Buzz Today

Beijing 2022 Paralympic Games marks 100 days to go, to the grand sports event. The International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said, that preparations were progressing "very, very well," acknowledging the readiness of the host city Beijing and growing excitement amongst athletes.

French luxury brand Dior has recently provoked a heated debate on Chinese social media due to a publicity photo that's considered to be smearing the image of Asian women. The photograph was part of the Lady Dior exhibition held at a Shanghai art center from November twelfth to twenty-third, shows an Asian woman dressed in a traditional costume and holding a Lady Dior bag. The Chinese media Beijing Daily describes the image as featuring “spooky eyes, gloomy face, and Qing dynasty-style nail armour,” and slammed the photo with the headline: “Does it represent Asian Women in Dior's Eyes?” The fashion brand has removed the controversial poster from its social media platforms but did not offer any explanation.

Beijing is Ready for next year's Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, the games organizers told the media at a press conference in the Chinese capital on Wednesday. This remark came one day, after the committee launched the 100-day countdown. According to the officials, Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Village will officially open on January 27th. And the Olympic torch relay will begin on February 2nd.

Almost half of China's urban young women said they do not plan to marry, compared to nearly a quarter of men.

The thriller series “Squid Game” has reached No. 1 on Netflix's Top 10 lists in 94 countries around the world amid plagiarism controversy.

The thriller series “Squid Game” has reached No. 1 on Netflix's Top 10 lists in 94 countries around the world amid plagiarism controversy.

The US state of Texas has enacted an anti-abortion law in the country, banning all abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy. The law gives private citizens the power to sue abortion providers and anyone who 'aids or abets' an abortion after six weeks. It is being seen as the most extreme abortion law in the United States. Citizens who win such lawsuits would be entitled to at least $10,000 dollars.

The Data Security Law has taken effect in China. It is designed to create a basic system for data management, data security review and risk assessment. As China is the home to the world's largest number of internet users, how significant is the law to them and to the country?

Chinese authorities have issued new regulations on the education sector. The move bans private institutions that teach core subjects from raising capital from the stock market, or from providing tutoring for primary and middle school students on weekends and holidays. The overhaul on education aims to reduce the burden of excessive homework, and easing pressure on students after school.

The Beijing health authority said that mothers who give birth to a third child will enjoy another 30 days of maternity leave and fathers will get 15 days of paternity leave. Until now, women in Beijing got three to four months of maternity leave as a basic standard, depending on the difficulty of delivery or other conditions. As of May 31st, China officially further relaxed its family planning policy, supporting couples that wish to have a third child.

The Tokyo Olympic Games are in full swing. As of today, China has bagged 24 gold medals. And Chinese sprinter Su Bingtian made history by setting a new Asian record in the men's 100-meter dash with a time of 9.83 secs.

US billionaire Jeff Bezos has successfully made it into space and back in a crewed flight of his company Blue Origin. How is this trip different from the recent one made by Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson? Will space travel be a game only for the rich? Dr. Zhang Fan, Associate Professor with Beijing Normal University's Astronomy Department, offers his analysis.

Muslims across China have kicked off their Corban Festival celebrations.The festival, which is also known as Eid al-Adha or feast of the sacrifice, is a major religious festival observed by Muslims worldwide. In China, most of the celebrations are in the country's northwest Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, where various ethnic groups follow Islam. How do local Muslims prepare for and celebrate this religious festival? China Plus's Xu Yawen tells us from Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang where she visited a Uygur family.

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee is set to hold a vote on whether Australia's Great Barrier Reef should be listed as "in danger". The committee says the country didn't do enough to protect the world's largest coral reef system from the impacts of climate change. Australia has indicated the recommendation was politically motivated. The UNESCO has hit back at Australian criticism, saying the decision over the Great Barrier Reef will be professional and scientific. China Plus's Su Yi offers his analysis.

One of the chief designers of the Chinese manned space program has said China has done a good job in guaranteeing a good variety of food sources for its astronauts. Huang Weifen explains the menu is designed to be highly nutritious and appetizing for the astronauts. Su Yi tells more on the dining choices and other specialties Shenzhou-12 can offer.

