Exploring the Role of Media Framing in the Self-construction of China's National Image: An Analy-sis of News Coverage About Foreign Language Ed-ucation in China Daily

Abstract

To identify the frames and images constructed in the news coverage of China Daily from the perspective of foreign language education, this study applies media framing theory and employs qualitative analysis methods supported by CAQDA (computer-assisted qualitative data analysis). Based on corpus analysis and content analysis, six frames are identified, including 1) foreign language education in China in the New Era, 2) foreign language educators, 3) cultivation of foreign lan-guage talents in China, 4) exchanges and mutual learning between different civili-zations, 5) equality and balanced development in education, and 6) emerging ap-proaches to foreign language education, based upon which the following images of China were established: 1) a country demonstrating an open and inclusive attitude, 2) a country showing self-confidence and self-improvement, 3) a country practicing the concept of fairness and progress, and 4) a country leading the devel-opment of scientific and technological innovation. This paper further fills the gaps in the study of national image and sheds light on foreign language education in China.

Headnote

Abstract

To identify the frames and images constructed in the news coverage of China Daily from the perspective of foreign language education, this study applies media framing theory and employs qualitative analysis methods supported by CAQDA (computer-assisted qualitative data analysis). Based on corpus analysis and content analysis, six frames are identified, including 1) foreign language education in China in the New Era, 2) foreign language educators, 3) cultivation of foreign lan-guage talents in China, 4) exchanges and mutual learning between different civili-zations, 5) equality and balanced development in education, and 6) emerging ap-proaches to foreign language education, based upon which the following images of China were established: 1) a country demonstrating an open and inclusive attitude, 2) a country showing self-confidence and self-improvement, 3) a country practicing the concept of fairness and progress, and 4) a country leading the devel-opment of scientific and technological innovation. This paper further fills the gaps in the study of national image and sheds light on foreign language education in China.

Keywords

Media framing; China's national image; self-construction; foreign language educa-tion; China Daily

1. Introduction

As the largest developing country in the world today, China's comprehensive strength is growing stronger and its influ-ence in the international arena is increasing. Countries around the world are also paying more and more attention to China's international image, so it is of great significance to analyze China's national image. In the past decade or so, there have been many studies on the analysis of China's national image, including studies on the self-image and others of the country through different research methods, and studies on the analysis of China's national image in different fields through similar methods, and the list is endless. Among them, many have chosen China Daily as a corpus to analyze national image, such as describing the general characteristics of China Daily's national image construction with the help of content analysis and corpus-based discourse analysis (Dai, 2014); using discourse analysis as a tool to explore the construction of China's national image in the international arena by starting from the report on "The Belt and Road

Initiative" in the English version of China Daily (Chen, 2020). However, after a literature search, there are not many articles applying media framing theory to explore the construction of China's national image in the English version of China Daily.

Therefore, this paper applies media framing theory and selects the English version of China Daily as a corpus to study China's national image, and it also studies the self-construction of the national image from the aspect of foreign language education, which has not been studied by previous researchers. Foreign language education promotes international coop-eration, scientific and technological innovation, and talent cultivation, and contributes to economic development and global competitiveness. At the same time, it promotes the modernization of education, enhances the soft power of national culture, and provides strong support for building an education powerhouse. It is hoped that this paper can further fill the gap in the research on national image and shed light on foreign language education in China.

2. Literature Review

2.1 Media framing

It is generally believed that Goffman, an American sociologist, was the first to give theoretical color to the original com-mon word "framing". In his book, he defines framing as a cognitive structure that people use to recognize and interpret social experience and that "allows its user to locate, perceive, identify, and label a seemingly infinite number of concrete occurrences defined in its terms" (Goffman, 1974, p. 21). Later, it has been used in several fields, especially in the field of communication studies. According to Gitlin (1980), frames, "largely unspoken and unacknowledged, organize the world both for journalists who report it and, in some important degree, for us who rely on their reports" (p. 7). Similarly, Entman (1991) thought media frames were "attributes of the news itself" (p. 7)." As for media, it plays an important role in the construction and dissemination of our national image in the current stage, and the social responsibility of the media is constantly stressed. Media framing, as mentioned above, is "attributes of the news itself" (Entman, 1991, p. 7). Besides, Entman (1993) proposed "To frame is to select some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient in a communicating text, in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treatment recommendation for the item described" (p. 52). All these inspired us to write this paper.

