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Joshua Cooper Ramo

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Joshua Cooper Ramo
Born (1968-12-14) December 14, 1968 (age 55)
EducationUniversity of Chicago (BA)
New York University (MA)
Known forBeijing Consensus
RelativesRoberta Cooper Ramo (mother)

Joshua Cooper Ramo (born December 14, 1968)[1] is vice chairman and co-chief executive of Kissinger Associates, the consulting firm of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.[2] He is also the author of several non-fiction books including two New York Times best-sellers, The Age of the Unthinkable and The Seventh Sense.

Early life and education

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Rаmo was rаised in Los Ranchos, New Mexico, on the Rio Grande.[3] He began flying in his late teens and later wrote the book No Visible Horizon about his experiences as a competitive aerobatic pilot.[4] Ramo holds a bachelor's degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Chicago and a master's degree in economics from New York University.

Journalism career

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Ramo began his career as a journalist at Newsweek in 1993. He joined Time magazine in 1996 when he was hired by Walter Isaacson. Ramo oversaw the magazine’s digital operations and ran Time's digital magazine while also covering technology. In 1998, he became foreign editor of Time, overseeing the magazine's international coverage. He was the youngest senior editor and foreign editor in the history of Time Magazine. During his tenure at the magazine, he wrote more than 20 domestic and international cover stories.[5]

Business career

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Prompted by an interest in business and global affairs, Ramo moved to Beijing in 2002. He worked with John L. Thornton, a former president of Goldman Sachs, in China from 2003-2005, when he joined Kissinger Associates as managing director. In 2011, he became vice chairman of Kissinger Associates. In 2015, he became co-chief executive officer.[6]

Fluent in Mandarin, Ramo currently divides his time between Beijing and New York, and serves as advisor to large corporations and investors with a particular focus on large-scale cross-border transactions. He additionally serves on the Board of Directors of Starbucks and FedEx.[7][8]`

Television career

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In 2008, Ramo served as China analyst for NBC Sports during its coverage of the Beijing Olympic Games. For his work with Bob Costas and Matt Lauer during the Opening Ceremony of the Games he shared in a Peabody and an Emmy award.[9]

In 2018, Ramo rejoined NBC Sports as a contributor and analyst for its coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.[10] However, Ramo was criticized for the insensitive comment he made about Korea-Japan relations and sentiments on Japan among Koreans during NBC's coverage of the game's opening ceremony.[11]

Affiliations

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Ramo has been a member of the Leaders 21 project, a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a “Young Global Leader” and “Global Leader of Tomorrow” of the World Economic Forum, a Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute, and a co-founder of the National Committee on United States–China Relation's US-China Young Leaders Forum.[12]

Key concepts

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The World Economic Forum called Ramo “One of China’s leading foreign-born scholars.”[13]

The Beijing Consensus

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In 2004 he published "The Beijing Consensus,"[14] which contrasted the Chinese model of economics and politics with western, "Washington Consensus" models.[4]

Co-Evolution

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In 2011, Ramo proposed a new model of US-China relations based on complexity theory known as “co-evolution.”[15]

Works

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No Visible Horizon

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In 2003, Ramo published No Visible Horizon: Surviving the World's Most Dangerous Sport, which tackled his training as an aerobatic flyer and the "violent, difficult maneuvers" of the sport.[16][17]

The Age of the Unthinkable

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In 2009, Ramo published The Age of the Unthinkable: Why the New World Disorder Constantly Surprises Us and What We Can Do About It, [18][19] which was a New York Times bestseller that was translated into 15 languages. The book applies ideas of chaos theory and complex adaptive systems to problems of foreign policy.

The Seventh Sense

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In 2016, Little, Brown & Co. released Ramo's third book, The Seventh Sense: Power, Fortune, and Survival in the Age of Networks,[20][21] which purports to identify a "new instinct" for networks that characterized new groups in politics, economics and security. Drawing on ideas from technology, history and economics, The Seventh Sense claims that the emergence of constant, widespread connection represents a shift in power that will be as significant as the Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution, leading to a widespread collapse of existing institutions and the emergence of new sources of power. In the book, Ramo proposed a new idea for American grand strategy known as “Hard Gatekeeping” in which the country would develop and use platforms for the control of network topology, but would carefully limit access to those platforms.[22] On June 6, 2016, The Seventh Sense debuted on the New York Times bestseller list at #7,[23] and on May 29, 2016, The Seventh Sense was named to the Washington Post's nonfiction bestseller list for the week of May 26, 2016.[24]

