Weifeng Zhong
- Senior Research Fellow
Dr. Weifeng Zhong is a Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. His work bridges the field of natural language processing and machine learning to economic policy studies. His other research interests include political economy, U.S.-China relations, open-source intelligence, and fairness in artificial intelligence applications.
Zhong leads the open-source Policy Change Index (PCI) project, a framework that uses machine learning to "read" large volumes of propaganda text and facilitate inferences on policy issues. The project has produced algorithms to predict China's major policy changes, predict the likelihood of a Chinese crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, and estimate the true scale of COVID-19 in China. The PCI has informed decision-makers in the U.S. and other governments and has received significant academic interest and media coverage.
Zhong has been published in a variety of scholarly journals, including the B.E. Journal of Theoretical Economics, the Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics, and the Yale Journal of International Affairs. He is a Washington Examiner contributor. His work has been featured in numerous media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, BBC, POLITICO, and The Hill. He has also appeared as an interview guest for Fox Business, Marketplace, Yahoo Finance, C-SPAN, and Cheddar News, among others.
Previously, Zhong was a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He has a Ph.D. and an M.Sc. in managerial economics and strategy from Northwestern University, an M.Econ. and an M.Phil. from the University of Hong Kong, and a B.A. from Shantou University in China.
For a complete list of Zhong’s publications, please visit his website.
Publications & Appearances
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
What Can We Expect From China’s Yearly Congress Meeting? | The Lars Larson Show
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Why the U.S. Wants More Limits on Americans’ Private Investment in Chinese Firms | Marketplace Radio
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Can We Trust China’s Call for a Cease Fire Between Russia and Ukraine? | Lars Larson Show
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Are China’s Digital Tools a Bigger Threat Than Spy Balloons? | The Lars Larson Show
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
China’s Economic Recovery Won’t Deliver | The Washington Examiner
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | TV Appearance TV Appearance
Western Parts on Chinese Spy Flight a ‘Puzzling Phenomena' | Fox Business Network
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
What Can the US Do To Prevent an Invasion of Taiwan by China? | The Lars Larson Show
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Is China’s Quantum Computing Breakthrough All That? | The Washington Examiner
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | TV Appearance TV Appearance
China’s Retaliatory Threats ‘Laughable’ and Not a ‘Serious’ Threat | Fox Business Network
- | F.A. Hayek Program F.A. Hayek Program
- | Mercatus Original Podcasts Mercatus Original Podcasts
- | Virtual Sentiments Virtual Sentiments
Weifeng Zhong on Machine Learning and the Policy Change Index
On this episode of Virtual Sentiments, Kristen interviews Weifeng Zhong of the Mercatus Center on his work with the Policy…