PROPAGATION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE “BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE” IN RUSSIAN MAINSTREAM MEDIA

Abstract

The article examines the coverage of the “Belt and Road Initiative” in leading Russian media using quantitative analysis and discourse analysis methods. At the dissemination level, a comprehensive analysis of the overall coverage picture is conducted through statistical research on the number of publications, media characteristics, and dynamics of changes over time. At the perception level, a corpus-oriented approach is applied to study the content of the initiative through word frequency analysis and mutual information, as well as examining the emotional coloring of publications. The research shows that Russian media attention to the initiative demonstrates a general upward trend, reaching a peak in 2023, with the overall tone of coverage being positive but with notable fluctuations. The results obtained have both theoretical significance for the development of media research and practical value for optimizing Russian-Chinese information interaction.