"There are two lessons from the history of the C.I.A. book program... One is that censorship — whether by Communists, fascists or democratic governments — tends to create demand for the works it targets. The other is that the totalitarians lost the Cold War, and freedom of thought won the day."

Amazing story about the MingKwai Chinese typewriter, invented by Lin Yutang! Thanks, @tsmullaney.bsky.social!

It’s a privilege to be recognized alongside two incredible scholars. 👍👍

Excited to share that I’ve won the 2025 Clifford Geertz Prize for Best Article from the ASA Sociology of Culture Section. I'm grateful to the award committee for this honor, and to my intellectual community whose constructive feedback helped shape the piece. doi.org/10.1177/0003...

I'm delighted to share that Max Besbris and I won the 2025 Distinguished Scholarly Publication Award from the ASA Consumers and Consumption Section for our article, "Relational Brokerage: Interaction and Valuation in Two Markets," published in Qualitative Sociology. link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Looking forward 👍

Kicking off the first day of classes by giving the students in my Contemporary Chinese Society seminar red envelopes 💸💸 🧧 from the funniest Ronny Chieng

Is the TikTok saga a drama or a comedy? Or the perfect dramedy? 😅

Even more inspiring, the filmmakers of "Sing Sing" experimented with an alternative model of film financing—paying everyone on set, from PAs to the director and star, the same wage and giving all equity. In an industry rife with inequality, it’s refreshing to see some folks pushing for real change.

Just watched A24's "Sing Sing," a powerful film about incarcerated men finding purpose by acting. It brought me back to a piece I wrote for the NYTimes a decade ago, featuring Tim Robbins and his team’s inspiring work using theater to help inmates rebuild their lives. cn.nytimes.com/education/20...

White Christmas 🎄❄️

The entire December issue of our flagship journal is quantitative. And among the seven articles, six are solely about the United States.

My new book (Authoritarian Absorption: The Transnational Remaking of Epidemic Politics in China) drops! Wanna know how China gained capacities dealing with COVID-19? Why gay rights can be illiberal? Etc. check it out! www.amazon.com/Authoritaria...

It’s grading season, and this poem hits close to home for many of us 😅

This new book, Authoritarian Absorption, by @yanlong-soc.bsky.social is my most anticipated read of the year! It’s a must-read for anyone interested in transnational institutions, public health (HIV/AIDS policy in China), and authoritarianism. 📚👍

Part 1 of our special issue "Thirty Years of the Internet in China" is out, open-access, with 10 articles & an Introduction journals.sagepub.com/toc/ctpa/9/4. The remaining 14 pieces are out OnlineFirst. Thank you to our contributors! @annenbergpenn.bsky.social @cdcspenn.bsky.social

I was quoted in this very interesting story on nationalism among overseas Chinese youth. Why and how do some young nationalists start questioning their unwavering loyalty? Read Shen’s report.

I created a starter pack for sociologists studying China: go.bsky.app/NetJdDm. We study China’s labor, gender, family, inequality, organizations, education, professions, media, civil society, protests, immigration, as well as politics and history. Let me know if you want to be added (or removed).

In these troubling times, we should return to Stuart Hall, a remarkable political thinker and cultural analyst. #socialtheory #sociology

The article is out in ASR! journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Forthcoming in ASR: “The Culture of Censorship.” In it, I develop a micro-sociological model of censorship and coin the term “complicit creativity” that captures the censor-creator symbiosis. 🎬