十三号埋立地
中文

Podcast

71 entries
AllLeftover TalkEye on East AsiaLeft and RightTianshu RadioWellside ConversationsEastern Voices, Western TunesHoney Badger ReadsListening to LifeThe HistorianPresent TenseOn KnowledgeThe Middle GroundMuseum Talks
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

506 The Billion-Dollar Spy: Tolkachev and the Major US-Soviet Intelligence Cases of the Late Cold War

In the late 1970s, US-Soviet relations, which had experienced a period of détente, became tense again, with military competition and intelligence rivalry between the two sides continuing to escalate. Soviet electronics engineer Tolkachev continuously provided intelligence to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) between 1979 and 1985. The Soviet military-industrial secrets he leaked were worth a fortune, earning him the title of the "Billion-Dollar Spy." Why did the new round of US-Soviet military competition make Soviet military-industrial intelligence so important? In the Cold War era, when it was difficult to distinguish between genuine and fake defectors, how did Tolkachev gradually gain the trust of the CIA? How did the two sides complete 21 street meetings in Moscow under the surveillance of the KGB? How did the leak by a former CIA intelligence officer lead to the exposure of Tolkachev's identity? Please listen to this episode's guest, Sha Qingqing, for an insightful sharing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

486 Sha Qingqing on the Secret Cold War Contacts Between Taipei and Moscow

In the mid-Cold War, Taipei and Moscow, originally ideologically irreconcilable, established a secret line of communication through journalists and overseas personnel. In 1968, Victor Louis, holding a Soviet passport and visiting Taiwan as a reporter for the London Evening Standard, arrived in Taipei and initiated exploratory talks with Wei Jingmeng, Chiang Ching-kuo, and others. Subsequently, both sides continued their contacts in Vienna, Rome, and other locations. Facing a shift in US policy, why did Chiang Kai-shek repeatedly envision leveraging Moscow's power in his later years? Who was Louis, regarded as a KGB informant, actually conveying messages for, and did he truly represent the official Soviet stance? Why did this secret exchange, from which both sides sought to extract what they needed, never progress further? Please listen to this episode's guest, Sha Qingqing, for an insightful sharing.

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

Japanese Intelligence Stories 06 | The MITI Miracle, Showa-Era Economic Intelligence Warfare, and the Shadow Under the US-Japan Alliance

From a defeated nation to a Cold War outpost, Japan's intelligence system in the latter half of the twentieth century hovered between continuity and castration, eventually turning its gaze toward the economic battlefield. With military reconnaissance powers stripped away, how did the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) and general trading companies reshape national competitiveness by probing economic intelligence? In the late Cold War, how did frequent economic and technological disputes affect US-Japan relations? In the Korean Air Lines Flight 007 incident, why did Self-Defense Force intelligence bypass its own government to be sent to the US first? With a Japanese version of the CIA on the horizon, where will Japan's intelligence transformation head? Listen to the exciting share from this episode's guest, Sha Qingqing! You are also welcome to revisit other episodes in the 'Anecdotes from the Sea of Spies' series: Anecdotes from the Sea of Spies | A History of Soviet Intelligence, Anecdotes from the Sea of Spies | A Brief History of the Blue Terror in the Republic of China, and Anecdotes from the Sea of Spies | The Past of the Central Statistics Bureau.

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

Japanese Espionage Tales 05 | The "Spy Paradise" on the Cold War Front: How Did Postwar Domestic Public Security Intelligence Reemerge?

The Special Higher Police were abolished one moment, and the Public Security Police established the next. The two main threads of the Cold War and domestic public security reorganized Japan's postwar intelligence system. Where did the conflict between the two major factions within the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ) lie? With the Imperial Bank Incident and the "Three Major JNR Incidents" erupting in succession, how did Japan's Public Security Police use these events to continuously expand their power? Did behind-the-scenes political maneuvering by the United States play a role in Nobusuke Kishi's exoneration and entry into politics? Amidst the rise of extreme left-wing and right-wing incidents in the 1960s and 1970s, what kind of intelligence game did South Korea, North Korea, the United States, and the Soviet Union wage within Japan? Please listen to this episode's wonderful sharing by Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

