| dc.description.abstract | The first two decennia of the 21st century saw a deepening of the relations between China and African countries and, subsequently, saw increasing Western attention for this relationship. Together, these developments give rise to the research question how the West perceives the Chinese and China’s activities in Africa. This question is answered with the help of empirical research on the British newspapers The Guardian and The Economist from 2013 till 2018. Previous research on Western (media) perceptions of China in Africa indicated that the West tends to see China as an emerging homogenous actor whose influence on Africa is regarded negatively. The empirical research of this thesis builds on an extrapolation of Ted Hopf’s theory of social identity in combination with the concept of framing. The analytical heart of this study consists of two chapters that consider the Western perception of the Chinese and China’s economic engagement, as well as China’s soft power engagement with Africa. Both chapters ask how China in Africa is perceived, - who is China, what do they do and why – and how the newspapers see the West (i.e. itself) within the China-Africa nexus.
Regarding China’s economic engagement, a (broad) distinction can be made between two different perceptions. First, a more traditional pessimistic perspective that sees the Chinese as a homogenous entity that is in Africa for its self-interest (predominantly for natural resources). Second, a perception of the Chinese as diverse business orientated actors, which functions as an alternative and challenge towards the first identity. This second identity has not been observed before by previous research. Regarding soft power, China is perceived as a blunt and amoral actor, with a unitary Chinese government as the primary agent. Moreover, the newspapers’ portrayal changes over time from soft power as an economic mechanism towards soft power as a method to enhance China’s global image.
Even though China’s influence on Africa is still predominantly seen in a negative light, both the alternative perspective on economic engagement as well as the newspapers’ attention for soft power are new. It is eventually concluded that, although media is moving away from a pessimistic view of China’s engagement regarding economic aspects, they return to a familiar response when Chinese soft power is the topic. | |
