SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Even as relations between the world's two largest economies get more tense, some young Americans are becoming obsessed with China. In the latest word of the week, Ashish Valentine delves into the meaning and story behind Chinamaxxing (ph).
ASHISH VALENTINE, BYLINE: Open up TikTok or Instagram in the U.S., and you've likely seen people talk about maxing - internet slang for going all in on something. People like Adrien Dervaux are experts in looksmaxxing (ph).
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ADRIEN DERVAUX: In order for you to get a sharper jaw line, it is through elevating your hyoid (ph) bone.
VALENTINE: And channels like Matt's Crypto can teach you all about wealthmaxxing (ph).
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MATT: In terms of the ROI on these coins, if we invested it today. A hyper liquid price of 100 to $250.
VALENTINE: Now, the latest maxing trend has people adopting Chinese lifestyle habits like drinking hot water.
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HASAN PIKER: ...On the yacht. I'm here in Shanghai. We've been Chinamaxxing all day.
VALENTINE: Livestreamers Hasan Piker and Will Neff went to China last year, showcasing high-tech big cities, like Shanghai and Chongqing, to millions of viewers.
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UNIDENTIFIED TOUR GUIDE: Guys, we will arrive at the train station.
PIKER: Wow.
WILL NEFF: Whoa. It's so big.
PIKER: It looks like an airport.
VALENTINE: The live streamers' trip quickly became yet another culture war flashpoint back at home. Some praised their street interviews with ordinary Chinese people while others accused them of being used by America's top rival as a soft power propaganda tool. Recent polls often show Americans are increasingly divided on whether to cooperate or compete with China.
SHAOYU YUAN: When China becomes part of American identity politics, the public naturally splits along the party lines.
VALENTINE: This is Shaoyu Yuan, a New York-based scholar who writes about Chinese soft power. He says Americans are also getting information about China in two very different ways.
YUAN: People who mainly get China through politics and security headlines move toward a threat framing. And people who get China through daily exposure and peer-to-peer culture tend to have a more mixed view.
VALENTINE: Yi-Ling Liu, who writes about tech in China, says the Chinamaxxing trend in America says much more about the U.S. than it does about China.
YI-LING LIU: Americans' perspective of China has shifted, and I think it's really rooted in the U.S.'s own insecurities about its dysfunction.
VALENTINE: In other words, young Americans are channeling frustrations with their declining standard of living. She says the Chinamaxxing trend is perhaps a rare moment for connection across an ever expanding geopolitical divide. For NPR News, Ashish Valentine in Taipei. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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