Some Western media outlets have started hyping another report, wrote by the infamous anti-China activist Adrian Zenz. The report claims there will be millions of fewer Uyghurs and other ethnic minority newborns in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the next 20 years. But how did he come to this sensational conclusion? How reliable is his study? To delve into these and more, we are joined by Carlos Martinez, Author and activist.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates announced with his wife Melinda Gates that they are ending their marriage after 27 years.

A disgruntled Tesla owner caused a scene at the Shanghai Auto Show on Monday by jumping on top of a Model 3 to protest against the carmaker’s quality-control issue. The woman, identified climbed on top of the electric car wearing a T-shirt with the phrase “Invisible Killer” and “Brake Lost Control,” according to videos and photos circulating on social media.

Montenegro says it needs help from the European Union to pay off a $1 billion Chinese loan for a highway project, but EU spokesperson rejected the plea and said the bloc “does not repay loans from third parties.” Soon some European officials and overseas media outlets jumped on to the issue and hype up the so-called debt trap by Chinese investments, despite the Chinese Embassy in Montenegro made it clear that China’s investment in the country was not politically motivated.

China warned the U.S. on Wednesday not to boycott its 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing after the Biden Administration said it was talking with allies about a joint approach to complaints of alleged “human rights” issues.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says vaccination passports may not be an “effective strategy” for restarting travel. Speaking at a news briefing on Tuesday, WHO spokesperson Dr. Margaret Harris said the world health agency does not back the use of coronavirus vaccine passports for travel, because it is not yet known at this stage that the vaccine prevents transmissions.

A growing number of company executives in the United States are speaking out against Georgia's new voting law, which critics say will restrict voting access and disproportionately affects people of color.

Thousands of demonstrators marched through central London and other cities across the UK on Saturday in protest of a new policing bill that would give police extra powers to curb protests.

A 65-year-old Asian American woman was physically and verbally attacked by a man in New York City on Monday. Local police say they are investigating the incident as hate crime. A surveillance video shows a man approaching the old lady, kicking her to the sidewalk, stomping on her head and upper body, three times before walking away.

Lawyers laid out their cases on Monday in the trial of the former Minneapolis police officer charged with killing George Floyd. Prosecutor Jerry Blackwell said Derek Chauvin, the white American policeman, betrayed his badge when he used excessive force to subdue Floyd. Chauvin's lawyer argued the use of force was unattractive but necessary. The May 2020 incident sparked protests in the US and across the world against police brutality and racism.

The Ever Given container ship has been partially refloated after being stranded in the Suez Canal for nearly a week. The 224,000-ton vessel ran aground in the canal last week. Crews from Egypt and around the world have been working nonstop to try to refloat the ship. Previous efforts have failed. The latest attempt is being carried out when the water in the channel is at the highest level.

In its latest weekly news briefing of global COVID-19 activity, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that cases rose for the fourth week in a row, led by emerge in the Americas and Europe.

US Customs and Border Protection on Tuesday released photos and videos of South Texas immigration detention center, which showed children huddled together in crowded makeshift rooms.

Australian prime minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday he was shocked and disgusted by the latest sex scandal to rock his government, and vowed to do more to attract women into politics.

2021 Tokyo Olympics Committee has officially announced to ban overseas spectators to attend this summer’s rearranged Olympic and Paralympic Games due to COVID-19 concerns.

New data show nearly 3,800 anti-Asian hate incidents were reported in the United States over the course of roughly a year during the pandemic. The data compiled by nonprofit organization "Stop AAPI Hate" covers incidents which occurred between March last year and February this year. More than 500 incidents have taken place in 2021 alone.

Chinese movie "Better Days" was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards on Monday. Directed by Derek Tsang, starring Zhou Dongyu and Yiyang Qianxi, the movie tells the story of a high school student who is often subjected to bullying and is later caught up in a murder. The topic of school bullying struck a strong personal chord with audiences after its debut in China in October 2019 and quickly became a national hit, raking in many nominations and prizes.