Controversy

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Comment on Japan–Korea relations

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During NBC's coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, Ramo noted that Japan occupied Korea from 1910–45, and then added, "But every Korean will tell you that Japan is a cultural and technological and economic example that has been so important to their own transformation." NBC issued an on-air apology the next morning.[25] NBC later shared that Ramo was hired only for the Opening Ceremony and would have "no further role during the PyeongChang Games."[26] Ramo later issued an apology, stating "I did not intend to minimize or disrespect a part of Korean history that must never be forgotten."[27]

The Korea Times called the comment "incorrect and insensitive."[11] Also, American media outlets were overwhelmingly critical of Ramo's statements, denouncing them as "clueless", and "false".[28][29][30]

References

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  1. ^ "Ramo, Joshua Cooper 1968- - Dictionary definition of Ramo, Joshua Cooper 1968- - Encyclopedia.com: FREE online dictionary". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  2. ^ "No consensus on the Beijing Consensus - How the World Works - Salon.com". September 16, 2006. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  3. ^ http://www.аbqjournal.cоm/news/stаte/271029418157newsstate03-27-09.htm [dead link]
  4. ^ a b "Joshua Cooрer Ramo: Who Is NBC's China Analyst During The Olympics?". huffpost.com. September 11, 2008. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  5. ^ "Starbucks Adds Joshua Cooper Ramo to Board of Directors". Seattle Times. May 5, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  6. ^ "starbucks corp (SBUX:NASDAQ GS) executive profile". bloomberg.com. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  7. ^ "Starbucks Appoints Joshua Cooper Ramo to Board of Directors". Starbucks. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  8. ^ "FedEx Corp. Elects Brad Martin and Joshua Ramo As New Directors". FedEx. September 26, 2011. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  9. ^ "Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony and Zhang Yimou (NBC)". Peabody Awards. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  10. ^ "Three more NBC correspondents for PyeongChang Olympics announced". OlympicTalk. December 14, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  11. ^ a b "NBC analyst relieved from Olympic coverage for offending Koreans". The Korea Times. February 11, 2018.
  12. ^ "US-East Asia Task Force Report" (PDF). Asia Society. May 5, 2016.
  13. ^ "Starbucks Adds New Director to its Ranks as it Eyes China's Growing Market". Business Insider.
  14. ^ "Beijing Consensus" (PDF). Retrieved February 11, 2018.
  15. ^ Ramo, Joshua Cooper (April 8, 2010). "Hu's Visit: Finding a Way Forward on U.S.-China Relations". Time. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  16. ^ No Visible Horizon: Surviving the World's Most Dangerous Sport. Simon & Schuster. 2003. ISBN 0743229509.
  17. ^ Ferrell, Tom (July 20, 2003). "Don't Look Down". New York Times. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  18. ^ The Age of the Unthinkable: Why the New World Disorder Constantly Surprises Us And What We Can Do About It. Little, Brown and Company. 2009. ISBN 978-0316118088. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  19. ^ "The Age of the Unthinkable". Hachette Book Group. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  20. ^ The Seventh Sense: Power, Fortune, and Survival in the Age of Networks. Little, Brown and Company. 2016. ISBN 978-0316285063.
  21. ^ The Seventh Sense. Hachette Book Group. ISBN 9781478900665. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  22. ^ Rosemay/June 2016, Gideon (April 14, 2016). "The Seventh Sense: Power, Fortune and Survival in the Age of Networks". Foreign Affairs. Retrieved May 5, 2016. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  23. ^ "Advice, How-To & Miscellaneous Books - Best Sellers - June 5, 2016 - The New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  24. ^ "Washington Post bestsellers May 29, 2016". The Washington Post. May 26, 2016. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  25. ^ "NBC Apologizes to South Koreans for Analyst's Remark". The New York Times. February 12, 2018. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  26. ^ Boren, Cindy (February 12, 2018). "NBC analyst who angered Koreans was hired only for Opening Ceremonies". washingtonpost.com. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  27. ^ Manza Young, Shalise (February 14, 2018). "NBC'S Joshua Cooper Ramo Offers Late Apology". yahoosports.com. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  28. ^ "Cultural Gaffes At The Olympics — A List You Don't Want To Make". National Public Radio (NPR). February 14, 2018.
  29. ^ "What the Church Can Learn from NBC's Offensive Korea Comments". Sojouners. February 14, 2018.
  30. ^ "The Opening Ceremony of the Pyeongchang Olympic Games Finds Poetry Amid the Politics". Variety. February 9, 2018.
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