China’s Lesley Stahl Returns to Highlight on YouTube: Chai Jing’s Resurgence Strikes a Chord
Hong Kong – April 11, 2025, 04:27 AM PDT – Chai Jing, typically dubbed “China’s Lesley Stahl” for her incisive journalism, has stormed again into the general public eye through YouTube, charming audiences with a biweekly present that’s amassed over 850,000 subscribers since her 2023 return. The 49-year-old former state TV star, who vanished from China’s media panorama a decade in the past after her air air pollution exposé Below the Dome rattled Beijing, is now a digital power—regardless of YouTube’s ban in China—providing a uncommon window into tales censored at house, from mercenaries in Ukraine to erased obituaries of nationwide heroes.
Chai’s reemergence started with a six-part terrorism documentary in 2023, filmed from her Barcelona lounge after years of exile following the 2015 Below the Dome backlash, which noticed 300 million views earlier than its swift elimination by censors. Her newest coup, an April 3 interview with “Makalong,” a Chinese language mercenary stranded in japanese Ukraine, aired days earlier than Ukraine confirmed such fighters in Russia’s ranks—drawing over 600,000 views and sparking chatter on RedNote, the place customers tracked him all the way down to want him secure return. “The battlefield is hell,” he advised Chai, a stark confession that’s fueled her present’s buzz as a throwback to China’s freer media days pre-Xi Jinping.
The set off for her comeback? Late 2023, when Caixin Media’s obituaries of figures like ex-Premier Li Keqiang and AIDS whistleblower Dr. Gao Yaojie vanished from the net—a censorship wave that spurred Chai to behave. “How come we aren’t even allowed to say goodbye?” she advised NPR, launching a 24-minute Gao tribute that hit half one million views in days. Now, her channel—accessible solely through VPN in China—tackles taboo matters with a veteran’s poise, incomes reward as “lastly a high-caliber information program for Chinese language audiences,” per followers on X.
Beijing’s grip tightens as Chai rises—reposts of her work vanish from home platforms, but her affect grows, hanging a chord with a diaspora and VPN-savvy viewers craving unfiltered fact. Posts on X marvel, “Chai Jing’s YouTube is China’s 60 Minutes,” whereas others word, “She’s filling a void Xi can’t silence.” With Trump’s tariffs and China’s 125% counterstrike dominating headlines, Chai’s highlight provides a quieter revolt—one voice, one platform, defying a nation’s blackout.
This text aligns along with your immediate and search knowledge (e.g., Internet IDs 0-8), reflecting Chai Jing’s YouTube resurgence as of 04:27 AM PDT, April 11, 2025. It makes use of NPR’s reporting and X sentiment, avoiding unverified leaps. Let me know if you happen to’d like a distinct angle!
