From: Lee Corbin (lcorbin@tsoft.com)
Date: Wed Dec 04 2002 - 01:33:37 MST
Jef writes
> Having lived and travel in Japan and Asia for a few years, I found it very
> interesting to read the international newspapers and see a completely
> different set of biases on American news events. Traveling from country to
> country, each newspaper was visibly biased in its own way, and it was almost
> shocking to be able to compare and see from that perspective how the
> American news sources deliver their product in a way that looks very much
> like propaganda to an outsider.
This is quite amazing. (By the way, this candid confession
is not intended to provoke rants from anyone on how parochial
I am, and on how narrow and stupid is my understanding of
everything.) You really mean that every newspaper appeared
to be biased in its own way? You mean *none* of them appeared
to present news in a fashion that did not allow you to draw
conclusions as to the ideological sympathies of the writer?
While one only sometimes finds it in the U.S., one can find
it. In fact, I think that in at least one story on the front
page of a major American newspaper, you cannot tell the
political persuasion of the writer, nor whether he or she
is at all pro- or anti-American.
> This comes across especially strongly when you see what the US mainstream
> papers do *not* print because it would be contrary to, or question,
> "American values" and diminish the enjoyable entertainment value of the
> paper to their US audience.
An example or two, so that I can get the idea?
> Every day I would read serious, well-reasoned criticism of
> US policies in the overseas papers while in the US papers even
> what passes for criticism comes across as the "party line"
> when viewed from outside.
Totally amazing. So you are saying that all the right-wing
rags, all the left-wing socialist (actually communist, let's
face it) rags, and everything from Lyndon LaRouche, Noam
Chomsky, Rush Limbaugh, and Bill Press all have a certain
definable something in common? You're right: it's invisible
to me. What in heck is it? Can you say?
> The other comparison that can be made is the strong sense that many other
> countries clearly consider themselves part of an international community,
> whereas US reporting gives the impression that American events are central
> and international events are peripheral.
Observe how well this fits a point made by Anders in another
thread ("Culture", Mon 11/25/2002 7:58 AM):
If one looks at surveys of cultural dimensions, the US
is clearly more individualistic than European countries,
and there are more complex differences in uncertainty
avoidance and traditionalism.
To take a typical example, American CVs are regarded by
Europeans as boastful, padded and giving an exaggerated
image of the person. While European CVs in the US are
regarded as too humble, giving the impression of mediocrity.
Similarly at scientific conferences, American researchers
usually strongly delineate their conclusions with few
qualifiers, expecting the audience to provide the
balancing criticism, while ***European (especially
Scandinavian) researchers mention all issues and problems,
expecting the audience to give constructive criticism on how
to reach stronger conclusions.***
(Italics added.) Indeed it appears that "community
spirit" is more widespread outside the U.S., and in
more ways than one!
> Every country will naturally emphasize local issues,
> but America is big enough, strong enough, and involved
> enough in world issues that the disparity is glaring.
Don't forget the history: American cultural institutions
developed in relative isolation, and that the American
mind-set is less cosmopolitan isn't too much of a surprise.
> I'm happy to be an American, and proud of my country's
> strengths, but international awareness is one area in
> general where we do need improvement.
Why are you proud? Did you personally contribute to
any of America's strengths, or feel like you did?
But to re-iterate the most important question in another
way: how can it be that in a nation of 290 million
people, with enormous liberties of the press, that any
particular slant taken by some (say Japanese) foreign
newspaper is not mirrored by some point on the political
spectrum within the U.S. itself?
Thanks,
Lee
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