Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
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Research Article

Threat vs. Pragmatism: A Comparative Study of Media Framing of China's Artificial Intelligence in The New York Times and Asahi Shimbun

Qianyi MaSchool of Journalism and Communication, Xi'an International Studies University*

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) is gaining momentum and has already become one of the spheres of technological rivalry among leading powers in the world. The fast-developing AI sector in China has therefore gained a lot of attention globally. As major players of global science and technology, mainstream media in the U. S. and Japan are main platforms that construct international attitudes towards AI advancements in China, and as such, their differences in narratives and discursive construction are of great interest. This paper discusses China-related AI news by the Asahi Shimbun in Japan and the New York Times in the U.S. in the period between December 2022 and March 2026. In their coverage of AI in China, the two media exhibit drastically different narrative logics. The New York Times uses the threat narrative framework, among other strategies, to fit an undesirable image of the AI development in China, motivated by the U. S. technological anxiety against China. Conversely, during the simultaneous occurrence of Chinese and Japanese scientific and technological collaboration and geopolitical chess-play, the Asahi Shimbun takes a more practical approach in its reporting, based on the possibilities of collaboration that Chinese AI development can bring. These differences are, in essence, based on the divergent U.S. and Japanese strategic positions on Chinese AI and the interests of Japan in its industrial sector. The results give specific information on how to maximize international communication in the AI industry.

Keywords: Artificial Intelligence; Media Framing; Comparative Media Analysis; Geopolitics of Technology
Published: May 11, 2026
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2026.33481
Volume: CHR Vol.107
pp. 180-189
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