Same disaster, different witnesses: The impact of journalistic cultures on the Chinese and U.S. media’s reporting on the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake

The journalistic witnessing of disasters transcends objective reporting, reflecting specific emotions and perceptions within a certain society. This article examines how journalistic cultures in China and the U.S. shaped media discourses on the Turkey–Syria earthquake. Through multimodal analysis and critical discourse analysis, we find that China Central Television (CCTV), as a propaganda tool, focused on Chinese benefactors amid scenes of suffering, namely the efforts of Chinese rescue teams, thus emphasizing China’s growing presence in humanitarian settings and its international influence and strength. In contrast, Cable News Network’s (CNN’s) coverage, which was informed by the American news culture of objectivity, portrayed the disaster via the suffering of distant others, directly portraying the victims’ pain and featuring studio anchors and experts as detached observers analyzing the disaster’s broader impact. These differences reveal contrasting national approaches to international humanitarianism: the U.S. frames distant suffering within a liberal humanitarian imaginary that emphasizes moral obligation, while China constructs a narrative of benevolent power to legitimize its emerging role in global humanitarianism.