How Chinese Media Reported the Attempted Assassination of Former U.S. President Trump

An examination of China’s official media and reports reveals that the Chinese reports heavily cited major English news sources and have not added many comments to their reporting so far. Translations of the first two Xinhua reports after the early hours of the shooting can be found at the end of the article.
– Juan Zhang, Senior Writer

The attempted assassination of former U.S. President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13 shocked Americans and people around the world. How did China, which is locked in “a full-scale, full-spectrum strategic great-power competition for wealth and power and influence” with the United States, report and analyze this incident? Will China spread misinformation and take advantage of this incident? Will China’s reporting on this incident drive the already tense bilateral relationship into further chaos?

An examination of China’s official media and reports reveals that the Chinese reports heavily cited major English news sources and have not added many comments to their reporting so far. It is possible that the Chinese public information apparatus has probably issued an order to media outlets to use Xinhua reports strictly or not to cite the many conspiracy theories that erupted online in the United States. In light of tense bilateral relations, it seems that Beijing does not want to be criticized for interfering in American domestic affairs.

How have the “Three Bigs” reported on the shooting?

I examined three major official media outlets, Xinhua, People’s Daily, and Global Times, to understand how they reported on the shooting. In the case of Global Times, I researched articles that were reposted by popular private websites Tencent and Sohu.

In the immediate aftermath, Xinhua released an article titled “Shooting Incident at Trump Campaign Rally.” This brief report consisted of only 221 words and included two images. About one hour later, Xinhua updated this original article and expanded it to 652 words with more detailed information about the event and offered no comments.

About three hours later after the event, Xinhua published a second article, “FBI Announces Suspect in Trump Shooting,” which was 348 words long. These articles were then reposted by the country’s largest official newspaper, the People’s Daily.

In these breaking news style reports, nearly all the content was descriptive, focusing on the facts of the incident. The only comment was: “American public opinion believes that this ‘unfortunate event’ in an election year indicates increased political polarization in the U.S.”

In China, popular websites such as Tencent, Sohu and other private online media outlets are not allowed to create original news reports. They may only use Xinhua or other official sources like Global Times. In the shooting incident report, Tencent and Sohu both reposted Global Times’s reports.

Tencent News, owned by the company behind the popular WeChat app, reposted an article from Global Times. This report analyzed why the shooter used an AR-15 from a general knowledge perspective. It does not specifically analyze why the shooter himself used an AR-15, but it points out that this is a very popular firearm in the United States. The article states: “As a classic light weapon made in the U.S., the AR-15 rifle is considered aesthetically pleasing, well-designed, accurate, reliable, and highly adaptable. It has a large civilian ownership in the United States, and along with the M1911A1 pistol, it is referred to as America’s ‘national firearm’.” However, the article did not delve into the political implications of the incident or its impact on the election.

 Similarly, Sohu News reposted a Global Times article on July 16 titled “Shooting at Trump Campaign Speech Exposes Secret Service Security Flaws.” This piece heavily cited CNN’s analysis and included additional background information. Noting that the “U.S. Secret Service’s security for presidents (and former presidents) at public events is theoretically well-designed and extremely tight, with intelligence operations preceding any activity.”

Based on reports from CNN and others, the article highlighted two Secret Service failures during the shooting incident. The first was the lack of specialized personnel or coordination with local police to inspect the building, allowing the shooter to climb to the roof with a rifle undetected. The second failure was the inability of the Secret Service sniper team and local police to respond quickly before the shooting. The article stated that the armed shooter was visibly out of place compared to surrounding law enforcement in terms of outfit and equipment, but he was able to take his position and shoot before law enforcement could mount an effective response. Notably, both Global Times’ articles did not mention far-right conspiracy theories in the U.S. suggesting that President Biden and his allies ordered the attack.

On July 17, Tencent News reposted another Global Times article titled “Trump’s Private Talk Leaked: Biden Asked Why He Turned Right When Shot At.” This article referenced Newsweek and the Associated Press reports from July 16, in which independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. apologized after Trump’s private conversation with him was leaked. According to these reports, Trump mentioned that President Biden had asked him why he turned to the right when the shooting took place. This 771-word article heavily quoted U.S. media sources without adding comments.

Former Global Times editor-in-chief Hu Xijin published an article on his personal account titled “Western Media Tsunami of Commentary: What Does This Bullet Mean?” Hu cited reports from the Daily Telegraph, CNN, the New York Times, BBC, Bloomberg, and the New York Post.

Hu did not offer extensive commentary in his article. Among his few personal comments, one of the main points was: “Not just Ukraine, it seems the entire world needs to prepare for the possibility of Trump’s return to the White House.”

