Listen "How Xi Jinping became emperor. And how everyone missed it."
Episode Synopsis
When Xi became General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, no one assumed he would take up that position for life. But when Presidential term limits were abolished in 2018, it was widely understood that Xi had made himself supreme leader, and would remain head of the state, party, and military indefinitely. But how did Xi manage to pull this off, and how did everyone seemingly miss the signs? According to some sources, Xi made a swift powergrab, sweeping over party consensus and using guile and manipulation to crush his foes. The truth, however, may be a lot less straightforward (or exciting). Analysis suggest Xi not only went through tried and true boring procedures to gain his position, but that he did so with the explicit support of his fellow party members.Chapters (00:00) Introduction (04:29) Background on Xi(11:40) Predicitons about Xi's leadership(19:50) The state of China in 2012(34:50) Xi will be a weak leader(40:30) How Xi managed to turn the tide(47:45) The consensus of the Party as deciding factor(54:15) ConclusionsSupport the showSign up for Buzzsprout to launch your podcasting journey: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=162442Subscribe to the Sinobabble Newsletter: https://sinobabble.substack.com/Support Sinobabble on Buy me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Sinobabblepod
More episodes of the podcast Sinobabble
Xi's PLA purges in their historical context
07/12/2025
Did China build too much High-Speed Railway?
30/10/2025
How China built its own Silicon Valley
26/08/2025
Why foreign brands are failing in China
09/08/2025
US Rare earth mineral dependency ends trade war | China news discussion #8 | 15 June 25 BMC
22/06/2025
China's Soft Power Problem
20/06/2025
ZARZA We are Zarza, the prestigious firm behind major projects in information technology.