When I was 19, studying journalism at Boston University, I toured The Boston Globe and got to talk to the Spotlight team. That was when I first understood what accountability journalism could mean. My medium has changed many times since—from 15-page nonfiction features to 60-second TikTok videos—but that principle has stayed with me.
After graduating, I went back to China and became a narrative podcast producer at Story FM, often called China’s version of This American Life.
The New York Times described it as a podcast that “gives voice to the real,” with stories “told with an authenticity rarely heard in the country’s tightly scripted, propaganda-heavy state-run media.” NPR’s Rough Translation noted that “there aren’t that many places in China where people can speak frankly in public.”
For four years as a senior producer, I helped keep it one of those places.
I told stories of misdiagnosed bipolar patients and autistic children fighting for inclusive education; investigated how rural China systematically fails survivors of domestic violence; and reported on what happened to a Taliban victim’s family after the media sensationalized their loss…
I spent one year on producing a series about a bullied Chinese immigrant kid who grew up to become a notorious gangster leader in Japan, then remade his life after prison, and Netflix is making a movie about it!
The year after that, I produced China’s first cross-border investigative podcast series, piecing together the fragmented truth of a Taiwanese fishing vessel held by Somali pirates for four and a half years. It was later adapted into a 14-episode TV drama, Pirate Ship, directed by Shen Ao, one of my favorite directors!
Wanting a bigger stage and to grow as a storyteller, I came back to the States at 27 to study under Daniel Alarcón at Columbia Journalism School.
As the founder of Radio Ambulante, he built a home for Latino stories that mainstream media often overlooks.
I hope to do the same for the Asian community one day.
After Columbia, I became an audio fellow at Proximity Media, director Ryan Coogler‘s company. From Fruitvale Station to Black Panther to Sinners, Ryan tells deeply rooted Black stories with the artistry and scale of great cinema.
While helping produce his Sinners video podcasts for In Proximity, the company’s Webby Award–winning podcast, I learned from him how to give stories of race and identity the poetry and grandeur of cinema.
Oh, I have also done other cool stuff!
I was an entertainment industry reporter once, and I’ve also produced international stories for Initium Media’s Duānwén, a SOPA Award–winning Mandarin-language daily news podcast.
At Silicon Valley 101, one of the most influential Chinese-language tech media outlets, I bring narrative storytelling to AI and tech.
Also, I’m building my own channel, Asian Reach, which explores how Asian influence reaches the world through its people, ideas, and culture!
