Image source, Getty Images
- author, Rachel Looker and BBC Monitoring
- role, BBC News, Washington
According to international media, a weak Joe Biden destroyed himself in front of the whole world, while an aggressive Donald Trump lied and mangled words in a reality TV-like presidential debate.
The verdict from pundits around the world on Thursday night’s televised showdown between the two rivals for the White House in Atlanta, Georgia, was harsh.
From Beijing to New Delhi and beyond, critiques of President Biden’s performance at the CNN forum were the most scathing, but his Republican opponent was not spared criticism.
Even before last night’s debate began, Russia’s main evening news program on Thursday speculated that Biden would not survive the debate.
“An hour and a half live broadcast is a mental and physical test of endurance” that Channel One said Biden would “hardly be able to withstand.”
State-run Channel 1 and Russia 1 both reported polls showing around 60% of people expect Biden to be given a stimulant to help him get through the debate.
Afterwards, pro-Russian commentators described Biden’s performance at the debate as lackluster.
Military blog Liver called Biden’s performance a “total failure,” while the Telegram channel of Russia and World Affairs magazine reported that Biden had failed to prove he was “in the right shape” to lead the country and that his performance “seemed to frighten his supporters.”
Russia-1 TV reported on Friday morning that voters were concerned about Biden’s “mental state.”
He also highlighted Trump’s attacks on Biden’s handling of the Ukraine war.
While Chinese cartoons often depict a literal battle between the two candidates, Chinese viewers also enjoyed the debate’s more offbeat aspects, such as the two going off topic and talking about their golfing skills.
Chinese media generally like to convey to their audiences the image of American voters as generally indifferent and dissatisfied with both candidates.
The Global Times reported that both candidates were scrutinized for their “age and physical strength,” and noted that during the election campaign, Trump “frequently made mistakes in his sentences” while Biden “often slipped up.”
Some media outlets have accused Trump of “lying” and Biden of “mumbling.”
China frequently highlights growing divisions in American society and suggests the country could slide into civil war.
The overall message is that both Trump and Biden are “in trouble right now.”
Following last night’s debate, many took to social media to express “concerns about America’s future,” according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
Major Indian media outlets in their coverage of the debate highlighted Biden’s “shaky” performance and Trump’s “aggression”.
The report also said Biden “appeared to struggle and froze at times.”
He added that Trump has become “more aggressive” and has “exploited Biden’s mistakes”, such as in the debate over immigration.
Some media outlets have picked up on Trump’s claim that Biden is “receiving money from China.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has just begun his third term in office, has good relations with both Biden and Trump, so the results of the US presidential election are not expected to bring about major changes in India-US relations.
Israeli media agreed that Biden looked “weak” and speculated about how a Trump victory would affect the ongoing Gaza war.
During the debate, Trump said that if he were president, the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7 would not have taken place.
The media highlighted Trump’s pro-Israel credentials and blamed Biden for weakness: “He’s become like the Palestinians. But they hate him because he’s a very bad Palestinian. Very weak,” Trump said.
Barak Ravid, foreign affairs correspondent for the Walla news site, said Biden was “unfocused” on the conflict.
“His failure to explain the level of his support for Israel allowed Trump to attack him and portray him as someone who was trying to stop Israel from eliminating Hamas,” Rabid said.
“Trump is now seen as the candidate with a near certainty of winning the presidential election, and all actors and powers – from Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Saudi Arabia and even Iran – will now behave in accordance with this assumption,” said Ron Ben-Yishai, a veteran defense analyst at Ynet.
Ben Yishai said some in Israel are “already elated” at the prospect of Trump’s reelection.
Latin American media was glued to the so-called “tense” presidential debate, highlighting the heated exchanges over immigration, the economy, abortion and international politics.
Many media experts in the region believe Trump has succeeded in stoking doubts about Biden’s age by vigorously attacking him on issues sensitive to American voters, such as inflation and immigration.
Foruha added that Biden’s “hesitant and disorganized performance could fundamentally change the electoral scenario.”
Leon Krause, a prominent Mexican journalist, drew a similar conclusion in a post on X, saying Biden “stumbled, lost his train of thought and failed to expose his rival’s lies.”
Meanwhile, Argentina’s La Nacion newspaper reported that “the Democratic president has been unable to dispel doubts about his age and health, causing alarm within his party.”
Colombian daily El Tiempo reported that exchanges between Trump and Biden were characterised by “insults, sarcasm and a paucity of suggestions” and that “neither man seems to have overcome concerns about his age”.
“The debate showed a strong Trump and a weak Biden,” Brazilian daily O Estado de S. Paulo said in an analysis.
“Biden destroyed himself in front of the American people and the world… Biden’s debate performance was horribly poor,” Brazilian analyst Demetrio Magnoli told popular news site G1.
Mexican media, which tends to be wary of calls from U.S. politicians for drastic measures to stem the influx of migrants and illegal drugs, focused its coverage of the debate on the repeated clashes over immigration, much of it focused on Biden’s accusations of failure on border security.
“During the first presidential debate, former President Donald Trump criticized the immigration policies of President Joe Biden’s administration, saying migrants must be deported because they have allegedly committed crimes against Americans,” Mexican daily Reforma told its readers.
Mexican news magazine Proceso highlighted Trump’s comments, claiming that Biden’s immigration policies had “opened the door to criminals, murderers and rapists” and that the United States had become a “rat den.”
Turkish media and social media users criticized Biden’s “poor” performance in the debate, which many said had caused “panic” among Democrats.
“Biden struggled to understand the questions and hesitated as he answered,” Harriet reported, calling the debate a “disaster” for Biden.
Writing on X, scholar Hilmi Voratorogu said Biden’s performance was a growing sign that “a new Trump era is on the way.”
Reports also raised questions about the overall quality of the debate.
“The 90-minute debate was full of gaffes, insults and jeers flew everywhere, Biden stumbled several times and Trump spread a lot of misinformation,” Milliette reported.
“The laundry list of lies and distortions told by both leaders leaves one wondering which one American voters will choose to wreak havoc on the world,” veteran journalist Murat Yetkin said on his YouTube channel.
Many Turkish commentators have long been cool towards Biden’s presidency, accusing him of “hypocrisy” over the Israel-Gaza war and questioning his emphasis on defending the “liberal international order”.