Joseph Tsai & Hong Kong Crackdown: His Shameful Defense of It

You could be forgiven for viewing Joseph Tsai, the billionaire co-founder of Alibaba, as a model citizen. He’s a philanthropist — the main benefactor of a neuroscience institute at Stanford and of a Chinese-law center at Yale — and now, amid the recent spate of violent crimes targeting Asians, an outspoken advocate for Asian Americans.

During a CNBC appearance this week, Tsai expounded on his 2017 purchase of the Brooklyn Nets. “It’s a social institution, you’re doing it for the fans, you’re doing it for the broader population,” he told the network’s Andrew Ross Sorkin during an interview at the Barclays Center, calling the stadium “a location for people to gather and focus on whatever social cause that they want to focus on.” He ticked off its many pandemic-era roles: food bank, vaccination site, polling location, and the site of some of New York City’s most notable racial-justice demonstrations last year.

About the Author

Jimmy Quinn

Jimmy Quinn is the former national security correspondent for National Review.

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You could be forgiven for viewing Joseph Tsai, the billionaire co-founder of Alibaba, as a model citizen. He’s a philanthropist — the main benefactor of a neuroscience institute at Stanford and of a Chinese-law center at Yale — and now, amid the recent spate of violent crimes targeting Asians, an outspoken advocate for Asian Americans.

During a CNBC appearance this week, Tsai expounded on his 2017 purchase of the Brooklyn Nets. “It’s a social institution, you’re doing it for the fans, you’re doing it for the broader population,” he told the network’s Andrew Ross Sorkin during an interview at the Barclays Center, calling the stadium “a location for people to gather and focus on whatever social cause that they want to focus on.” He ticked off its many pandemic-era roles: food bank, vaccination site, polling location, and the site of some of New York City’s most notable racial-justice demonstrations last year.