2.2 China's national image

"National image is the overall impression and comprehensive evaluation of a specific country as an international relations subject, formed through a complex and diverse information dissemination process in the international public" (Han, 2006, p. 99). It is a topic that accompanies the nation. In today's era of increasing globalization, the issue of national image is related to China's peaceful development, so it is very necessary to study China's national image. "China's national image is relative to foreign countries, especially to the West. This is because the Western image of China has long determined China's image in the international community" (Zhao, 2006, p. 63). The Western world has a mixed attitude towards China's image, and in order to change this situation, it is significant to use media communication means to try to change it and promote China which will be beneficial to enhance China's strong national image. The media are inseparable from the dissemination and shaping of national image, so it is necessary for this study to examine China's national image through the media.

2.3 Self-construction

The shaping of a country's image is usually categorized in academia as either self-molding or other-molding, one of which is defined "in terms of whether the country controlling the media is Chinese or foreign" (Liu, 2002). "The state can correct and amplify its image or export its image as it wishes through propaganda and other means. The state's shaping of its own image through its own behavior can be called the self-construction of the state's image" (Zhao, 2006). There are various ways of self-shaping the country's image, and different scholars have different views. Some scholars initially believe that there are three paths for "China's image self-construction": "(i) public media and self-media; (ii) large-scale activities and non-governmental exchanges; (iii) international Chinese language education" (Yu, 2021). Among them, China's use of mass media to construct its national image is an important part of today's international affairs and plays an important role in the self-image of the country. "Overseas media reports about China mainly focus on political, diplomatic and economic issues" (ibid), less about Chinese foreign language education, so the national media can pay attention to the image of Chinese foreign language education in the process of China's image self-shaping. Therefore, this paper selects China's mainstream media, China Daily, and explores how its foreign-language education has contributed to China's self-image building.

2.4 Foreign language education

"Foreign language education is an important part of China's education and will continue to play an important role in China's education blueprint in the context of building a 'Community with a Shared Future of Mankind' and 'the Belt and Road Initiative'" (Wu, 2019). Foreign language education is closely related to the cultivation of national consciousness. "Cultivating national consciousness in foreign language education requires constantly strengthening the awareness and action of establishing the image of national civilization, vigorously promoting the fine traditions of Chinese civilization in international exchanges, and helping the world to understand China comprehensively and correctly through a wide range of publicity and exchange activities" (Wang & Wei, 2022, p. 5) in order to improve national soft power and better shape the national image. One of the main ways of publicizing this is through one of the country's mainstream media, China Daily. "China Daily is the only nationally circulated English-language newspaper in China and is regarded as the most authoritative and credible English-language media in China by readers around the world" (Xu, 2011, p. 47). Alt-hough foreign language education plays an important role in the shaping of national image, there are few studies on this. Some scholars have explored the relationship between foreign language education and national image, but from the aspect of foreign language education to explore China's national image of another shaping (Ruan & Jing, 2022), and this study explores the self-construction of the national image of China Daily from the perspective of foreign language education. In summary, this study employs media framing theory and uses the English-language version of China Daily as a corpus to investigate China's national image. It also examines how the country's image is self-constructed from the per-spective of foreign language instruction, an area that has not been examined by other scholars. Based on the research purpose, two research questions are proposed in this study: 1) What are the frames in China Daily's media coverage of foreign language education? 2) What kind of national images are constructed by the media framing?

3. Methods

To identify the frames and images constructed in the news coverage of China Daily from the perspective of foreign language education, this study is conducted by using qualitative analysis methods and supported by CAQDA (Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis). In order to collect a corpus of articles about foreign language education in China Daily, the LexisNexis database was chosen, which covers a broad range of international news. Then an advanced search was conducted. The searched terms were: (language or education) and "foreign language education" which were highly related to our study. After entering these keywords, 63 pieces of content were found. Further screening was conducted by selecting "high similarity" and "relevance". Additionally, the "Filters" function on this webpage was used, with the "key-word" set as "foreign language education". As a result, 41 reports highly related to foreign language education were obtained, and most of them have a correlation of about 80% with "foreign language education". The time span of these reports is from July 7, 2017, to July 29, 2024, and the total word count of the retrieved reports is 22,982 words.

