1. Introduction
Zhao Yukong (赵宇空), born in 1963 and a U.S. immigrant since 1992, is a Chinese-American executive who served as Global Planning Director at Siemens Energy (USA). He gained national attention for his role in organizing the Asian American lawsuit against Harvard University’s alleged racial quota policies. In 2015, Global People (环球人物), a publication under the Chinese Communist Party’s official mouthpiece People’s Daily, profiled Zhao as a heroic overseas Chinese who mobilized the Asian community to “speak out” against discrimination.
The magazine framed Zhao’s activism as a moment of political awakening for U.S.-based Chinese—a narrative aligned with the CCP’s United Front propaganda objectives.
2. About Global People Magazine
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Global People (环球人物) is a biweekly publication operated by People’s Daily, the central propaganda organ of the Chinese Communist Party.
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The magazine serves as a soft-power vector that portrays Chinese and overseas Chinese figures in a manner that aligns with Party interests, including:
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Strengthening CCP legitimacy
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Elevating figures who promote Party-aligned narratives overseas
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Reinforcing the United Front’s message of “ethnic unity” and “peaceful development”
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In this capacity, Global People has profiled a number of Chinese diaspora figures who either maintain Party ties or serve CCP messaging indirectly.
3. Profile Summary: Zhao Yukong in Global People (Issue 14, 2015)
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Narrative Framing: Zhao is described as the leader of the largest Asian-American political mobilization in two decades, challenging elite U.S. institutions like Harvard on affirmative action.
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Nationalistic Undertones: The article frames Zhao’s actions as part of a broader Chinese resurgence: “Asian Americans are no longer ‘mute’—they are ready to defend their rights.”
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Party Line Messaging:
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Criticizes “Western double standards” in meritocracy and diversity.
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Portrays Asian American success as under threat from systemic injustice—a line consistent with CCP efforts to cultivate grievance-based ethnic solidarity.
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Highlights Zhao’s emotional attachment to Chinese identity and values, even while operating in a U.S. context.
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Anti-Integration Narrative: Zhao openly criticizes what he calls Chinese immigrants' “peasant,” “guest,” and “refugee” mentalities—calling instead for political assertiveness rooted in identity, not assimilation.
4. United Front Compatibility and CCP Influence Indicators
The interview reveals several elements aligned with CCP United Front strategies:
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Narrative Synchronization: Zhao’s framing of Asian American activism as a unified ethnic response echoes CCP language used in diaspora mobilization campaigns.
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Diaspora Leverage: CCP-aligned media elevates overseas Chinese who portray political participation not as integration, but as ethnic defense—useful for long-term soft power.
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Platform Choice: Global People would not feature Zhao unless his message and persona passed CCP internal vetting, especially given the sensitive political nature of his U.S.-based activism.
5. Siemens and PRC Industrial Background
Zhao’s career at Siemens China prior to emigrating to the U.S. places him within an ecosystem of military-industrial collaboration. Siemens China has supplied technologies to PRC nuclear and aerospace sectors, many of which are affiliated with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The overlap of corporate and strategic domains raises potential red flags about long-term alignment or awareness of Chinese state priorities.
6. Conclusion
Zhao Yukong’s public profile—especially his sympathetic coverage in Global People—suggests he fits the archetype of a diaspora influencer cultivated by or at least compatible with Chinese Communist Party soft power objectives. While direct CCP coordination cannot be established solely from this article, the use of CCP propaganda platforms, aligned messaging, and past professional affiliations point to a United Front-adjacent influence role.
His proximity to other United Front actors in recent years (e.g., USTC alumni events, Chinese-American economic associations) further strengthens the case for deeper scrutiny.
Zhao Yukong’s 1995 Chinese-language monograph China’s Mining City: Structural Adjustment and Sustainable Development, published by Jilin Science and Technology Press, was cited by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research in a 2019 peer-reviewed study. This affirms Zhao’s enduring influence in CCP-affiliated policy modeling on industrial restructuring and regional development. Yu, J., Li, J. & Zhang, W. Identification and classification of resource-based cities in China. J. Geogr. Sci. 29, 1300–1314 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11442-019-1660-8
Appendix: Source Citation
《环球人物》（2015年第14期），本刊记者 卢楚函采访，赵宇空：亚裔不再是“哑裔”
People’s Daily / Global People official archive (no longer publicly indexed); copy on file.
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