Coverage differences of Vladimir Putin’s image in the media of China, North Korea, Cuba, Vietnam and Laos

As one of the most powerful leaders in the world, there is a constant controversy about Vladimir Putin, brought to a climax by the war in 2022, which, in turn, provided the material for a comparative analysis of the news coverage of Vladimir Putin’s image as well as the strategies adopted when portraying Vladimir Putin’s image in People’s Daily from China, Rodong Sinmun from North Korea, Granma from Cuba, Báo Nhân Dân from Vietnam and Pasaxon from Laos. By calculating QAP correlation of five news network agendas and analyzing intermedia agenda-setting by Granger causality test and refining Vladimir Putin’s image as well as the strategies of each newspaper employed to shape Vladimir Putin’s image, this study found Vladimir Putin’s image was constructed rather positive in most of the five countries and there were also differences in the coverage strategies used by the media in these five countries.