Impact of the press coverage of China and India relations in a globalized economy

Abstract

Media research has grown exponentially in recent years with the internationalization of media products and institutions. However, the fast pace of global change in the media sector has meant that research has not been able to provide an extended analysis of the more recent and complex trends. The rise of ‘Chindia’ is one such global phenomenon. The collaboration of China and India has brought a third of humanity onto the global business scene. Bilateral economic relations between the two countries have strengthened since China became India’s largest trading partner, replacing US in 2008-2009. Despite the current global economic turmoil, there are early signals of revival for the two countries demonstrating that ‘Chindia’ can serve as an engine for further growth of the global economy. Despite their economic partnership, tensions between China and India escalated dramatically, when India announced recently that it will allow the Dalai Lama to visit a Tibetan monastery in Arunachal Pradesh. Since then, several instances of major ‘tit for tat’ behaviour on the part of the two countries made the situation worse, prompting some analysts and media to discuss the possibility of another war between the two countries. A survey by the Pew Research Center’s Pew Global Attitudes Project (July 22, 2008) showed that 24% of Chinese ranked India as an “enemy”. Similarly, an online poll conducted by the Global Times (June 11, 2009) showed that 90% of the respondents believed that India threatened China’s security while other Chinese media also continued to highlight ‘the India threat’. Not to be outdone, the Indian media was quick to sensationalize alleged Chinese incursions and in hyping ‘the China threat’, (quoted in Malik, 2009), by emphasizing controversial issues of disputed borders and nuclear issues etc. Thus, through content analysis of selected newspapers, the paper aims to understand the ‘Chindia’ phenomenon and analyze how the relationship between the two countries and their combined power is represented in the press. Furthermore, the paper focuses on understanding the role of local and international newspapers in arousing nationalistic sentiments among Indian and Chinese readers and in shedding some light on the extent to which tension between the two countries is real or exaggerated, as the findings could have major implications for the global economy.