The obtained corpus was textually processed, and the text was analyzed using a self-established corpus conducted by AntConc (version 4.3.1). Through this software, in a way, the key information can be obtained conducive to solving our research problems. In addition, we also used NVivo 15 for thematic analysis, which helped to reveal the underlying frames of foreign language education in China Daily's news reports. These 41 news articles were used for both manual coding on printed paper and computer coding assisted by NVivo. Two coders with high-level English proficiency independently coded the same corpus to enhance the reliability and validity of the research. Firstly, based on the research objectives and theoretical framework, a preliminary coding framework was designed, with clear definitions and standards for each node. Two coders independently coded the corpus in NVivo to ensure that they were not influenced by each other. After com-pleting the coding, the "Coding Comparison Query" function in NVivo was used to check the consistency of the results, and Cohen's Kappa coefficient was used to evaluate the coding consistency. For the parts with differences, the two coders discussed together analyzed the reasons for the differences, optimized the coding framework, and reached a consensus. If no consensus could be reached, additional coders could be requested to determine the labels (categories), and a unified coding file was ultimately generated. This method reduced subjective bias and ensured the scientificity and credibility of data analysis, providing a solid foundation for subsequent research. Finally, the weighted kappa value of the inter-coder reliability test was 0.81, which was higher than the recognized standard of 0.75.

There are two ways to develop media framing: deductive framing and inductive framing (D'Angelo, 2017). Both ap-proaches have their strengths and weaknesses, and this study used inductive analysis in conjunction with the themes identified by the NVivo analysis to create a framework. This is followed by data analysis and interpretation of the first research question to arrive at the final foreign language image that China Daily wants to construct.

4. Findings and discussions

First, a preliminary analysis was conducted on the self-built corpus using AntConc (version 4.3.1). From Figure 1, it can be observed that the frequently occurring content words in the text include English, education, language, China, foreign, and Chinese, etc. The high frequency of these words is related to the selected corpus. This article aims to study the national image that China Daily intends to shape from the perspective of foreign language education. Therefore, the high frequency of these words indicates that the selected corpus is in line with the research direction. In addition to the above-mentioned high-frequency words, more specific words such as international, students, teachers, university, communication, devel-opment, and country are also among them. Subsequently, NVivo software was used to assist in processing the corpus and conducting thematic analysis. Then, six broad categories of topics were revealed by our data analysis, with "foreign language education in China in the new era" (24) the most frequently appeared topic, followed by "foreign language educators" (21), "cultivation of foreign language talents in China" (19), "exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations" (10), "equity and balanced development in education" (6), and "emerging approaches to foreign language education" (6) (Table 1).

4.1 Research question one: The frames in China Daily's media coverage of foreign language education

The theme of news reports is the soul of news (Jin Miao, Zi Guotianran, & Ji Jiaojiao, 2019, pp. 13-29). Therefore, we analyzed the themes in the news reports to explore the potential news frames. Based on the data analysis procedures described in the previous section, six frames were developed: 1) foreign language education in China in the new era (24), 2) foreign language educators (21), 3) cultivation of foreign language talents in China (19), 4) exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations (10), 5) equity and balanced development in education (6), and 6) emerging ap-proaches to foreign language education (6).

4.1.1 Foreign language education in China in the New Era

As China enters a New Era, foreign language education has taken on the important mission of serving national strategies and international exchanges. China Daily has repeatedly emphasized the significance of foreign language education, which serves as a medium to promote intercultural communication and overall development. In the rapidly evolving era of artificial intelligence, how to modernize foreign language education, especially English education, has been addressed in the newspaper. It mentioned "promoting high-quality development of education", "building a world-class modern Eng-lish education system with Chinese characteristics," "the focus of English education should shift from language ability to whole-person development," and "strengthening dialogue and exchanges in English education between China and the rest of the world." As is shown below.

China will continue to prioritize the development of education, build China's self-reliance and strength in science and technology, and rely on talent to pioneer and propel development, according to the report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC). As a member of the education sector, Dong believed that he should spare no effort to make valuable suggestions for the high-quality development of education.

Attendees of a conference on language teaching have issued a call to build a modern, world-class system of English-language education with Chinese characteristics by merging Chinese and international wisdom and experience, and by embracing current realities and future trends. "English education in China must have a strong identity rooted in China and a vision looking far into the future. English education must be carried out via middle-and long-term plans," Mei Deming, a professor of English and linguistics at Shanghai International Studies University, said.

