In addition to the public programs below, USCI sponsored several private workshops (e.g., U.S.-China Bi-National Commission on Trust Building) and training programs), plus screenings of our documentaries across the U.S. and China. USCI speakers presented research and participated in dozens of events sponsored by other organizations.
May 21-22, 2012
10th Annual Chinese Internet Research Conference: Social Media, Digital Entertainment, Governance & Social Movements
Hosted by the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism and the USC U.S.-China Institute, the 10th Annual Chinese Internet Research Conference – CIRC10 – examined trends and themes as we explore the ways in which the Internet and other technologies interact with Chinese cultural and social life. This interdisciplinary conference brought together scholars, analysts, industry leaders, journalists and legal practitioners from around the world to look at the impact of the Internet on Chinese societies, its social, cultural, political and economic aspects, as well as how China is changing the Internet.
June 12, 2012
Screening: The Revolutionary
Sidney Rittenberg’s story would be just a footnote to history, except for his exceptional intellect, uncompromising honesty, and engaging personality. Over a five-year period, award-winning former-CBS journalist and China specialist, Irv Drasnin, interviewed Rittenberg to produce a compelling, complex and unique understanding of the 20th century's biggest revolution. From Sid first meeting Mao in the caves of Yan’an, to his becoming famous and powerful during the Cultural Revolution, to his battling insanity in solitary, his journey and his profound insight illuminate a much greater history—a history few Chinese are aware of, let alone many Americans, told by an American who was there.
September 6, 2012
Bringing Madame Mao to the Stage - I, Ching (青)
Cecile Tang, Lowell Lo, and Marsha Yuan discussed their roles and contributions in the musical about the life of Mao Zedong's wife, Jiang Ching. I, CHING recasts the birth of modern-day China in a new light, with a page in history envisioned this time as a song and dance comedy featuring sixteen original numbers and an English speaking Hong Kong cast.
September 27, 2012
Book Talk: Chinese Characters - The Profiles of Fast-Changing Lives in a Fast-Changing Land
Editors Angilee Shah and Jeffrey Wasserstrom and contributor James Carter presented the book and discussed their experiences with the process. Chinese Characters is a collection of portraits by some of the top people working on China today. Their stories together create a multi-faceted portrait of a country in motion.
October 4, 2012
Screening of Assignment: China – China Watching
The USC U.S.-China Institute screened the new segment of Assignment: China focusing on the generation of American journalists who reported on China during a period of revolution, famine, and upheaval. These "China-watchers," operating primarily from the British colony of Hong Kong, was an entire generation of journalists who developed the Chinese equivalent of "Kremlinology"- looking for clues in official propaganda, interviewing refugees and defectors, swapping notes with diplomats and spooks - and in the process, producing a surprisingly accurate picture of China in turmoil.
October 19, 2012
Screening: Crocodile in the Yangtze - The Story of a Westerner inside China’s Alibaba.com
The USC U.S.-China Institute and School of Cinematic Arts presented a screening of Crocodile in the Yangtze, followed by Q&A with director Porter Erisman. It follows China’s first Internet entrepreneur and former English teacher, Jack Ma, as he battles US giant eBay on the way to building China's first global Internet company, Alibaba Group. An independent memoir written, directed and produced by Porter Erisman, an American who worked in Ma’s company for eight years, the film captures the emotional ups and downs of life in a Chinese Internet startup at a time when the Internet brought China face-to-face with the West.
October 27, 2012
Chinese American Film Festival - Chinese Screen and Modernity 中国镜像与现代性
The USC U.S.-China Institute and the Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture presented a panel discussion on the film industry in China and its impact on the American market. The panel consisted of experts in the film industry from both China and the United States.
Janurary 15, 2013
Bringing the Party Back in: the Role of Organization Department in China’s Reverse Migration
David Zweig, a member of the USCI board of scholars, presented his research on the party-state's efforts to "reverse the brain drain" to bring expatriate talent back to China. While these efforts have met with some success (reaching numerical targets), the program has met with some difficulties leading most of the very talented to opt for short-term stays rather than make a full commitment to moving back to China.
