America in 2020 has often seemed like a mess. Home to some of the world’s best doctors and medical institutes, the U.S. also leads the world in cases and deaths from the global COVID-19 pandemic. The country of the civil rights movement has been wracked by protests over racial injustice. And America’s once-vaunted democracy has appeared badly shaken, with the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election being questioned by baseless claims of fraud and the incumbent president, Donald Trump, refusing to concede defeat. The United States now appears hopelessly polarised politically, and its governing institutions largely dysfunctional, as the two main parties jockey for advantage before the next election. But what is the view of America abroad? Foreign observers have largely been watching America in 2020 with disbelief. A panel of foreign correspondents based in the United States during the 2020 election and the coronavirus pandemic will discuss how they view America, what they report back to their home audiences, and whether America’s battered global image can ever be restored.
Moderator:
- Keith Richburg, Director, Journalism and Media Studies Centre, The University of Hong Kong
Panelists:
- Zhaoyin Feng, Correspondent, BBC World Service
- Chris McGreal, Correspondent, The Guardian
- Marc Pitzke, U.S. Correspondent, DER SPIEGEL
- Yan Zhang, Chief Correspondent, Initium Media
