events and increase American student interest in pursuing a focus on China. These events are mostly held in person at George Washington University with online engagement.