South China Morning Post
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Illustration: Craig Stephens
Opinion
Opinion
by Song Bing
Opinion
by Song Bing

US-China tensions are clouding how Americans and Chinese see each other

  • For educated Chinese, America embodies individualism, greed and deep social rifts, yet its innovative, entrepreneurial spirit continues to attract them
  • However, the general American perception of China is mired in simplistic and hatred-inducing caricatures, made worse by the current Covid-19 racism and government rhetoric
Song Bing
Song Bing
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Do Americans and Chinese understand each other? Educated Americans, blessed with information flows guaranteed by free speech and an open press, must surely know China well. The Chinese, however, living under the iron fist of censorship – how could they possibly understand America?
To address the first part of the question, let us look at the three types of information that have informed and shaped the American perception. First, given the increasing importance of China’s economy in global growth, global media, policy and business circles are awash with China-related economic and financial data and analyses.
Second is China’s spotty human rights record and increasing assertiveness in foreign affairs. Reports on the Xinjiang Uygur detention camps, Hong Kong protests, ubiquitously deployed surveillance technologies, Taiwan cross-strait tension, and the Chinese military build-up in the South China Sea dominate global headlines.
The third type of information is Chinese policy announcements and the harsh, if not sometimes knee-jerk, reactions to criticism and accusations from the West.
These feed a profile that begins to form of an increasingly powerful economic and military giant which suppresses and abuses its people, and pounces on its foreign critics. Calling China a “Frankenstein”, as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo did recently, appears reasonable. No wonder over two-thirds of Americans in a recent poll expressed negative views towards China and endorsed a hardline approach.

00:48

‘Frankenstein’ China requires more assertive global response, says US top diplomat Pompeo

‘Frankenstein’ China requires more assertive global response, says US top diplomat Pompeo
The challenge is how to reconcile this “monster” image of China with the population’s high confidence ratings of its government in Western surveys?
In recent decades, China has lifted 850 million people out of poverty and created a 400-million-strong middle class. Other indicators of social well-being are also rising. Over 95 per cent of the population has basic medical insurance. University enrolment rates have improved from a low single digit in the 1980s to over 50 per cent today. Last year, Chinese tourists made over 169 million outbound trips and all apparently returned to China.

Contrary to the rise of European powers in their history, China’s economic rise did not come through military aggression or territorial conquests. China has not gone to war with any nation for 40 years and has peacefully resolved border disputes with at least 12 countries.

02:13

India and China attempt to de-escalate border tension after deaths

India and China attempt to de-escalate border tension after deaths

To resolve these discrepancies, one needs to delve into Chinese history and culture, and appreciate the mixed value systems and different priorities at work.

While absorbing Western elements such as democracy, individual rights, competition and the rule of law, China remains influenced by its long-standing civilisational values, such as unity, stability, security, discipline, self-restraint for the greater collective good, and seeking harmony.

Like the yin-yang dynamic, Western liberal and Chinese civilisational values are sometimes in tension and at other times complementary. Yet both are mainstream value narratives in China.

05:02

Coronavirus backlash further fraying China’s ties to global economy

Coronavirus backlash further fraying China’s ties to global economy

So, judging China solely from Western values and sensibilities risks forcing a square peg into a round hole. This does not necessarily mean the abuse and overreach of power pointed out by mainstream Western media does not exist.

But one needs to examine whether such reports are positioned within the broader historical, cultural and geopolitical context, and whether the facts and analyses are well-rounded, rather than partially adapted to fit predetermined China narratives.

Now, let us address the second part of the question – do the Chinese understand Americans? Educated Chinese tend to draw information on the United States from multiple sources: Western media, social network/internet postings, family members and friends who study, work or otherwise live in the US, translated books and journal articles, arts and entertainment, and lastly – and least – from official Chinese media.

01:11

China sanctions Rubio, Cruz and other Americans in retaliation for US Hong Kong sanctions

China sanctions Rubio, Cruz and other Americans in retaliation for US Hong Kong sanctions
Yes, you read correctly: educated Chinese rarely, if ever, derive their information from official Chinese media because they know it is controlled, and such reports may be partial and ideologically slanted. Ironically, Pompeo’s new anti-China slogan, “distrust and verify”, aptly illustrates the scepticism of educated Chinese towards state-run media.

I must note, however, that recent reports in mainstream Western media on the Hong Kong protests and the coronavirus have been so biased that many Chinese elites have begun to question their aversion to state-run media.

True, China blocks all major Western newspapers, Facebook, Google and Twitter. But the censorship system is so porous that over 30 per cent of the 800 million Chinese netizens use virtual private networks (VPNs) to circumvent the firewall. This so-called “wall climbing” is an open secret in China.

02:33

How China censors the internet

How China censors the internet

In addition to directly accessing Western media, educated Chinese maintain close contact with families and friends in the US. According to recent estimates, over five million ethnic Chinese live in America, and Chinese made nearly 3 million trips there last year.

Given their cultural ethos of lifelong learning, Chinese people are enthusiastic readers, and more than 16,000 Western language books were translated into Chinese in 2018. In addition, countless articles published in Western countries, especially the US and Britain, are translated into Chinese every day. Translated literature spans politics, economics, finance, history, technology, social sciences and the arts. Many US bestsellers are also bestsellers in China.

Do the Chinese see the problematic side of the US? Of course they do. They see rising populism, a deepening gap between the rich and poor, gun violence, systemic racial bias and racial tension, and widespread homelessness.

01:25

US colleges face US$15 billion hit as Chinese students stay away amid coronavirus pandemic

US colleges face US$15 billion hit as Chinese students stay away amid coronavirus pandemic

Even so, bright young Chinese people continue to be inspired and attracted by the creativity, ingenuity, openness and vitality of American education, technology, arts and financial capitalism. Record numbers of Chinese continue to flock to the US to study and work.

However, coronavirus-induced racial crimes and the increasingly extreme anti-China rhetoric by the US government are finally sowing the seeds of doubt and hesitation in many Chinese minds.

For educated Chinese, America embodies conflict, rugged individualism, greed and deep social rifts, yet its open, innovative and entrepreneurial spirit is unlike any other. The general American perception of China is, unfortunately, hopelessly mired in simplistic and increasingly fearful and hatred-inducing caricatures.

Song Bing, a former senior executive at Goldman China, is now on the staff of a US-based non-profit in its Beijing office

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