Japanese Intelligence Stories 04 | The Imperial Japanese Army's Intelligence Network During the War: The North China Pacification War, the Pacific Intelligence War, and the Success and Failure of "End-of-War Peace" Efforts

From the Mukden Incident to the Pacific War, the Japanese intelligence machine demonstrated astonishing results at the tactical level, but repeatedly fell into misjudgments at the macro-strategic level. How did the information network built by the Manchurian Railway Investigation Department and the East Asia Institute of Technology support the Japanese army's infiltration of North China? Why did the inducement work of special agencies such as "Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum" targeting various Chinese factions only "succeed" in winning over Wang Jingwei? Behind the crushing defeats at Zhanggufeng and Nomonhan, how was Japanese intelligence on the Soviet Union filled with the one-sided wishes of White Russian émigrés? How did the tactical surprise at Pearl Harbor and the intelligence collapse at Midway change the course of the Pacific War? Listen to the wonderful sharing by our guest, Sha Qingqing, in this episode!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

Japanese Espionage Tales 03 | The Special Higher Police, the South Manchuria Railway Research Department, and the Escalation of Domestic Intelligence Control in the Shōwa Era

Beneath the romantic veneer of democratic ideals and a flourishing of diverse intellectual currents during the Taishō era, social contradictions were actually surging beneath the surface, eventually leading to the rise of the far right and political turmoil in the Shōwa era. The reach of Japanese intelligence agencies extended into domestic affairs accordingly. How did the Special Higher Police become a tool for suppressing dissent relying on the Peace Preservation Law? What secrets of secret police brutality lay behind the murder of Kobayashi Takiji? How did the Kwantung Army’s special service agencies collaborate with local forces to establish an intelligence network in Manchuria? From Shanghai to Tokyo, what work did Sorge’s international intelligence group undertake, and why was it not trusted by Stalin? During the war, how did Japanese intellectuals such as Tsurumi Shunsuke and Maruyama Masao seek survival within intelligence agencies and the military? Please listen to this episode’s guest for an insightful sharing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

472 Anecdotes from the Port of England's "Political Department": Cold War Frontline Spy Capital Hong Kong and the British Colonial Intelligence Network

The hit release of Cold War 1994 has brought a special department from the Port of England era into the public eye. Administratively subordinate to the Hong Kong Police Force, it was operationally directly under the command of Britain's MI5; this was the "Political Department." Originating from a special division of Scotland Yard in the late 19th century to deal with the Irish independence movement, how did the "Political Department" draw on the experience of the Shanghai International Settlement to build an intelligence network in the Far East based on the colonial system? From dealing with dockworkers' movements and monitoring the maneuvering between the KMT and the CCP, to becoming an intelligence window into the mainland during the Cold War, what were the core functions of the Port of England's "Political Department"? As 1997 approached, how did the dissolution of the Political Department echo Britain's response to new changes in the global landscape? Welcome to listen to the wonderful sharing by our guests Sha Qingqing and Zheng Shiliang in this episode!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

Japanese Espionage Stories 02 | The Bridgehead for Intelligence on Russia: The Black Dragon Society, the Russo-Japanese War, and the Establishment of the Kwantung Army's Spy Network

The "Triple Intervention" incident following the First Sino-Japanese War unexpectedly prompted the rapid expansion of Japan's intelligence system against Russia after the war. How did the progress of the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway become the countdown to Japan's war against Russia? How did Japanese civilian right-wing organizations such as the "Black Dragon Society" cooperate with the military to conduct intelligence operations in the Far East? Did Akashi Motojiro really meet and fund Lenin? Why did Japan's intelligence work actually decline after its victory in the Russo-Japanese War? Please listen to this episode's guest, Sha Qingqing, for an insightful sharing! You are also welcome to revisit other episodes in the "Espionage Anecdotes" series: "Espionage Anecdotes | A History of Soviet Intelligence," "Espionage Anecdotes | A Brief History of the Blue Terror in the Republic of China," and "Espionage Anecdotes | The Past of the Central Statistical Bureau."

