The Asian American Journalists Association urges news organizations to exercise care and responsibility in their language and framing when reporting on China, national security and people of Chinese and Taiwanese descent.
Reporting on allegations of espionage is legitimate and important, but recent coverage involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has raised concerns about the language and framing of some news outlets, including headlines that turn Asian surnames into punchlines. A headline should not come at the expense of communities already facing harmful stereotypes.
Media framing has real-world consequences. AAJA has repeatedly called on news organizations to recognize how coverage can shape public perceptions and fuel discrimination, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, when language choices helped fuel anti-Asian xenophobia and racism. We remind news organizations that reporting on national security concerns and holding individuals accountable should never come at the expense of perpetuating racial stereotypes or casting entire communities under suspicion.
A recent example is The Economist’s Nov. 9 article about Huang and an espionage controversy, which used the tagline “Two Huangs don’t make a right.” Similarly, the New York Post used “HUANG HUANG BANG BANG” as its Nov. 9 front-page headline covering the same controversy. While wordplay may seem harmless, turning a common Asian surname into a punchline in a story about espionage and national security risks reinforcing harmful associations between identity and suspicion, wrongdoing or divided loyalties. The punchline reinforces stereotypes that real people have to live with.
We also urge journalists to clearly distinguish between the Chinese government, Chinese nationals and Asian Americans in their reporting. These are not interchangeable, and a person’s background or national origin should never be used to presume loyalties.
We call on news organizations to uphold the journalistic principles of accuracy, context and fairness in their reporting, ensuring their coverage informs the public without reinforcing harmful stereotypes.
AAJA is reaching out directly to the editorial leadership at The Economist and the New York Post to raise our concerns about this coverage. We encourage our community to continue flagging headlines, language and imagery that perpetuate harmful stereotypes so we can bring these concerns directly to news organizations and push for more responsible coverage. Please send examples to mediawatch@aaja.org.
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