Co-initiated by Accent Society, The Weirdo Podcast, and Chartbook, the Accent Salon Series seeks to foster intellectual exchange between New York’s English and Chinese-speaking communities — and those who move between them — through a mix of online and in-person gatherings.

The Weirdo 不合时宜
A award-winning weekly Chinese language podcast on society & politics through a cross-cultural lens. The podcast received the “Biggest New Shows of 2020 Award” from Apple Podcasts and featured in major media outlets such as The Economist, AFP, and Global Voices, for promoting progressive values in China.

Chartbook by Adam Tooze
Chartbook is a regular newsletter featuring writing, statistics, charts, links, book recommendations and more from Adam Tooze, one of the leading commentators on economics and history.

𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘁: 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗬𝗼𝗿𝗸, 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆

Four days after New York’s mayoral election, we’ll gather for an evening of conversation, reflection, and cross-cultural dialogue.

This discussion will explore the defining moments of this year’s race — the turns and tensions inside Mamdani’s campaign, an insider’s view of its dynamics, and what this political moment means for both New York and the U. S. more broadly.

Hosted at Accent Society — an independent bookstore and a bilingual cultural hub in New York — the event also asks: what does Mamdani’s rise signify for the city’s Chinese community? How might those who come from China — a country that identifies itself “socialist” — interpret the “socialism” label attached to Mamdani? And what does it mean to talk about socialism today, in both English and Chinese contexts?

Taking this election as a starting point, we hope to open a broader conversation on nation, identity, borders, and billingualism.

This is the first event of Accent Salon Series.

Reading Lu Xun in New York: A Conversation With Xudong Zhang and Adam Tooze

Lu Xun is widely regarded as the pioneer of modern Chinese literature and one of the sharpest critics of early twentieth-century Chinese society. His writing continues to shape how readers understand modernity, moral conscience, and the struggles of the individual in history.

​This year marks the 90th anniversary of Lu Xun’s passing. Accent Salon warmly invites you to a conversation in his memory and in his continued presence.

​Starting from his groundbreaking short story Diary of a Madman, this event brings together two distinguished New York–based scholars to explore what it means to read Lu Xun today — and what it means to read him now, across languages, cultures, and intellectual traditions.

​Our guests include Zhang Xudong, NYU literature professor and one of the most influential interpreters of Lu Xun and Chinese modernity, and Adam Tooze, Columbia historian and renowned global public intellectual, who has recently turned his attention toward China.

​Moderated by Qing Wang, journalist and the co-host of The Weirdo Podcast, the discussion will revolve around questions: What does A Madman’s Diary truly express, and how should we read it now? Why does Lu Xun’s intellectual legacy still matter in the twenty-first century? And what shifts — or remains untranslatable — when Lu Xun is read in the English-speaking world?

​Join us for a meaningful afternoon of literature, history, and cross-cultural reflection, as we revisit Lu Xun not only as a Chinese writer, but as a global voice of modern conscience.

​​This is the second event of Accent Salon Series. Co-initiated by Accent Society, The Weirdo Podcast, and Chartbook, the Accent Salon Series seeks to foster intellectual exchange between New York’s English- and Chinese-speaking communities — and those who move between them — through a mix of online and in-person gatherings.

Accent Salon No.3 I The age of Chinamaxxing? A conversation with Dan Wang, Iza Ding and Adam Tooze

“Chinamaxxing” has recently emerged as a viral trend on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, where young Western users—half-ironically, half-seriously—embrace Chinese lifestyle habits, aesthetics, and consumer products. From drinking hot water to praising styles of governance, the trend reflects a curious mix of fascination, aspiration, and cultural play, often tied to China’s rapid technological rise.

​But beyond the meme, what does “Chinamaxxing” reveal about shifting global perceptions of China? Beneath the familiar narrative of “the East is rising and the West is declining” (东升西降), what does this phenomenon actually say about China—and perhaps even more revealingly, about the West itself?

​This conversation brings together three leading thinkers to explore these questions. Together they will unpack the myth behind the rise of “Chinamaxxing”.

​Guest Speakers

​Dan Wang: Research fellow of Hoover Institute at Stanford University, author of 《Breakneck》

​Iza Ding: Associate Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University, author of 《The Performative State》

​Adam Tooze: Professor at Columbia University, co-initiator of Accent Salon Series