Scott Tong

Correspondent

SHORT BIO

Scott Tong is a former correspondent for Marketplace. He reported on sustainability issues (energy, climate, environment, resources) for Marketplace, as well as the U.S.-China technology relationship, frequently described as “fraught.” He is Marketplace’s former China bureau chief.

What was your first job?

English-language audiotape (yes, tape) voice-over work. Sixth grade.Taiwan.

What advice do you wish someone had given you before you started this career?

Show up an hour before the interview.

Fill in the blank: Money can’t buy you happiness, but it can buy you ______.

Gas for kid carpools; Washington Capitals hockey tickets.

What is something that everyone should own, no matter how much it costs?

Smoker (plus wooden slotted spoon).

What’s your most memorable Marketplace moment?

Sneaking into Burma for twenty bucks.

Latest Stories (1,339)

Biting into China's food safety

Nov 27, 2007
China is making strides to inspect its food industry and ensure the safety to the rest of the world. Marketplace got a first-hand look at the food inspection process in Shanghai. Scott Tong reports.

Chinese get more flexible about plastic

Nov 19, 2007
China has ordered its banks to take money out of circulation as a way to cool the country's red-hot economy just a little bit. But Chinese consumers aren't necessarily playing along. Correspondent Scott Tong says they've discovered the joys of credit cards.

Our e-waste comes back to haunt us

Nov 14, 2007
There's a thriving global industry recovering the precious metals in the millions of electronic devices we throw away each year. But the toxic by-products are showing up in cheap imported goods. Scott Tong reports from China.

Garbage across the Pacific

Nov 9, 2007
One country's garbage is another country's gold. Scott Tong takes us across the Pacific to see how America's trash has spawned a whole industry in China.

Investors believe Alibaba will fly

Nov 6, 2007
Alibaba.com, the world's most popular business-to-business company, went public today in Hong Kong. Scott Tong explains the IPO's strong points and tells us where the risks are.

China: U.S. might steal Christmas

Nov 2, 2007
Asian markets shook after yesterday's Wall Street decline, adding to China's fear that a weak U.S. economy means less Holiday work. Scott Tong explores the impact of the U.S. consumer on the Chinese market.

Feast, famine on China-Burma border

Nov 1, 2007
Burma is Asia's economic basketcase, even though it sits next door to China. Scott Tong recently traveled to the border and witnessed a stark contrast between the two sides.

China keeps up wall to Hollywood

Oct 22, 2007
The United States has asked the World Trade Organization to investigate Chinese restrictions on American movies and other media. It's the fourth WTO dispute between the two countries this year. Scott Tong reports on the battle for the box office.

NBA scores a slam dunk in China

Oct 17, 2007
The NBA's offiicially gone global. NBA China has opened for business. China is the league's biggest market outside the United States. And don't think sneaker companies and sports marketers haven't noticed. Scott Tong reports.

China's economy speaks for itself

Oct 15, 2007
In Beijing the Communist Party Congress has begun. Delegates heard a two-and-a-half hour opening speech from President Hu Jintao, in which he talked lots of politics, but not much economics. Marketplace's Scott Tong talked with Kai Ryssdal from Shanghai to right that wrong.