The video Mei Jan shows MacGyver and Pete is actual footage from the protest in Tiananmen Square in June of 1989 that resulted in many deaths. The actual number of people that died is hard to pin down: official government figures has the number of deaths at around 241 while the Red Cross has the number at over 10,000. Recent declassified information from a Chinese official seems to support the numbers from the Red Cross.
Actress Michele B. Chan plays 22-year old college student Mei Jan in this episode. While her real age is unknown, she was more than likely at least 30 years old at the time, as she married billionaire surgeon Patrick Soon-Shiong in 1977, twelve years prior to this episode's airing. Chan has since retired from acting and she and her husband purchased the Los Angeles Times and The San Diego Union-Tribune in 2018 for nearly $500 million, among other multi-million dollar investments.