I thought China was bad. I think China is bad. I’m here and things don’t seem so bad, so something’s up. I began to think about why I think about China so negatively. All the Chinese people I’ve known in Canada have been so wonderful and Chinese culture is so unoffensive. I realized that all the negative things I think about China comes from Western media and its regurgitation.
I tried to think of two pieces of news that implied China is ‘bad’. Something that portrayed/referenced it as doing bad things or being a bad place. It was easy - I came up with 5+ instantly.
Then I tried to think of two pieces of news that implied China is ‘good’. Something that portrayed it as doing good things or being a good place. I had a hard time coming up with any.
Are things that are good for the world never associated with China? Do good things that may be interesting to Western audiences never happen in China? After thinking hard, I came up with pieces like,
“China’s economy is doing really well.”
“Chinese have a burgeoning middle class.”
“China is building the largest < something > in the world.”
The thing is, I don’t feel good about China when I read these things. I think (or feel like I’m supposed to think),
“Uh, oh. They’re going to beat us.”
or
“Haha, China is such a weird, backwards place.”
and that’s because articles are written with that perspective. When Western articles reference China, it is either with fear or condescension. It’s especially prevalent in technology-related articles.
Does China deserve this treatment from Western media? Maybe, maybe not. The condescension is certainly unhealthy for both sides. What makes me uncomfortable is that there’s a prevailing, unchallengeable attitude towards China and I’ve been unknowingly conditioned to heed it.