Americans' image of China turned increasingly negative in March due to trade, military tensions, cyberattacks and other issues, but without a discernable impact from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, despite evidence that Beijing hid the disease until after the virus spread to much of the world, a PEW Research Center poll revealed on Tuesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st April, 2020) Americans' image of China turned increasingly negative in March due to trade, military tensions, cyberattacks and other issues, but without a discernable impact from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, despite evidence that Beijing hid the disease until after the virus spread to much of the world, a PEW Research Center poll revealed on Tuesday.
"Views of China have soured further in 2020, building on the dramatic uptick in negativity seen between 2018 and 2019. Roughly two-thirds of Americans now have a negative opinion of China, the highest percentage recorded since Pew Research Center began asking the question in 2005. Only about a quarter in the US report a favorable attitude," a press release explaining the poll said.
The poll of 1,000 Americans was based on interviews conducted between March 3 and March 29, a period when the novel coronavirus spread throughout the United States. However, views of China did not significantly change after March 12, when the National Basketball Association (NBA) postponed the remainder of its season and actor Tom Hanks announced his positive COVID-19 test, the release said.
As ratings for China have declined, so too has confidence in Chinese President Xi Jinping. Roughly seven-in-ten Americans (71 percent) say they do not have confidence in Xi to do the right thing when it comes to world affair. Just 22 percent say they have faith in the Chinese leader, down 15 percentage points since last year, the release also said.
As with overall views of China, a shifting news environment over the course of March concerning Beijing's handling of the initial novel coronavirus outbreak did not appear to have affected how Americans view Xi in the short term, the release added.
Apart from trade and military tensions, Americans cited Chinese hacks and environmental damage as leading reasons that the world's most populous nation could not be trusted, according to the release.
