Michael Smith in conversation

Online

Please note: This is event is now online.

Join us for the ultimate insider’s account of living and working in China in a period of unprecedented economic and social upheaval.

A late-night visit to his Shanghai laneway house by China’s notorious secret police triggered a diplomatic storm which abruptly ended Michael Smith’s stint as one of Australia’s last foreign correspondents in China. After five days under consular protection, Smith was evacuated from a very different China to the country he first visited 25 years earlier. Through first-person accounts of life on the ground and interviews with friends as well as key players in Chinese society right up to the country’s richest man, The Last Correspondent explores what China’s rise to become the world’s newest superpower means for Australia and the rest of the world.

Michael will be in conversation with State Library Victoria’s Chief Executive and former ABC News Director, Kate Torney.

This event is free to attend but bookings are essential.

Please book here.


How to ‘attend’ a virtual event at Readings

This event commences online at 6.30pm using the video conferencing platform Zoom.

To book for this event, you must provide your email address.

To ensure the Zoom event stays private, participants will be emailed a unique zoom link and a password 30 minutes before the event begins on the day of the event. Please check your email.

All bookings for online events will be closed one hour before the event begins.

You do not need to have a Zoom account to join a meeting, but mobile users will need to download the Zoom app for their device. Desktop and laptop users can either download the Zoom application or access the event via their web browser.

Cover image for The Last Correspondent: Dispatches from the frontline of Xi's new China

The Last Correspondent: Dispatches from the frontline of Xi’s new China

Michael Smith

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