Guancha’s Report and Interview with Professor Jin Canrong, a Vocal Nationalist  

Guancha is a news site based in Shanghai. Though it is a privately owned internet platform, it is permitted to report news by the Chinese government. The website is widely recognized as a nationalist website. I analyzed the top three articles on the site’s most popular list concerning the Trump assassination attempt.

On July 14 at 15:31 Beijing time, an article titled “The Shooter is a White Male; Witnesses Reported Him to Police Before the Attack” was published. This article cited reports from The New York Times, New York Post, BBC, CBS, CNN, and the Associated Press, providing a descriptive account of the shooting incident. At the end of the article, Jin Canrong, a professor at Renmin University of China with strong nationalist views, was briefly interviewed.

During this interview, Jin shared a rather “interesting theory,” which he acknowledged as pure speculation. Citing a study conducted by the Eurasia Group titled “Top Risks for 2024,” Jin pointed out, “In a sense, this year is very dangerous for American politics. The first risk predicted by Eurasia Group was that major political issues would arise within the United States, and it seems this prediction is coming true. I had a dinner with the chairman of Eurasia Group on June 29 last year. He was extremely familiar with U.S. domestic affairs and believed that the deep state controlled by Wall Street would never allow Trump to take office again. They were careless in 2016, but they won’t make the same mistake again.” Jin did not mention the name of the Chairman of Eurasia Group, whom he claimed he met, but the international scope of conspiracy theories about the deep state in America is worth noting.

Jin continued, “There is speculation that this could be a warning from the deep state to Trump, urging him to shift towards a more moderate stance. We’ve seen that some of Trump’s recent positions are more moderate compared to 2016. Of course, this possibility is purely speculative because the cost is extremely high. What we can see now is that this incident benefits Trump and the Republican Party, but how things will develop is still uncertain.”

Soon after this article on July 14, Guancha published another article titled “Trump Shot: Right Ear Injured, Shooter Killed.” This piece contained no commentary and extensively quoted U.S. media reports on the incident, including reactions from the White House and Biden. The article stated, “Biden addressed the nation on the 13th about the incident, repeatedly calling it ‘sick’ and emphasizing, ‘America should not tolerate such violence, and everyone must condemn this behavior.'”

In the evening of the same day as the above articles, Guancha published a new article titled “How Foreign Media Views the Trump Shooting: U.S. Media Calls It a ‘Dark Day,’ British Media Says ‘Bullet Shattered America’s Illusion.’” This article cited reports from The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Politico, CNN, and the Associated Press, including photos of the original English texts. In addition, the article also provided historical knowledge on presidential assassinations but did not offer any commentary.

Translations of Two Xinhua Articles Following the Shooting Incident at Former President Trump’s Campaign Rally

Article Published by Xinhua at 07:37:38 Beijing Time on July 14, Just Over an Hour After the Shooting Incident. This article was expanded into a longer version about one hour later. The original full text can be found here.

Xinhua, New York, July 13 (Reporters Wang Jiangang and Xing Yue) According to American media reports on the 13th, a shooting incident occurred at a campaign rally for former U.S. President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump was escorted away by Secret Service personnel.

In a statement, Trump’s campaign team said that a shooting occurred at the campaign rally. Trump expressed gratitude for the swift actions of law enforcement and emergency personnel. He is currently in good condition and undergoing evaluation at a local medical facility.

Videos posted on social media show that during the incident, Trump was surrounded by Secret Service personnel and urgently escorted away from the scene. There were bloodstains on the right side of his head, and he was seen raising his fist to the crowd.

The White House stated in a statement that President Biden had been briefed on the incident.

Three hours later after the incident, Xinhua published another article.

Xinhua, Washington, July 14 (Reporter Xiong Maoling) The FBI on the 14th identified a 20-year-old man from Pennsylvania as the suspect in the shooting of former U.S. President Donald Trump. The suspect was shot dead at the campaign rally.

In a statement, the FBI said the man, named Thomas Matthew Crooks, resided in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. His motive for the crime is still unclear. There is no evidence linking the suspect to any foreign terrorist organizations, and he was not previously on any law enforcement watchlists. The FBI continues to investigate his background and has sealed off his residence.

Trump’s campaign team stated that Trump is in good health and in high spirits. It is reported that his campaign schedule remains unchanged, and he will attend the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, next week as planned, where he will be formally nominated as the Republican presidential candidate.

The White House said on the evening of the 13th that President Biden had spoken with Trump by phone.

On the evening of the 13th, former U.S. President and Republican Donald Trump was subjected to an “attempted assassination” at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The shooter was killed by Secret Service personnel. One audience member died at the scene, and two others were seriously injured. American public opinion suggests that in the context of an election year, this “unfortunate event” indicates increased political polarization in the United States.