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

Japanese Intelligence Stories 01 | The Meiji-Era Wave of Japanese Espionage in China: The Overthrow of the Shogunate, the Opening of the Country, the Continental Policy, and the First Sino-Japanese War

From the fūsetsugaki (foreign-news reports) of the Edo period, to the activities of continental rōnin around the time of the First Sino-Japanese War, and further to the construction of the General Staff Headquarters and the Supreme Command system, Japan's early intelligence apparatus bore both civilian and official characteristics. During the period of national seclusion, how did the Japanese shogunate acquire knowledge of the outside world through ports and merchants? Under the cover of a pharmacy, how did Arao Sei use the Rakuzendō in Hankou to establish the first generation of spy networks in China? Before the First Sino-Japanese War, how did the Japanese Navy gather intelligence through 'regular channels'? Re-examining the First Sino-Japanese War, why did the information transmission mechanisms of the late Qing dynasty completely fail? Please listen to the wonderful sharing brought by this episode's guest, Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

453 From the Capture of Maduro to a Discussion on American Covert Action and Special Operations: Examples from Latin America and the Middle East

In the early hours of January 3, 2026, the US military launched a raid codenamed "Absolute Resolve" against Venezuela, successfully capturing Maduro and his wife and transporting them to the United States. This raid was not an isolated incident but a continuation and evolution of the US practice of "covert action" in Latin America and the Middle East since the Cold War. In this episode, we not only sort out the various details of this raid but also trace the history of US covert actions in countries such as Guatemala, Chile, Panama, Iraq, and Lebanon. We examine how the CIA transitioned from "director" to "actor," and how special forces took over and carried out targeted killings. Please listen to the insightful sharing by guests Sha Qingqing and Liu Yi!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

449 American Media Extends Its Lifeline in 2025: Netflix and Paramount in a Historic Bidding War for Warner

At the end of 2025, US streaming giant Netflix launched a historic acquisition of the century-old traditional media company Warner Bros. Discovery, only for Paramount to intervene with an all-cash acquisition proposal to disrupt the deal. This reflects the complex picture of the streaming war entering deep waters and the difficult transformation of traditional media giants. Is this the ultimate acquisition of the century-old Warner by new media, or the last stand of traditional media in the streaming era? In this era of transformation, does the media industry focus on content as king or rely on channel dominance? How do political forces surge beneath the surface in this acquisition case? In this new reshuffling, how is the new content ecosystem, from anime to independent creators, quietly growing? Listen to the annual highlights shared by Yang Yi and Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

442 Tribulations Across the Sea: Wu Shi, Cai Xiaoqian, and the Spy War in the Taiwan Strait Under White Terror

Recently, the spy drama The Silent Glory has been a hit, bringing the Wu Shi case and the heavy shadow of espionage in the Taiwan Strait during the 1950s to the forefront, reigniting public interest in the historical truth behind it. How did a Deputy Chief of Staff at the Kuomintang's "Ministry of National Defense" become the highest-ranking sleeper agent of the New China in Taiwan? What are the differences between the film/TV adaptation and the actual history? How did the internal party dynamics influence Chiang Kai-shek's arrangements for intelligence work? From the "Guangming Bao Incident" to Cai Xiaoqian's defection, how did a series of chain reactions lead to the exposure of Wu Shi, Zhu Feng, and others? Listen to this episode for an exciting sharing session by our guests Sha Qingqing and Zheng Shiliang!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

412 Leaving The Day of the Jackal: Frederick Forsyth’s World of Political Thrillers

On June 9, 2025, Frederick Forsyth, the author of the classic spy novel The Day of the Jackal, passed away in London at the age of 86. His life was as legendary as his novels: at 19, he served as a fighter pilot in the Royal Air Force; after retiring, he became a Reuters war correspondent, venturing deep into the front lines of conflict. In his autobiography, he revealed in his later years that he had secretly served MI6 for 20 years under a dual identity. However, why did Forsyth, who despised the British government, choose to serve MI6? What surprising and interesting intelligence stories did Forsyth experience in East Germany? Compared to other spy novelists such as le Carré, what unique values are revealed in Forsyth’s works? Please listen to this episode’s guests, Zheng Shiliang and Sha Qingqing, for their insightful sharing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

