About Tea Leaf Nation
Tea Leaf Nation decodes Chinese media, analyzes social trends, and features Chinese voices, all to illuminate the country from within.
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This 18-Year-Old Chinese Woman Is Beating the Schools at Sex Ed
In a nation where textbooks still teach that sex before marriage mars girls forever, Yao Sifan is offering a feminist take on the facts of life.
Beijing Deals Another Blow to Hong Kong’s Autonomy
An oppressive ruling by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee — aided by a compliant Hong Kong judge — has silenced champions of democracy.
China’s New Megacity: The Anti-Beijing
The government will build another metropolis from scratch. But it's not planning on following the old playbook.
Is Beijing Getting Scared of Homeschooled Confucian Activists?
The Communist Party's enthusiasm for private Confucian schools is cooling. It could be fearful of a moral system outside its control.
America’s Green Card-for-Cash Program Is Making a Mess in China
Shady deals. Befuddled investors. SEC investigations. Change can't come fast enough to the EB-5 visa.
A New ‘Cure’ for China’s Millions of Web Addicts: Hack Their Computer
Some parents prefer the invasive measure to lightly regulated, frequently brutal bootcamps.
Unpacking China’s Curious ‘Ivanka Fever’
The President's powerful daughter evokes deeply-held tropes in Chinese society.
When Xi Meets the Trumps
China's president has descended on Florida for a summit with a counterpart he's never met. What happens now?
It’s Not Communism Holding China’s Youth Back. It’s Their Parents.
Pressure to save, marry, and work leaves no room for democratic aspirations.
When Marx Meets Islam
A Chinese regulation would prohibit online insults based on religion. Some decry it as antithetical to Communist values.
Galleries
A Week in World Photos
Protests in Lebanon and Chile, cleanup in the Philippines and Puerto Rico, and impeachment in the United States.
Otherworldly Photos of the Australian Bushfires
Deadly blazes have swept the country amid record heat, killing more than 20 people and millions of animals and leaving behind a charred, apocalyptic landscape.
In the Magazine
In the Magazine
How to Reverse the World’s Trust Deficit Disorder
Public-private partnerships can solve the planet’s most vexing problems—but they need to focus on systemic change rather than single issues to succeed.
Is Liberal Democracy Always the Answer?
Guinea-Bissau challenges the imposition of Western forms of government.
Don’t Believe the Hype. Russia Is Losing in the Middle East—and Around the World.
Putin’s apparent victories in spreading Russian influence are mirages, some of which have come at a great cost.
Don’t Call Donald Trump a Fascist
What it means to brand today’s right-wing leaders with the F-word—and why you probably shouldn’t.