Beijing's 20 Most Interesting People: Bill Bishop

We have a saying here at the Beijinger that even if nothing interesting could be written about 99 percent of Beijing's approximately 20 million people, there would still be 200,000 great stories remaining. To us, what makes a person interesting was not only their long-term presence in Beijing, but that they had done something of note within the last 12 months. Here is one of our picks, and you can always find more in our October issue, now out on the stands.

Bill Bishop
Founder, Sinocism.com
Years in Beijing: 15

Why he’s interesting: Described by former New Yorker correspondent Evan Osnos as “the China watcher’s China watcher” and more influential than the South China Morning Post by Danwei.org, Bill has turned his daily newsletter Sinocism into a must-read for anyone who wants to understand what’s new and noteworthy in the city and country where we live. It’s certainly not his first media venture: he co-founded CBS Marketwatch, which was later sold to Dow Jones.

What he says: "I stay in Beijing for the people, the food, and the energy. I grew up in Washington, DC, so I think I feel most comfortable in a capital city. And of course the changes, from my first time here in the late 80s to now. It is never boring here."

Photo courtesy of Bill Bishop