Talk That Pod

·E16

016 - Chris Stewart - The History of China

July 1
55 mins

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Episode Description

Christ Stewart of The History of China

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SUMMARY

Chris Stewart is the creator and host of The History of China podcast, a show he launched in 2013 while living in Shanghai that now spans over 330 episodes covering 5,000 years of Chinese civilization. In this conversation, Chris talks about how seventeen years living and teaching in China shaped his approach to the podcast, the challenges of working with ancient and often contradictory historical sources, and how his background as an educator informs the way he scaffolds complex history for new listeners. He also discusses joining the Airwave Media network while staying fully independent creatively, his low-key approach to Patreon monetization, and his thoughts on the democratization of history podcasting and the risks of misinformation in the space. The episode wraps with his podcast recommendations and where to find his show.

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IN THIS EPISODE

00:19 — Introduction to Chris Stewart and The History of China podcast

01:15 — Chris's background, seventeen years living in China, and the show's origin story

02:07 — How his understanding of China evolved over 330+ episodes

06:05 — Living in China while podcasting: technical hurdles and internet censorship

08:15 — Navigating historical sources and deciding what to trust

13:19 — Chinese pride in 5,000 years of continuous civilization, and its nuances

15:23 — Balancing academic rigor with entertaining storytelling

21:50 — Episodes Chris would recommend for understanding modern China (the Opium War and Taiping Rebellion)

25:13 — Joining the Airwave Media network and staying creatively independent

27:37 — Collaborating with other history podcasters and the Intelligent Speech event

28:20 — Bringing new listeners into a 330-episode back catalog

31:55 — Using "scaffolding" techniques from his teaching background to make episodes accessible

34:00 — Tracking audience growth and the early lucky break that boosted listenership

37:25 — Patreon, listener support, and his philosophy on monetization

42:39 — What makes podcasting uniquely suited for teaching history

47:05 — The democratization of podcasting and the risk of misinformation

56:31 — Chris's three podcast recommendations

58:03 — Where to find Chris and The History of China online

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