No.29 Zambia’s Media Perspective on China, the US, Japan, and South Africa: Comparative Exploration through Private Online Media

This paper examines Zambia’s private online media perspectives on bilateral relations with China, Japan, the US, and South Africa. Methodologically, the study combines quantitative text mining and qualitative analysis using a five-factor model, which analyzes how domestic politics, economic conditions, peace and security, global international relations (IR), and regional IR shape Zambia’s bilateral relations with each of the four countries. The analysis revealed that economic factors are most influential, with media attention focused on attracting foreign direct investment from the four countries to stimulate national economic growth and strengthen regional connectivity to achieve the national goal of becoming a trading hub in Southern Africa. Key topics covered in the online media articles related to each country include debt restructuring with China, anticipated investments from Japan, discussions on the human rights of sexual minorities with the US, and a strong commitment to enhancing trade relations with South Africa. Zambian media have emphasized the current government’s political will to shape foreign policy based on national priorities and conveyed high expectations that the government will continue to exercise its agency in regard to each country. Domestically, the media coverage centered on the political divisions between the ruling and opposition parties, especially over foreign policy toward China and the US. While the current Zambian government seeks to exert its agency over both China and the US to resolve its debt problems, Zambia also aims to achieve two policy goals: first, balancing Zambia’s policy toward China and the US to avoid the perception of taking sides; second, balancing domestic views with US preferences on human rights. Through the analysis of discourses of local media, this study sheds light on the importance of gaining insights from the local media to develop a deeper understanding of the agency of smaller countries in relation to their larger counterparts in pursuing their interests in today’s changing international environment.

Keywords: Agency, Bilateral relations, Development, Investment, Online media