February 7, 2013
A screening of the documentary series that introduces women who are living under some of the most difficult circumstances imaginable — and fighting bravely to change them. The film reflects viable and sustainable options for empowerment and offers an actionable blueprint for transformation. The screening was followed by a panel discussion.
February 8, 2013
A screening of the romantic comedy about modern-day American immigrants in an unfamiliar land. It was followed by a Q&A session with producer Janet Yang, who is a prodigious Hollywood producer who has a long, deep relationship with China. Yang began her career in Hollywood when she represented Universal, Paramount, and MGM/UA in brokering the first sale of American studio movies to China since 1949. Yang has been named one of the “50 Most Powerful Women in Hollywood” by The Hollywood Reporter, and has been featured in articles in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Variety. Yang’s previous productions include High Crimes, The Weight of Water, and The Joy Luck Club.
February 13, 2013
Alison Friedman, founding director of Ping Pong Productions, a producing and consulting organization headquartered in Beijing with the mission of cultural diplomacy, discussed how China is searching for a new globalized contemporary identity through music, dance and theater. She also addressed how performing artists are combining traditional Chinese forms with new influences from the west as well as how the international community is affecting China's contemporary performing arts scene.
February 21, 2013
Pictures and Stories from a Motorcycle Journey Across China
Ryan Pyle, longtime China-based photojournalist and regular contributor to the New York Times, showcased photographs and video from his 65 day – 18,000km - Guinness World Record breaking motorcycle journey around China. In 2009, Ryan was listed by PDN Magazine as one of the top 30 emerging photographers in the world. Ryan is based full time in Shanghai, China.
March 6, 2013
China and the World: A Conversation with Three Chinese Ambassadors
China is more engaged than ever before in trade and investment, security and anti-piracy patrols, cultural and educational exchanges, participation in international organizations, and much more. Ambassadors Lu Fengding, Mei Ping, and Zhou Gang discussed China’s foreign policy objectives and the current state of its relations with North America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.
April 15, 2013
Video Conference: Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou
Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou spoke by video link to audiences in the United States. After his presentation, Stanford University specialists Condoleezza Rice, Larry Diamond,Francis Fukuyama, and Gary Roughead discussed the ideas presented and Taiwan's place in the world.
April 25, 2013
Book Talk: China Goes Global: The Partial Power
David Shambaugh, a leading expert in Chinese studies with more than three decades of experience in China-watching, discussed his new book, which offers a comprehensive account of China’s prominence in the global arena. Assessing China’s activities all across the world and along six different dimensions—perceptual, diplomatic, global governance, economic, cultural, and strategic—Shambaugh argued that China lacks influence in most international domains and is not the kind of challenge to global order and the United States that many argue it is.
April 25, 2013
A Tale of Two Nobels: Liu Xiaobo and Mo Yan
What is the writer's place in China today? What should it be? What responsibilities does a writer have to readers? To the state? To art? To moral principle? China's two recent Nobel Prize winners, Liu Xiaobo for peace, and Mo Yan for literature, offer some contrasting answers. Perry Link disscuessed China's two recent Nobel Prize winners, Liu Xiaobo and Mo Yan. Link is among the top American scholars of Chinese culture. He publishes on Chinese language, literature, and cultural history, and also writes and speaks on human rights in China. His most recent books are Liu Xiaobo’s Empty Chair: Chronicling the Reform Movement Beijing Fears Most (2011) and An Anatomy of Chinese: Rhythm, Metaphor, Politics (2012).
2011-2012 Events
2010-2011 Events/Documentary Series
2009-2010 Events/Documentary Series
USCI also organizes programs for K-12 educators. Proceed to the K-12 Curriculum section of our website for more information.