Modern foreign language education helps China improve its international communication capacity, promote the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, enhance cultural soft power, and provide important support for comprehensive opening up and globalization.

4.1.2 Foreign language educators

As an important force in promoting the development of language education, foreign language educators bear the heavy responsibility of cultivating international talents and promoting cross-cultural communication. The role of foreign lan-guage educators in the new era is more diversified. They are not only the disseminators of language knowledge, but also the builders of cultural bridges, the practitioners of innovative teaching, and the promoters of educational equity. When China Daily talks about educators, it mainly emphasizes three aspects: their responsibility and mission, academic ex-changes among foreign language educators, and the professional quality and quality of educators. Educators shoulder the responsibility and mission of cultivating talents, spreading knowledge, and promoting social progress, and are the key forces for the development of education. Academic exchange among foreign language educators is an important way to promote the modernization of foreign language education. In addition, the professionalism and quality of educators are the core of improving the quality of education. As follows.

Teachers at different levels have the important task of cultivating more talent to realize national rejuvenation, said He, also professor and director of Zhejiang University's Institute of Applied Linguistics.

Despite its scale, Gong, who was the president of the National Association of Foreign Language Education (2001-17) under the Chinese Education Society, said most English-language educators have few chances to interact with their international counterparts and keep updated with the world's leading concepts. "I hope this conference will be the start of more assemblies that introduce international research in language teaching to Chinese teachers, and promote more local research that comes from Chinese teachers."

According to Liu Tingting, an English teacher from Guiyang No 7 Middle School in Guizhou province, the project is committed to providing teachers with richer training and development opportunities, enhancing their educational philos-ophy, and ensuring they can adapt to the needs of current education reform and sustainable development.

Educators fulfill their mission with professional qualities. Academic exchanges enhance their qualities, ultimately promoting the improvement of educational quality and the all-round development of students, and cultivating more interna-tionalized and compound talents for society.

4.1.3 Cultivation of foreign language talents in China

The training of foreign language talents in the new era is closely focused on the national strategic needs and the develop-ment trend of globalization and is committed to improving language ability, cross-cultural communication ability, and comprehensive literacy, so as to cultivate high-level international talents, which has been repeatedly mentioned in China Daily.

As China further opens to the world, young people need good language proficiency to explain China's civilization, views, and solutions to other countries, and foreign language education should be further strengthened, Zhang Lianzhong said, a professor at Beijing Foreign Studies University.

The standards focus on students' ability in everyday practical language, broader communication skills, and the ability to understand cultures in English-speaking nations, according to the ministry.

The goal of foreign language education is not merely to cultivate talented people who master the language. On top of that, we aim to cultivate young people with excellent intercultural communication skills and profound knowledge in a certain field. They must also have the capability of shouldering important tasks in the new era, Jiang Feng said, the Party secretary of SISU.

The training of foreign language talents in the new era aims to create high-quality, international, and interdisciplinary talents, provide intellectual support for China's development on the international stage, and help the country play a greater influence in the process of globalization.

4.1.4 Exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations

Exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations is an important way to promote world peace and develop-ment and promote mutual understanding among peoples. In the new era, China actively advocates equal exchanges and mutual learning among different civilizations and promotes the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. As is shown in China Daily.

As the country enters the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period next year, language educators should continue to pro-mote opening up in the education sector and strengthen international cooperation and communication, experts said at the 2020 Global English Education China Assembly, which adopted the theme "Cooperation and Learning for a Shared Future".

English language education serves as a bridge for China to understand the world and vice versa. China's English edu-cation has always been closely related to the country's development and is an integral part of its national strategy, said Zhou Shuchun, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily. The educators also should strengthen communication and cooperation with their counterparts in other countries and regions as well as international education organizations to introduce the global experience to China and share the country's wisdom and solutions with the world, he added.

Exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations in the new era not only promote friendly cooperation among coun-tries but also improve the global governance system and contribute wisdom and strength to world peace and common development. Respecting diversity and strengthening dialogue and cooperation will become an important driving force for the prosperity of global civilization.

4.1.5 Equity and balanced development in education

Equity and balanced development in education is an important manifestation of social equity and justice and is the key to improving national quality and promoting social harmony. Under the background of the new era, China has continuously promoted education equity, narrowed the education gap between urban and rural areas, regions, and groups, and realized the rational allocation of high-quality education resources.