YouTube has taken down almost 3,000 channels and accounts, claiming they are Chinese and Russian state-coordinated influence operations. Twitter has added a controversial 'hacked materials' warning label to tweets, claiming this aims to keep it a place for reliable information. Are they justified to do so?

A court in Beijing has ordered a man to pay a full-time housewife 50,000 yuan in compensation, as the couple gets ready to divorce. In the meantime, the woman will receive her share of the family asset after it is divided. This is the first ruling of its kind after China's new Civil Code took effect in January.

Lights have come back on for millions of people in Texas after days of unprecedented frigid temperatures. However, they were still struggling without drinkable water over the weekend. Burst pipes have flooded thousands of homes, prompting state governor to ask plumbers from other states to come to Texas and help. So far around 70 deaths have been attributed to the cold wave. President Joe Biden has issued a major disaster declaration for 77 of the hardest-hit counties in the state.

Chinese livestreaming celebrity Li Jiaqi has been included in the 2021 Time 100 Next list. The list is an expansion of the flagship Time 100 franchise and highlights 100 emerging leaders who are shaping the future. 29-year-old Li is known as China's "king of lipstick". In 2018, he once sold 15,000 lipsticks in just five minutes. In 2019, he helped drive 145 million sales on online marketplace Taobao during the Singles Day shopping gala.

Roughly 3 million people in Texas have had to deal with outrage since Monday as power generators and natural gas pipes froze following massive snowstorm.

The president of the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee Yoshiro Mori said on Tuesday that Japan would hold the Summer Olympics regardless of the situation with the COVID-19 pandemic.

As cases of COVID-19 in the United States began to skyrocket during winter, so did cases in Los Angeles's homeless population.

A recent proposal to prevent the rise of “feminine” male teenagers has triggered an online debate about masculinity in modern China. In a public response to the debate, the Ministry of Education suggested the “decline” of masculinity is linked to physical health. Is it necessary to address the issue of effeminate young boys? How is the decline of masculinity connected to physical health? Check out today's show to find out more.

China's annual Spring Festival travel rush has officially kicked off. The travel rush is usually seen as the largest human migration in today's world. However, this year is probably marking the first time the Chinese government encourages people to celebrate the country's most important holiday at their working place, rather than returning to their hometown, amid sporadic coronavirus outbreak in multiple regions.

In China, audiences are falling in love with a new TV drama featuring poverty alleviation these days. "The love between mountain and sea" is enjoying a rating of 9.4 out of 10 on social networking service platform Douban. Any rating higher than 9 is considered a high rating. The drama tells a story of how residents in a mountainous area in the northwestern Chinese region of Ningxia bid farewell to poverty under the help from the coastal province of Fujian. Ding Heng explains the drama's popularity.

While tens of millions of people are expected to travel and united with families, China plans to impose tightened travel guidelines during the upcoming Spring Festival as it's fighting the Covid-19 resurgence in northern regions.

The draft Family Education law was submitted to China’s Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress for deliberation today.

The U.S. government has urged Australia to ditch proposed media laws that would force tech giants Google and Facebook to pay local news organizations for sharing their content.

With just three days until President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, officials in Washington, D.C., are on high alert. At least 13 states have deployed their National Guards troops to the capital city of the United States. The massive undertaking reflects the extraordinary security concerns that have gripped Washington following the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the US Capitol by pro-Trump rioters.

For the first time on record, South Korea reported more deaths than births in 2020, prompting calls for action to revamp demographic growth and sustain the economy.

Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, released its “2020 User Data Report” yesterday. From cooking to traveling, from online education to e-commerce, the report has outlined some of the trends that have dominated the short-video platform over the last year.

A 22-year-old female employee at China’s fastest-growing e-commerce group Pinduoduo died on her way home from work last Tuesday. News of her sudden collapse went viral online as netizens connected it to the Chinese tech industry’s overwork culture.

The Iraqi government will lodge an international lawsuit against the US for violating the country's sovereignty and using internationally-banned depleted uranium weapons in civilian areas.