A Decade of Evolving Sentiment on the Belt and Road Initiative in Elite Magazines

Abstract

This study employs a multidisciplinary theoretical framework – drawing on fields such as media framing, agenda setting, and the economic and political dimensions – to conduct a sentiment analysis of 507 articles on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) published in The Economist, Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, and Economic and Political Weekly. Three key findings emerge. First, negative sentiment dominates the overall discourse. Second, a clear disparity exists between financial and political magazines: Financial publications present the BRI more positively, whereas political ones present the BRI more negatively. Third, a timeline analysis from 2013 to 2023 shows a gradual shift toward more negative coverage. It means that the age of the BRI project attracts increased resistance. These findings offer valuable insights into the evolving perceptions and attitudes surrounding the BRI in influential global media outlets, providing a nuanced understanding of how media framing and the interplay between economic and political dimensions can shape public discourse on complex geopolitical initiatives.