Behind the Story

While many Western nations have Halloween, in Asia there’s the Hungry Ghost Festival. In this episode, Post reporter Lisa Cam shares what she learned from a feng shui practitioner who helps ghosts move on to the next realm – a spiritual negotiator some call an “exorcist”. Listen to find out how you know if you are haunted by spirits, and 10 things people should not do during the festival season.

China recently wrapped up the “two sessions'' of its national legislature and top political advisory body. Beyond the confirmation of an unprecedented third term for President Xi Jinping and the unveiling of his new leadership team, the annual gatherings in Beijing are key indicators of the country's economic, military and foreign policy direction. China expert and veteran journalist Chow Chung-yan, the South China Morning Post’s executive editor, breaks it down for us. In this episode of Talking Post, he sits down with chief news editor Yonden Lhatoo to provide a real insider’s perspective.

After a turbulent 2022 - which saw changes of leadership in countries like the Philippines and Malaysia, fluctuating stocks and foreign exchange markets, along with a gradual economic recovery from the pandemic - how will Asia look in 2023, politically, economically and socially? South China Morning Post Business Editor Eugene Tang and Asia Editor Bhavan Jaipragas give us their thoughts and insider insights, as well as responding to bold predictions from some of SCMP's subscribers on the Asian landscape in 2023. This was originally recorded as a subscriber-exclusive event, however considering the wealth of interest in the discussion topics, we have decided to make this audio recording freely available as a podcast to all our readers and listeners. For more insightful subscriber events like this one, please consider an SCMP digital subscription at subscribe.scmp.com

China is struggling to contain the fallout from suddenly ending its draconian Covid-control regime. How bad is the situation and what’s next for the world’s second-largest economy?

Former SCMP editor-in-chief Wang Xiangwei, one of the most credible China experts on the scene, sits down with chief news editor Yonden Lhatoo to break it down.

Former Singapore foreign minister and long-time Hong Kong resident George Yeo has been called a “China whisperer” for his ability to explain Beijing’s ambitions and perspective to the rest of the world. In this extended version of Talking Post, Yeo sits down with chief news editor Yonden Lhatoo to discuss rising tensions between Beijing and Washington, Singapore’s role in the region and what the Singapore-Hong Kong rivalry means for the two financial hubs. Watch the Talking Post video version on the SCMP YouTube channel and at SCMP.com/video. 
 

Dr Neil deGrasse Tyson is one of the most recognizable and renowned science communicators in the world. He is famous for combining wisdom and wit to break down complex ideas for the masses and was recently interviewed for SCMP’s Talking Post video series. Here is an extended version of the Talking Post, where Tyson sits down with SCMP chief news editor Yonden Lhatoo to discuss China-US competition in space, UFOs and life after death and his new book ‘Starry Messenger: A Cosmic Perspective on Civilisation’. Watch the Talking Post video version on SCMP’s YouTube channel as well as SCMP.com. 
 

Image-based abuse, including sextortion and non-consensual porn for profit, is on the rise in Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, the Philippines & Indonesia. SCMP presents a multinational collaboration, led by the SCMP Asia reporter Raquel Carvalho, exploring the trend through the voices of victims and those exposing abuse and fighting for justice. Hear a discussion with Carvalho and the journalists who worked on this project: https://bit.ly/ImageAbuseJournalism

Online feature: https://sc.mp/5mx0

In 2018 a professor from a Hong Kong university was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing his wife and daughter using a gas-filled yoga ball as his murder weapon. Prosecutors had accused the anaesthesiologist, who pleaded not guilty to murder, of putting a leaking yoga ball containing carbon monoxide inside a car driven by his wife. A police officer who found a deflated yoga ball began an investigation culminating in shocking courtroom revelations of a most calculated crime. Online feature: https://bit.ly/YogaBallMurders

Original stories by Chris Lau; script by James Legge; presented by Bong Miquiabas; produced by Jarrod Watt

Upon this Halloween the staff of the SCMP gather around a candle-lit microphone to tell some of Hong Kong's legendary ghost stories. Hear about the curse of the Seven Sisters, the haunted movie soundtrack that Hong Kong radio DJs call 'the Forbidden Song', the Girl with the Single Braid and the legendary tale of the Congee Delivery Boy and the Headless Mahjong Party. Presented by Kinling Lo, with voice talents from John Carter, Gigi Choy, Zinnia Lee, Brian Peach, Heidi Yeung, and Nadeem Shad. Written and produced by Jarrod Watt.  

How hard is it to quit alcohol if it defines your lifestyle? Patrick Blennerhassett moved to Hong Kong and quickly became immersed in a culture of long work hours and even longer hours drinking each night. Listen as he shares his journey and the people he met along the way as he quit alcohol, changed his lifestyle and began training for a marathon next year. 

 The "Godfather of Canto-pop" left an indelible mark on Hong Kong culture with a prolific career that began in the 1970s, and his anthems are still being sung to unite protesters today.

James Legge speaks to SCMP journalists, video producers and editors about what stories always come around for Lunar New Year and what stories they’ve found for the coming Year of the Pig

Zhou Xin talks about the cultural impact of Louis Cha's wuxia novels in mainland China as well as his pivotal role as founder and editor of Ming Pao.

Hear first-hand accounts of the most powerful storm Hong Kong has faced since records began.