Liu Tingting, an English teacher from Guiyang No 7 Middle School in Guizhou province, said the Star Project has benefited teachers and students in rural areas over the years. "For students, the project is committed to providing them with higher quality educational resources and learning environments, ensuring that every student has the opportunity to enjoy a more equitable and excellent foreign language education," she said.

Initiated by the Shijiazhuang Foreign Language Education Group, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Basic Education Alliance, which comprises 12 primary and secondary schools in the region, seeks in-depth cooperation and exchange between members to share educational resources.

Lu Ziwen, director of the research center and the survey leader. Lu is an English-language teacher who has also studied pedagogy, the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences and is influenced by learners' psycholog-ical development. "The gap between cities and rural areas is narrowing in many aspects, including housing conditions, income, and medical care. But when it comes to education, especially English-language education, there is still a long way to go," he said.

The equity and balanced development in education is not only related to individual growth but also to the long-term development of the country. Only when more people have access to quality education can social mobility be enhanced and innovative talents emerge, thereby driving the overall progress of the country towards the goal of common prosperity and modern power.

4.1.6 Emerging approaches to foreign language education

Foreign language education in the new era is constantly innovating, leveraging technology and diversified teaching models to enhance learning efficiency and practicality, and promoting language learning to be more intelligent, personalized, and interactive. As mentioned in China Daily, digital technology empowers intelligent learning platforms for foreign language education, the rise of online education and blended learning models, and social and gamified learning to increase learning interest, etc.

"We are coordinating and integrating national and regional teaching resources to guarantee online education for stu-dents nationwide," Chen Baosheng, minister of education, said at a recent news conference. China has about 280 million students ranging from kindergarten to university.

Technology-assisted education has enabled English learners in China across all age groups to access unprecedentedly rich resources, especially opportunities to talk with language teachers who are native speakers "face to face" across screens, according to experts.

Startups such as VIPKID, which connects foreign teachers in North America to Chinese children online, have even evolved into unicorns with valuations of over $1 billion. Their apps have two significant features: they make education accessible, and they make education fun. For example, a child aged 3 or 4 can quickly learn how to use an iPad as if it were a toy, which makes it easier for them to learn English through a tablet.

The emerging approaches to foreign language education are promoting the development of language learning towards intelligence, personalization, and globalization, providing strong support for cultivating high-quality international talents.

In general, the development of foreign language education in China in the new era plays an important role in shaping the national image. China Daily's news reports on education reform, personnel training, civilized exchanges, educational equity, and technological innovation are all conducive to self-constructing China's national image in foreign language education.

4.2 Research question two: China's images constructed in China Daily's media coverage of foreign lan-guage education

Based on the data analysis and interpretation of the first research question, it can be found that China Daily's reports on foreign language education intend to construct the image of China as a country demonstrating an open and inclusive attitude, a country showing self-confidence and self-improvement, a country practicing the concept of fairness and pro-gress, and a country leading the development of scientific and technological innovation.

4.2.1 A country demonstrating an open and inclusive attitude

China Daily has actively shaped China's national image as an open and inclusive country through extensive coverage of foreign language education. Firstly, it actively promotes the national policy on foreign language education, emphasizes the role of foreign language learning in the Belt and Road Initiative, international communication, and global governance, and demonstrates China's attitude toward adapting to globalization. As Macalister and Nation (2019) pointed out, foreign language education policies are closely linked to national development strategies. Secondly, it reports on international academic cooperation and cross-border educational exchanges, showcasing China's active participation in global lan-guage education. Additionally, it promotes multilingual education, reflecting respect for cultural diversity. At the same time, it reports on foreign language competitions and cross-cultural exchanges, encouraging the public to enhance their foreign language proficiency. Deardorff (2020) noted that foreign language education not only improves language skills but also cultivates cross-cultural communication abilities, promoting global cooperation. Through policy promotion, ac-ademic cooperation, language diversity promotion, and cultural exchanges, China Daily presents to the world an image of China respecting multiculturalism and promoting international cooperation.

