What Leftists say about America is only part of it. You are excusing all the constant lies from the state owned/establishment aligned media in Europe. Their lies about America have been constant for at least the last 35 years since I first encountered them and I’m sure that went on long before I showed up.
You are right. The term “ugly American” has been around since the late fifties. The term has been highly promoted by media on both continents since then.(Probably all 7 continents)
I first encountered extreme bias in reporting in the Caribbean in the early 90’s. The news reporting ( by CNN ) was so over the top slanted and distorted as to be unbelievable. I remember thinking at the time that is was no wonder that Americans were hated if that was the only side they ever saw.
The European elite get their talking points from the American elite