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Jianlu Bi
Opinion
Jianlu Bi

China’s economic successes are reshaping the Western media narrative

Beijing’s economic strategy, technological prowess and climate policies are prompting a reassessment of the country’s media profile

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A journalist asks a question at a press conference attended by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress in Beijing on March 7. Photo: Xinhua
Jianlu Bi
Jianlu Bi is a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy in Focus think tank at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC, and a research fellow at the Charhar Institute in Beijing.
The annual “two sessions” in Beijing, a crucial window into China’s policy priorities and economic trajectory, continue to draw significant Western media scrutiny. However, a subtle yet perceptible shift appears to be under way – a tempering of harsh criticism alongside a sustained analytical focus.

My colleagues and I conducted a content analysis of major Western news outlets, tracking the frequency of keywords related to China’s economy, technology and environment between 2019 and 2025; keywords were categorised as positive, negative or neutral.

We analysed 10 major British and American news outlets – including CNN, BBC News and The New York Times. Among those outlets, nearly 70 per cent of stories covering China’s economy, technology or environment in 2019 had a negative tone, according to our research. However, by 2025, the share of negative stories dropped to around 40 per cent, along with an increase in neutral coverage across all categories and positive coverage of the economy.

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