Asia in the Eyes of Europe

Asia in the Eyes of Europe is a research project that examines European public, media, and opinion leaders' perceptions of Asia. The project has evolved from the ongoing ASEF initiative, "The EU through the Eyes of Asia" which examined the perceptions of the EU across Asia and is currently underway in ten Asian ASEM members.

The two-year research project is currently underway in a sample of eight EU member states (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Romania, UK) and will examine perceptions in three key areas:

- Public opinion: Public opinion surveys have been carried out in each location with varying samples from 1,000-2,000 respondents.

- Media analysis: The research will look at three media outlets in each location: a national reputable newspaper with the highest readership, a national popular newspaper, and the most popular TV news broadcast. The research included news from EU-specific media outlets such as Euronews and European Voice.

- Media interviews: The interviews will seek to assess the perceptions of Asia amongst high level European media professionals. The interviews will add to the validity and the scope of the data collected by gauging the perceptions of key figures in reporting the news. The interviewees include editors, reporters and foreign correspondents drawn from various media sectors.

The project offers unique insights into how 'Asia' is framed in European media and the attitudes of European citizens towards 'Asia'. The depth and quality of the data not only offers insights into public diplomacy efforts for policy makers in both regions but provides insights into place branding for private sector entities. The findings of the research will be combined into an overall publication to be released in June 2012.