The US is peddling lies to the world about the benefits of its system, a damning report has claimed
The US spreads propaganda such as the myth of the “American dream” as part of a “global ideological warfare” campaign, a Chinese think tank has claimed in a report released on Sunday.
The criticism comes amid heightened tensions between the US and China, with both nations frequently exchanging accusations over political systems, global influence, and ideological agendas.
The Xinhua Institute said Washington is promoting a flawed system abroad that fails to deliver results at home. The document focused on what it described as “colonization of the mind” by American soft power.
The “American dream” – the belief that hard work and talent can guarantee a good life, regardless of social class or origin – is one of the illusions the US sells, the report said.
“In this money-centric society, success stories of personal ascent and material abundance are but infinitely exaggerated versions of ‘survivorship bias,’ meaning attention is given only to the few successes while the many failures are ignored. The ‘American dream’ is a sugar-coated cognitive manipulation tool, a glossy packaging for exporting American values,” it stated.
The think tank argued that ideals of freedom and equality have been “eroded by capitalist privilege” in the US, while the American political system functions as “a democracy of money, capital, and the privileged few.” It also said free speech has been undermined by “partisan rivalry and corporate interests.”
The report framed US soft power strategy as a way to reinforce global dominance. It claimed Washington mixes concepts broadly recognized as desirable such as democracy, equality, and human rights with “individualism, egoism, materialism, and hedonism” and presents the result as “universal values.”
The report urged nations to recognize the risks of adopting the American worldview and instead pursue “independence of the mind” to ensure stability and development in an emerging multipolar order.
