America Seen From Abroad: Arrogant, Nice, Tech-Savvy, Free

The rest of the world may think Americans eat a lot of burgers, have huge shopping malls and are ruled by an arrogant government.

Pictures of the Week

Highlights from the weekly AP photo report, a gallery featuring a mix of front-page photography, the odd image you might have missed and lasting moments our editors think you should see.

AP Monthly Staff Photo Contest

Each month The Associated Press management honors photographers for outstanding coverage while on assignment.

China Conclave Explained

China’s take on parliamentary democracy kicked off its annual session Saturday to address national priorities at a time of slowing economic growth. Unlike legislatures elsewhere, China’s does little in the way of legislating, is carefully stage-managed and allows no foreign leader to address it.

Beijing Issues First Smog Red Alert

Schools closed and rush-hour roads were much quieter than normal as Beijing invoked its first-ever red alert for smog Tuesday, closing many factories and imposing restrictions to keep half the city’s vehicles off the roads.

Daily Life Around the World

AP’s Daily Life series is a visual exploration of imagery from around the globe.

China’s Forgotten WWII Nationalists

Chinese veteran Sun Yibai doesn’t have much time for the Communist Party’s claim to have led China to victory against Japan in World War II.

2015 World Athletic Championships

Beijing hosted the 15th IAAF World Athletic Championships this year, from August 22 – 30, 2015, and it was the largest sporting event to take place at the Beijing National Stadium (“Bird’s Nest”) since the 2008 Summer Olympics.

In Digital World, the Allure of Simple Games

In a simpler time, all a child or an adult needed to enjoy the outdoors was a ball and a stick. Or maybe an old tire tied to a high branch to fashion a swing. And the only instruction given to children was to be home before dark.

Daily Life Roundup

For this week’s installment of AP’s Daily Life series, we feature photography from all over the world: Waiters nap at a table as they wait for customers in Beijing, a couple kiss during the early morning hours in central Athens, and a surfer carries her board while walking along the shore in South Carolina.