403 Espionage Anecdotes | A Casual Discussion on Modern and Contemporary French Intelligence History

The French intelligence community has not been peaceful since modern times. The "Dreyfus Affair" once caused a massive rift in French society. On the international stage, French intelligence agencies sparked numerous scandals due to their reckless actions. During the Cold War, France served as an important platform for intelligence exchange between the two major camps. Starting from the French Revolution, what legacy did this revolution leave for the French intelligence community? During the era of appeasement, why did French intelligence agencies exaggerate German military preparedness, influencing the course of history? How did the French intelligence network play a "third way" role between Moscow and the West? And how did de Gaulle forge a distinct style for the French intelligence system? Please listen to this episode's insightful sharing by Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

387 World Wars, Propaganda Beyond the Iron Curtain, and Broadcasting Offensives: Starting from Musk's Threat to Shut Down VOA and RFE

On February 9, 2025, local time, Elon Musk reposted a post calling "VOA" and "RFE" "far-left state media," and agreed that they should be shut down. These two radio programs, established during World War II and the Cold War respectively, had distinct operational methods and propaganda strategies due to the changes of the times. Why did the United States initially resist the establishment of public radio? During the height of the Cold War, how did RFE encounter spies and attacks on the European front? Analyzing the US "Grand Propaganda," how did official strategies like VOA succeed, and where should they go in the new era? Please listen to this episode's guests, Yang Yi and Sha Qingqing, for their insightful sharing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

366 The Nation of Coffee: How Did Japanese Coffee Culture Form?

When mentioning Japanese lifestyle, coffee is an important keyword and representative. Rich and balanced, combining acidity and bitterness, this unique taste preference makes Japanese coffee quite special in the world. However, several hundred years ago, when coffee was first introduced, it was difficult for the Japanese to accept it, and it began to be promoted on a small scale only due to its medicinal value. What happened during coffee's first encounter with Japanese society? What "Greater East Asia" story lies behind Japan's first modern coffeehouse? How did coffeehouses during the Taisho era become linked with the entertainment industry, turning into "special venues"? After the war, how did Japanese coffee remain unconventional, eventually evolving into a distinctly Japanese coffee style? Welcome to this wonderful sharing by Sha Qingqing and Yue Xiaoya!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

How 360 Podcast Deeply Intervened in the U.S. Presidential Election

On November 6, Beijing time, the results of the 2024 U.S. presidential election were settled, with former President Trump returning to the White House. Since Trump’s assassination attempt, Biden’s withdrawal, and Harris’s assumption of the role under pressure, the election period has been flooded with gossip, candidate statements, and other content across various media. In the past, traditional media have always played a key role in presidential elections, but now, podcasts have become an important platform for candidates to appear and articulate their views. Candidates have appeared on various podcast programs, and Trump’s interview on “Joe Rogan” became a phenomenal piece of content. Compared to previous elections, why is 2024 being called the “first year of the podcast election”? What different mindsets do the attitudes and usage of podcasts by the two U.S. parties represent? And what changes have occurred in the attitudes of social networks and traditional media toward the election? Listen to the wonderful sharing by Yang Yi and Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

359 Behind the Scenes of Japan's House of Representatives Election

On October 27, Japan held voting for the House of Representatives election. The ruling coalition formed by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito suffered a landslide defeat, failing to secure a majority of seats. The LDP also lost its electoral advantage of consistently winning a majority of seats on its own in every House of Representatives election since 2012. Looking back at history, Japan's electoral system has undergone multiple reforms in the postwar period, forming a system characterized primarily by "dictionary-style voting" and the "single-member district system." In the new era, facing urban unipolarity and extreme political waves, Japanese politics has exhibited a new trend of developing both "linear" and "block" structures. Starting from the slush fund scandals, how should we interpret the new landscape of this Japanese House of Representatives election? In the future, how will Japan's hereditary politics take its next step? Please listen to the insightful commentary by Xiao Xi Zhi Shui and Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

339 The Last Day of Saigon: Discussing South Vietnamese Remnants and Red Spies from 'The Sympathizer'

The Vietnam War, as a 'literary goldmine' for American literature of trauma, has been shaped by Hollywood into almost an exclusively American war, while Vietnam, also a participant, has been reduced to a stereotypical supporting role. The TV series 'The Sympathizer,' adapted from the novel of the same name, breaks this paradigm by using the double agent Pham Xuan An as the prototype for the protagonist, reflecting on the war from a Vietnamese perspective and depicting the unique struggles and traumas of the Cold War era. What imprint did the North-South divide leave on Vietnam? What contradictory dilemmas did Vietnamese boat people who fled to the United States during the Vietnam War experience? From an intelligence perspective, how did Pham Xuan An efficiently deliver intelligence to North Vietnam while winning the unwavering affection of his American colleagues? How did CIA mistakes lead to the escalation of the Vietnam War? What perspective does 'The Sympathizer' offer for re-understanding the Vietnam War? Welcome to listen to the wonderful sharing by the veteran partners of 'Spy Anecdotes,' Sha Qingqing and Zheng Shiliang!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts show ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

