Podcasting provides a space for free thought in China

MUXI MAKES cables that charge smartphones in a factory near Shanghai. The work is boring, he says, but at least his boss lets him wear Bluetooth earphones. That way, for six days a week, 11 hours a day, as his hands fly across the assembly line, his mind fills. First, the 24-year-old listened to audiobooks. Then, online classes. Now, he prefers podcasts. As the Communist Party has tightened control over media, and China’s vapid pop culture has become ever more shallow in response, podcasts have become a niche where thinking people can find unexpected, and sometimes controversial, content.

The tone can be gauged from the podcasts’ names, the perennial dark humour of Chinese intellectuals seeping through. “The Weirdo” is one of Muxi’s favourites. Hosted by three former journalists, it strives to cater to those who live up to its title. Recent episodes have discussed the challenges that Chinese men face if they identify as feminists, and the problem of racism in China towards black people, both topics that are considered quite alternative. Muxi (not his real name) also enjoys “The Unemployable”, which tells stories about people who rebel against the pressures of modern life by becoming freelancers, taking gap years and travelling—actions rarely encouraged in a country where bosses extol a “996” working culture (9am to 9pm, six days a...