Abstract

Media focus on STEM higher education and STEM immigration as a form of soft power has brought a new awareness to the foreign policy establishment. STEM education’s prominent role in steering a nation to be dominant in technology, space exploration, military hardware, communication, and the economic sphere highlights its role in geopolitics. Higher education can be a powerful form of soft power. Soft power arises from the positive elements and images of a nation’s culture, political ideals, and policies. STEM higher education can reverse the decline in manufacturing and labor productivity by increasing the number of engineers and technology experts. The United States also needs more STEM immigrants to innovate, create jobs, and improve the health of the education system to stay ahead in the science and technology race. The US won the Cold War in the twentieth century, but in the twenty-first century, a new competitor has emerged in the East and is about to overshadow the US’ dominance in technology, science, and engineering. Keeping that in mind, a question arises: should developed and developing nations prioritize STEM education and STEM immigration in order to be ahead of the nearest competition in a race for technological superiority? The theoretical basis of this article is “media framing,” “agenda setting,” and the concept of soft power. The study utilizes narrative and interpretive analysis of media content, which includes data, statistics, commentaries, and expert analyses from a wide range of sources available on the internet and in the printed version. Findings from this study show that China is slowly but steadily gaining ground in technology and engineering fields and may outpace the US. The US may need to rethink education and immigration policies in the near future.