Research On The Influence Of Chinese People’s Media Contact On American Image Cognition

Today,as the trend of globalization continues to strengthen,the need for countries to increase their understanding of each other is more urgent,and the national awareness of other countries has become the focus of academic research.As China rises rapidly and occupies a key position on the world stage,it is particularly important to discuss the image of other countries in the eyes of our people.As one of China ’ s most important diplomatic relations,China-US relations understand how the Chinese people view the United States,and how the media,as an intermediary in shaping the image of the country,play a role in the process of people ’s perception of the image of the United States,to further enhance their understanding of It is of great significance to recognize and understand the role of China’s mass media in shaping the national image,and to improve communication strategies.The purpose of this article is to explore the Chinese public’s perception of the image of the United States,and find out what media contact factors affect people’s perceptions and attitudes toward the United States.The research uses a questionnaire survey based on a national opinion survey conducted by the National Institute of Communication Strategy（INCS）of Huazhong University of Science and Technology in China from 2018 to 2019 with the theme "Comparative Research on the Public World Outlook of China and the United States." A total of 2,500 valid questionnaires were collected in the survey.Through analysis of sample data,statistical correlation and regression analysis methods were used to summarize how the Chinese people’s media contact behavior influenced their American image perception and attitude toward the United States.The study found that the influence of Chinese people’s media exposure on their perception of American image is mainly reflected in the following aspects: In terms of the frequency of individual media channel exposure,the frequency of exposure to US news through broadcasts and magazines is positively correlated with the Chinese people’s American favorability;The higher the frequency of exposure to U.S.news through television,news sites,and social networks,the higher the public ’s evaluation of the overall strength of the United States.As far as the total frequency of people ’s media exposure is concerned,the higher the total frequency of people ’s media exposure,the higher its The better the attitude and overall strength.As far as the form of media is concerned,the frequency of new media contacts will not affect the public ’s attitude towards the United States,while the frequency of traditional media contacts has a significant positive relationship with the Chinese people ’ s American favorability,confirming the traditional media ’s “corrective effect” ".In view of the fact that the attention to international news can enhance the knowledge and understanding of foreign countries,the higher the frequency of international news contacts of the audience,the more positive the perception of the image of the United States.In addition,the higher the public’s satisfaction with the US-related reports in our media,the better their attitude and cognition towards the United States.Finally,affected by information acquisition preferences and communication skills,public demographic variables such as gender,education,and age will significantly affect their perceptions and attitudes toward the United States,which again confirms the "knowledge gap" hypothesis in the new era.Studying other countries in the eyes of our people is not only to strengthen our understanding of other countries,but also to provide a reference for our country’s international image shaping and communication strategy improvement.Finally,the author combined with the research found that from the four aspects of paying attention to communication skills,broadening communication channels,optimizing communication carriers,and innovating communication discourse,put forward practical communication strategies,dedicated to shaping and disseminating China’s image,and opening up a new perspective for China’s external communication To gain more voice.