Face-Off: The U.S. vs China

We’re hard at work on Season 4 of Face-Off. And we have some great episodes in the works, but while we’re in production I wanted to share an episode from a different podcast that I thought you might enjoy…. When people discuss environmental solutions, they often mention its impact on our lives. This can include ensuring parts of the planet remain inhabitable in the face of extreme temperatures, ma...

As this episode is published - on April 21, 2026 -  it’s far from clear which direction the war between the US and Iran is headed. Even so, America’s reputation around the world is in decline, to say the least. Trump is unrestrained.  He’s invaded Venezuela. Started a war like no other with Iran. Soured relations with traditional US allies in Europe. And not to mention the heavy tariffs he’s impos...

In this episode, we take you inside the Chinese internet.  China is currently home to the world's most sophisticated, far-reaching internet censorship regime. Chinese censors are trained to comb the web for off-limits words and phrases. Offending posts often disappear into thin air. And entire US-based platforms like Google, Youtube, Instagram, and Amazon, not to mention the New York Times are all...

This week: China and Iran.  The two countries have close ties and, yet, while China initially condemned the US-Israeli war on Iran, the Chinese government has stayed mostly quiet even as the bombing continues.  Meanwhile the Iranian government is doubling down on this friendship. As of this taping,  Iran has opened up the Strait of Hormuz to Chinese ships. To learn more about what this all means,...

In this episode, Journalist Barbara Demick talks with Jane about her latest book Daughters of the Bamboo Grove. It’s the story of Chinese twins separated as toddlers. One twin grows up with her family in rural China. The other twin is adopted by an American family in Texas. It’s a haunting, moving narrative about the harsh repercussions of the One-Child policy, and the realities of life in rural C...

We’re back! We’ll be publishing five brand new episodes of Face-Off bi-weekly starting today. In this episode, we welcome back Zhou Bo, a retired colonel in the People’s Liberation Army.  Xi Jinping has unleashed a massive purge of the Chinese army, the biggest since the early days of Communist China. Nearly three dozen senior generals have been demoted or disappeared. Almost all have been accused...

Jensen Huang built the company that powers the AI revolution—and he's playing both Washington and Beijing. The Taiwan-born Nvidia CEO holds the keys to artificial intelligence. But whose side is he really on? Inside the rise of tech's most important power broker. Guest: Tripp Mickle  New York Times Tech Reporter Book Recommendations  The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia and the World’s Most...

As Trump trashes American soft power, can China fill the void? A top Chinese academic explains why Beijing struggles to win hearts and minds and why being feared isn't the same as being loved. Plus: How American influencers are going viral in China. Guest:  Da Wei, Professor, Tsinghua University Book Recommendations  Sparks: China’s Underground Historians and their Battle for the Future by Ian Joh...

High-seas drama as Chinese warships hunt Filipino fishing boats in their own waters. Beijing is testing America's oldest Pacific ally with dangerous games of maritime chicken. With Philippine politics in flux, can Manila hold the line or will China fracture another US alliance? Guest: Marites Vitug, Filipino Journalist & Author, editor-at-large for Rappler and chair of the Journalism for Nation Bu...

The strangest geopolitical deal you've never heard of: Australia trades rugby league spots for an agreement not to make an agreement with China. Papua New Guinea's players get to compete Down Under and in return, China gets locked out of a strategic Pacific island. Sports diplomacy at its most serious. Guest: Oliver Nobetau, Papua New Guinea Government Lawyer & Fellow at the Lowy Institute Book Re...

"If I was the U.S., I would be terrified." We report from a 1,500+ robot convention in Beijing, and an American robotics expert who's toured China's factories reveals how China is winning the robot race. From assembly lines to hospital wards, humanoid robots are everywhere—and America is falling behind. Guest: Alberto Moel, Robotics Scientist, Professor of Practice in Finance at the University of...

Jake Sullivan has sat across from Xi Jinping more times than almost any American official—from Xi's rise in 2013 to their last face-off in Beijing. What's it like negotiating with the world's most powerful dictator? Sullivan reveals Xi's ego, tactics, and how a relationship that started with cautious optimism turned into open hostility. Guest: Jake Sullivan, Former U.S. National Security Adviser f...