4.2.2 A country showing self-confidence and self-improvement

Media reports emphasize the importance of foreign language education in national development, scientific and techno-logical innovation, and international communication, demonstrating China's efforts to cultivate international talents and enhance global competitiveness. Foreign language education is regarded as an important support for the Belt and Road Initiative, promoting language communication and cultural exchanges among countries along the route. This not only highlights China's initiative in global governance but also demonstrates its ability to participate in international affairs with confidence. In addition, China Daily focuses on cases where foreign language education is combined with Chinese culture, illustrating China's confidence in promoting its own culture. For example, "'We will integrate core socialist values in English education and teaching, tap the resources of other disciplines and traditional Chinese culture to raise students' pride in their Chinese identity, strengthen their cultural confidence and literacy, foster their moral integrity, and cultivate their fine character,' said the declaration issued at the conference in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, which con-cluded on Sunday." Reporting on the practice of integrating foreign language teaching with Chinese culture reflects Chi-na's ability to confidently disseminate its own culture in the international arena.

4.2.3 A country practicing the concept of fairness and progress

By promoting the popularization of foreign language education, China is committed to providing equal learning

opportunities for all students, especially in the central and western regions and rural areas, and using digital means (such as online education platforms) to deliver high-quality foreign language education resources to areas with relatively scarce education resources, helping more students to gain access to learning opportunities. These initiatives not only reflect China's concept of equity in education but also demonstrate the determination to promote the development of society through technological advancement. Moreover, China's foreign language education policy emphasizes the balanced dis-tribution of educational resources to ensure that students in different regions can enjoy high-quality foreign language education, as mentioned in the report on the Star Project. Liu Tingting, an English teacher from Guiyang No. 7 Middle School in Guizhou province, said, "For students, the project is committed to providing them with higher quality educa-tional resources and learning environments, ensuring that every student has the opportunity to enjoy a more equitable and excellent foreign language education." In addition, through the online education platform, students in remote areas have access to the same foreign language courses and teaching resources as their urban counterparts, thus narrowing the edu-cation gap between urban and rural areas. This use of technology to promote educational equity not only enhances the popularity of foreign language education but also provides students with more opportunities to participate in international exchanges and cooperation.

4.2.4 A country leading the development of scientific and technological innovation

The popularization of foreign language education, especially English language education, has laid an important foundation for China's rise in global science and technology. As China has become an important player in global science and technology innovation, foreign language education has facilitated China's position in the global competition in science and technology by enhancing its nationals' international outlook and transnational communication skills. Foreign lan-guage education not only helps domestic researchers break down language barriers and access the latest international research results but also provides an important language platform for China's cooperation with the global S&T community. Baker (2017) points out that bilingual education plays a key role in facilitating transnational cooperation and cultural exchanges, and that foreign language education helps to enhance the connection of the global network, which in turn promotes multi-disciplinary cooperation and innovation.

English-language education should not be just teaching of the language, but a medium that can foster communication between cultures and promote wholistic development, experts said at the TESOL China Assembly. It was also stated that cross-cultural exchanges and holistic development must be priorities.

By fostering intercultural communication and multilingual competence, foreign language education provides strong support for the country in global innovation competition, further proving its indispensability in China's scientific and technological innovation.

5. Conclusions

This study aims to explore the media frames and national images of China Daily's coverage of foreign language education using qualitative analytical methods supported by CAQDA (computer-assisted qualitative data analysis). Through the demonstration of mainframes of foreign language education in China in the New Era, foreign language educators, culti-vation of foreign language talents in China, exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations, equality and balanced development in education, and emerging approaches to foreign language education, China Daily intends to construct and disseminate the image of China as a country demonstrating an open and inclusive attitude, a country showing self-confidence and self-improvement, a country practicing the concept of fairness and progress, and a country leading the development of scientific and technological innovation.

Although this study endeavors to apply media framing theory to the coverage of foreign language education in China Daily newspapers and to explore the self-constructed national image through the construction of these frames, this study inevitably has its limitations. For example, only one mainstream media outlet in China was selected to explore self-construction from the perspective of foreign language education, but relevant reports from other mainstream media outlets in China were excluded from the analysis. In addition, this thesis only used media framing theory to explore the self-image of the country in terms of foreign language education in the Chinese media, but other theories can also be used to analyze the self-image of the country. These can be used as a starting point for future research to achieve more generalized findings and conclusions.

Funding

This paper is published with financial support from the Project of Philosophy and Social Sciences Planning of Anhui Province (NO. AHSKQ2020D188).

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