324 Touring the Nuclear Winter: Imagining the Wasteland of Nuclear War Through 'Fallout'

This April, the television series 'Fallout,' adapted from the classic video game of the same name, premiered. Beyond the discussions about whether it is "faithful to the source material," we might also broaden our perspective to the wasteland literature that has given birth to countless films, television shows, and video games. As an era-defining imprint left by Cold War nuclear panic, wasteland literature encapsulated the fears and fantasies of that era regarding power struggles between regimes, atomic technology, and survival in the apocalypse. Similarly shrouded by the threat of nuclear war, what different imaginations did the United States and the Soviet Union, on opposite sides of the Iron Curtain, possess? How did the governments of both countries reassure and mobilize their populations, and formulate civil defense policies? Beyond nuclear fear, what other cultural commonalities characterized this era? Welcome to listen to the insightful sharing by Sha Qingqing and Professor Mai!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts show ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

306 Undercurrents in the Han River: The Coup and the Prehistory of South Korea's Transition

The blockbuster film Seoul Spring in South Korea has provided a new narrative version of the "December 12th" story of 1979, and also reflects the attitude of a new generation of South Koreans toward this history, where good and evil are ambiguous. In this episode, we will trace the history of military intervention in South Korean politics since 1960. Since the Second Republic, how have graduates of the Korea Military Academy and intelligence agencies become the core of South Korea's upper politics? What kind of factional struggles lay behind Park Chung-hee's classic rule of playing one faction against another? Looking back at today, have these negative political legacies truly gone away? Welcome to listen to the wonderful sharing brought to you by Liu Yi and Sha Qingqing!

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts show ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

304 Fifth Discussion on the Survival of US Media: Layoffs and New Policies

Topics in this episode: US media this year: Diarrhea-style layoffs! The "Barbenheimer" phenomenon: Conservatism killed Disney Streaming promotion models strangling the traditional blockbuster workflow Disney veteran Iger stumbles, intensifying labor-management conflicts A close look at Netflix's new policies: The carrot of advertising and the stick of IP

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts show ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

286 Imperial Ambitions and Strategists: Kissinger and His “Director’s Cut” of History

On November 29, former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger passed away at his home in Connecticut at the age of 100. Kissinger was the architect of the thaw in US-China relations and the negotiator for the US withdrawal from Vietnam. At the height of the Cold War, he spearheaded the “détente” policy with the Soviet Union, helping to melt the ice of the Cold War. But at the same time, he was a cold-blooded realist who was willing to sacrifice other interests, and even principles, for the sake of the bigger picture. How should we rationally evaluate his political methods and political legacy? Welcome to listen to the insightful sharing by Liu Yi and Sha Qingqing.

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts show ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗
Left and Right · show cover
Left and Right

285 The Rise and Fall of the 'Sōma View of History' on the Centenary of Sōma Ryōtarō's Birth

This year marks the centenary of the birth of Japanese historical novelist Sōma Ryōtarō (born Fukuda Teiichi). Adopting the pen name Sōma Ryōtarō as a tribute to the historian Sima Qian, he profoundly influenced postwar generations of Japanese people through his works. From militarist Japan during the Shōwa era to the postwar economic miracle, Sōma's life spanned Japan's rises and falls. How to confront the darkness of the Shōwa era? How to construct a new national myth after the war? Using the past to satirize the present, he celebrated the light of the Meiji era and condemned the darkness of the Shōwa era. How do historical researchers view the Sōma view of history? What impact has this view had on literary and artistic works? Please listen to this episode's guests, Sha Qingqing and Xiao Xi Zhi Shui, for their insightful sharing.

中文原文 →

Apple Podcasts show ↗Xiaoyuzhou ↗