China is outbuilding America's navy and beating us in hypersonic missiles. Xi has purged corrupt generals to create a military machine loyal only to him. Can China's forces actually win a war? We break down the PLA's transformation from paper tiger to potential superpower. Guest: Zhou Bo, Retired Senior Colonel in the People’s Liberation Army (https://ciss.tsinghua.edu.cn/info/CFExperts/1212) Book...

China's youth were supposed to lead the nation to glory. Instead, they're lying flat, embracing "garbage time," and quietly rebelling against a system that promised everything and delivered economic stagnation. In this episode of Face-Off - our first of Season 3 (!) - we get inside the psychology of China's disillusioned generation. Guest: Chang Che, Chinese-American Writer (https://changnche.com/...

In our third season of Face-Off: The US vs China, we’ll explore some of the biggest issues dividing these global powers today: Trump and Xi Jinping, AI, China’s growing military might, and also… robots. Season 3 of Face-Off: US vs China begins Tuesday, November 18th. Join us. Face-Off is produced in partnership with Rowhome Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice...

THE GREAT WAGER Episode 5. The break-up: Richard Nixon’s great wager reverberates from the '70s to today While we’re preparing season 3 of Face Off, we’re excited to present an encore presentation of The Great Wager, a five-part series about Richard Nixon’s top-secret plan to go to China, befriend China, and change the balance of power in the Cold War. This is the series finale: Episode 5. All of...

THE GREAT WAGER Episode 4. Shared secrets: How The U.S. and China worked together to spy on the Soviet Union While we’re preparing season 3 of Face Off, we’re excited to present an encore presentation of The Great Wager, a five-part series about Richard Nixon’s top-secret plan to go to China, befriend China, and change the balance of power in the Cold War. This is Episode 4. The relationship betwe...

THE GREAT WAGER Episode 3. Grip and grin: When Nixon met Mao While we’re preparing season 3 of Face Off, we’re excited to present an encore presentation of The Great Wager, a five-part series about Richard Nixon’s top-secret plan to go to China, befriend China, and change the balance of power in the Cold War. This is Episode 3. The news of Nixon’s trip to China is public, and he’s getting credit f...

THE GREAT WAGER Episode 2: Plots and private planes: How Henry Kissinger pulled off a secret trip to China While we’re preparing season 3 of Face Off, we’re excited to present an encore presentation of The Great Wager, a five-part series about Richard Nixon’s top-secret plan to go to China, befriend China, and change the balance of power in the Cold War. This is Episode 2. Nixon and his national s...

THE GREAT WAGER EPISODE 1: Richard Nixon's 'crazy' idea: Make befriending the Chinese Communist Party his legacy With money, power and political standing at stake, America’s relationship with China is tenuous. But it wasn’t always that way. The Great Wager is a five-part series that tells the story of the extraordinary encounter between Richard Nixon and Mao Zedong in 1972 that brought these two c...

In this bonus episode of Face-Off Jane speaks with former ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns. They discuss Ambassador Burns’ encounters with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping, his meetings with American CEOs, and his travels to remote places in China.  BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS: To Change China, by Jonathan D. Spence The Private Life of Chairman Mao, by Zhi-Sui Li Chip Wars, by Chris Miller Learn more abo...

In a special bonus episode recorded live at the Asia Society, host Jane Perlez speaks with journalist and scholar Orville Schell about his 50 years covering Chinese leaders and their American counterparts. They attempt to answer the question: how did we get here? Recorded live at The Asia Society on April 8, 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

China and Russia have rarely been friendly - until now. Xi and Putin have been open about their bromance, exchanging gifts, sharing lavish dinners, even celebrating a birthday together. Are the two dictators, Xi and Putin, aiming to forge a new arrangement in the world that diminishes the traditional role of the United States? Our guest, Lyle Goldstein, former professor at US Naval War College, an...

China’s leader, Xi Jinping, has given China five years to dominate Artificial Intelligence. He believes China must accomplish this goal in order to become the world’s tech giant. But the United States is doing everything it can to stop China from reaching its goal. Can Washington stop US and European advanced chips from reaching China? It seems not, as the arrival of DeepSeek shows. Will AI develo...

Back in 2015 the Chinese government declared that they would become the world leader in EVs by 2025. Major car companies scoffed. Who wants an EV? Today, China automakers have surpassed Japan, Germany and the US to become the number one exporter of cars. A record number of Chinese EVs were sold globally last year. How did China become the global leader in EVs? We’ll talk with the man who literally...