Mike Chinoy, a creator of the Assignment China documentary film series on the history of American correspondents in China, holds the position of Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the U.S.-China Institute at the University of Southern California.
Early Life
Mike Chinoy (born 4th June 1952) earned a BA from Yale University and an MS from Columbia University. His father El Chinoy and his mother Helen both were theater historians. Both of them used to teach at Smith College and at that time their impact on his future played a vital role in his career building. In fact, they both halted their teaching and traveled along with their son to the UK just to accompany him. His father died in 1975 while his mother left this earth when she was 87 years in 2010. For most of his adult life, he reported political turmoil from the 1970s to the 1980s and also covered North Korea as well as China news.
Mike Chinoy Career
Journalism Career
At the Pacific Council on International Policy, he focused on security issues in North Korea, China, and Northeast Asia during his three-year tenure as the Edgerton Senior Fellow on Asian Security. He had previously worked for CNN as a foreign correspondent for 24 years. During that time, he had various roles, including serving as a roving reporter based in London and being the network’s first Bureau Chief in Beijing for eight years. He also served as Bureau Chief in Hong Kong and was responsible for coverage throughout the Asia-Pacific Region while working as Senior Asia Correspondent from 2001 to 2006. He began his career working for CBS News and NBC News in Hong Kong in the 1970s before joining the Pacific Council and USC in 2006.
Since the mid-1970s, he has worked and been reporting on the most important events in Asia. many of his reportings include the death of Mao Zedong, the Tiananmen Square crisis, the “People Power” revolt in the Philippines, the Hong Kong handover, the Southeast Asian tsunami, the rise of China, the fall of Indonesian President Suharto, developments in North Korea, the Soviet and US wars in Afghanistan, and elections, and political crises in Taiwan.
Since 1989, he visited North Korea 17 times and accompanied former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on his historic trip to Pyongyang in 1994 as the only journalist. He has been returning regularly to North Korea since then.
Author Career
Mr. Chinoy is recognized for his authoring contributions to the book – China Live: People Power and the Television Revolution. He has received various honors and awards for this release. The most prestigious awards include the Emmy, Peabody, and Dupont awards, that was especially given for the coverage of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crisis, and a Dupont Award for the coverage of the 2004 Southeast Asian tsunami. This book was further published by St. Martin’s Press in North Korea and was given the title – Meltdown: The Inside Story of the North Korean Nuclear Crisis. The book was published in August 2008, which further received the comments like “a tour de force of reporting” by the Washington Post. Later, a paperback edition was released in October 2009, and a translated version in the Korean language was also released in early 2010.
Mike Chinoy Biography |
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| Real Name | Mike Chinoy |
| Birth Date | June 4, 1952 |
| Age (as of 2023) | 70 Years |
| Native | Northampton, USA |
| Profession | Author & Journalist |
| College | Yale University |
| Qualification | Graduate |
Physical Statistics |
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| Height | in feet inches – 5’ 7” – in Centimeters – 170 cm |
| Weight | in Kilograms – 67 kg – in Pounds – 147 lbs |
| Hair Color | Gray |
| Eye Color | Brown |
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Family |
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| Father | Ely Chinoy |
| Mother | Helen Krich Chinoy |
| Sister | – |
| Brother | – |
Relationship Status |
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| Marital Status | Married |
| Who is his wife? | Lynne Curry |
| Children | – |
Personal Life
Lynne Curry, Mr. Chinoy’s wife, previously served as a board member of TAS. Mr. Chinoy himself is the proud parent of two former TAS students: Daniel ’05 and Benjamin ’10. The elder son named Daniel participated in MUN at TAS, and received his graduate degree from Columbia University where he studied Chinese History.
Social Media
Despite being recognized and highlighted by various Universities, schools, American associations, IMDb Page, Amazon, and other various biography pages, he manages to have his personal details available on public profiles like LinkedIn and Twitter. On LinkedIn, he is available with the name, Mike Chinoy, and describes that he belongs to Taiwan. He has nearly 2,636 followers on LinkedIn.
On Twitter, he goes by the handle name – @mikechinoy, which he joined in June 2009. In his Twitter bio, he gives the link to his personal website – mikechinoy.com. On Instagram, he goes by the handle name – @mikechinoy, where he has 222 followers as of 22nd March 2023 with only 10 posts. A few of his latest posts on Instagram belong to the launch of Assignment China- released date- 21st March 2023.
Mike Chinoy Net Worth
Mike Chinoy, the 71 years old famous personality, held various positions and professions in his life. He gave 24 years to journalism and correspondent positions and is now internationally recognized for his book releases and various international stories about the conditions, and relationships of various countries (while focusing on the scenarios faced by correspondents). For now, there is no detail on his net worth on any recognized page. But, we assume it is as high as $30 million.
Trivia
- Mike started working for CBS News and NBC News in Hong Kong, beginning his career in journalism.
- Mike can speak Chinese and French.