Zhang Wumao
In Beijing, 20 Million People Are Pretending to Live a Life
Mr. Zhang Says, 2017
What's inside?
Beijing’s urbanization has residents stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Recommendation
Chinese blogger Zhang Wumao wrote this biting essay on the negative effects of Beijing’s urbanization on its inhabitants and published it on his WeChat channel Mr. Zhang Says. The article went viral immediately, getting more than five million views overnight and sparking a heated debate on the Internet. Within a week, people wrote more than 100,000 responses, mostly criticizing Zhang for his generalizations and use of anecdotal evidence. State-owned Chinese news outlet People’s Daily tried to paint a more contrasting picture of life in Beijing, arguing that people were actually “living a new life.” The overwhelming media attention eventually led WeChat to block access to the original article. Although the essay addresses an important social issue and obviously strikes a chord with many people, it is intentionally polarizing and not very substantial. Nonetheless, getAbstract recommends Zhang’s analysis to people interested in Beijing’s talk of the town.
Summary
About the Author
Zhang Wumao is the pen name of blogger Zhang Guochen. He runs a WeChat Wemedia channel called Mr. Zhang Says.
Comment on this summary