A Research On China Image In Main Newspapers Of America

Beijing Olympic Games was not only a worldwide sports event but also a timewhen China can show a peaceful rising image to the world. Chinese officials tried theirbest to prepare for the Olympics and2008witnessed the success of the Games.Meanwhile, there were a number of news reports in the American newspapers duringthe bidding, preparation and holding times. Three types of newspapers, namely the NewYork Times, USA Today and the Christian Science Monitor, are selected in this thesis toanalyse China’s images reflected in the coverages related to Beijing Olympic Games. Itcan be concluded from the analysis of the numbers and contents of the news, no matterfrom the superficial or thorough analysis, that American newspapers always twistedChina’s image unconsciously or intentionally.This thesis studies China’s image from three aspects, reaching a conclusion thatChina’s image was distorted in the American newspapers. The first chapter discussedChina’s image by simply analysing the proportion of negative news and the contents ofthe news. By analysing the news superficially, it can be found that there is much morenegative news in the newspapers and the reported events are mostly negative, such asChina’s dishonesty and China’s serious social problems. Therefore, it can be concludedin the first chapter that China’s image was negative and distorted. The news of the threeperiods are thoroughly analysed in the second chapter, and it is quite easy to find thathuman right record was always the central point of the news. Because of the differentunderstandings of human rights and American superiority over other nations, the newsreports unconsciously distorted China’s image as being repressive and oppressive.However, with the development of China, America takes China as a threat. Therefore,apart from the unconscious distortion, American newspapers still twisted China’s imageintentionally. The third chapter discussed events about the environment and securityappeared in the news reports. It is found in the coverages that American newspapersseldom mentioned the efforts made by China but distorted China’s image intentionally. Through the analysis from the above three chapters, China’s image is negativeand distorted by American news reports unconsciously or intentionally. From thisresearch, Chinese can know what the America concerns most and how Americannewspapers views China. It is also beneficial to the communications between the twocountries.