Heading to America to bridge the gap in US-China relations
In a year-long research across America, I hope to map where superpower friction ends, and where shared interest must begin
Before boarding my flight to Boston late last month, I spent the better part of three days doing something I never imagined I would do in more than 30 years of covering China: scrubbing my phone. Old emails, screenshots, WeChat threads that might be read the wrong way, anything that could be misconstrued in an airport interview room – all deleted, just in case.
I was not being paranoid. I was following advice now routinely passed among Chinese travellers to the United States: carry a clean phone, or better yet, a burner. American officials, academics and business travellers headed into China have long been told the same thing. Two sets of citizens, one shared instinct – that what is on your phone could get you into trouble on the other side.