American Media’s Political Prejudice of China And Its Effects

丁奕丹

Abstract：With the rapid growth of Chinas economic， political and military strength， American media reported more news about China. Since 1990， US news medias coverage of China have reflected and affected the China-US relations to a great extent. The primary aim of this paper is to prove the existence of American medias political prejudice of China and analyze how the US news medias coverage of China effect China-US relations from 1990 to 2001. And the methodologies of this paper are mainly Qualitative Analysis and Quantitative Analysis. In the first and second chapters， the paper analyzes that the relevant medias comments are truly prejudice and reasons for the existence of this kind of prejudice. In the third chapter， the paper analyzes the negative effects of American media to the China-US relations . At last， the paper draws a conclusion that those prejudice reported by American media has negative effects and is bad for the China-US relations. By this paper， to study the US medias China coverage in the post-Cold War era can better understand the development of China-US relations and the very factor affecting the bilateral relations.

Key Words： Political Prejudice American Media The China-US relations

2.1 The Existence of American Medias Relevant Comments—— Political Prejudice of China

With the rapid development of comprehensive national power， China has played an important role on the world stage. More and more attention are paid to the big country——China， including US news medias. Since 1990（ the post-Cold War era ）， US news media have reported much coverage of China. It has reflected and affected the China-US relations in a certain extent.

By case analysis of specific coverage， such as Wen-ho Lee Suit（1999）， US-China Airplane Collide（2001）， Taiwan issue（1979）， Tibet and so on， it can be found that the US media always set agendas of China-US relations in the frame of the medias interests and the American values； China is always a target to be criticized or be blamed in the relevant coverage； the image of China in the US media is fragmentary and negative. We can know respectively the negative impacts of China coverage on China-US relations.

The negative-oriented coverage of China makes American public opinion and political atmosphere more complicated. The coverage disturbs the policy-making， often shows negative impact on China-US relations. However， the US administration can influence or make use of the media by way of controlling information or testing the feasibility of a policy. US media are but a product in the market of American democracy. The media reflect the emotional opinion of the public market， whereas the government policy is a reasonable choice through a special process. In other words， the US administration dominates the China-US relations. The medias role is limited in dealing with the China-US relations， which the media mainly reflect， sometimes affect， but hardly control. In sum， the American medias relevant comments are truly prejudice and they have reflected and affected the China-US relations in a certain extent.

2.2 The Different Views Between America and China On the Political Prejudice

According to the research made by journalists all over the world， Chinese and American press， politicians and academia have different comments on US news medias coverage of China during the post-Cold War era. For example， US news media demonize China and American journalists emphasize “Press Freedom” and different news views between China and US. Many Americans reckon that US news medias coverage of China is objective and partial. But former president George Bush and Ambassador James Sasser once commented that US news medias coverage of China is fragmentary. Chinese progress on human rights， protection of intellectual property， nuclear nonproliferation， democracy at the grassroots level and many other aspects could rarely be found. The unfriendly trends make people worried a lot. Political Scientist Kenneth Lieberthal commented that US news medias coverage of China is partial. It conveyed a wrong image that China is a cruel and autarchic country which suffers from rigorous control. But the fact is that Chinese society is quite active and it is changing a lot. Due to this， although the US Chinese scholars admitted that US news media has reported much positive news about Chinese Reform and Opening Up， but the public resonance aroused by these positive coverage in nowhere near the lurid negative one. This papers analysis is based on them.

4. Conclusion

With the acceleration of economic globalization and rapid development of China， American media pay more attention to the big country. From 1990 to 2000， US news medias coverage of China has went through special changes. Supported by the amount of expert analysis and records， it is obvious that the relevant medias comments are truly prejudice and they have reflected and affected the China-US relations in a certain extent， mainly negative effects. And with the rapid development of economic globalization， these facts must be universally concerned and recognized. The reasons why these negative coverage of China exit are listed in content. And just as what is mentioned in this paper， cultural and political differences make people of two big countries argue drastically. Though the China-US relations are friendly and co-operative now， people also need to establish our awareness that people should be vigilant in peace time and that forethought prevents calamity. Meanwhile， people must be ready to encounter the new opportunities and challenges.

Actually， in order to make this paper more persuasive， the methodologies of this paper are mainly Qualitative Analysis and Quantitative Analysis. And this paper is based on some of the previous research， trying to analyze the topic in a new perspective. Indeed more research is needed to further explain the close connection between the American media and China-US relations. The author express gratitude towards anyones contribution to this paper， also the understanding from readers. Hopefully， this paper will be improved in the further study.

Reference：

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