The US ambassador to China on Friday hit out at the American media for their negative coverage of US President Barack Obama's visit to China, saying they had failed to take into account important progress on many issues.

The trip was the top news story in China, drawing strong interest from the Chinese public who, surveys suggested, were largely positive in their view of the US president.

But much of the American media coverage was strongly negative, accusing Obama of failing to gain concessions on crucial issues such as Iran's nuclear program and climate change, as well as being weak on human rights.