The USA’s mass media constantly tell us how Americans see the "war on terror." But the same outlets rarely tell us much about how the rest of the world sees it.
Five years after 9/11, the gap between perceptions is enormous. Countless polls confirm the overall chasm. Yet, day to day, the media messages that surround us in the United States simply recycle American views for American viewers, listeners and readers.
But there are exceptions. A recent one aired on "PRI’s The World," a co-production of Public Radio International, WGBH in Boston and the BBC World Service. "We decided to check in with people in different parts of the globe to get their perspectives on the White House’s war on terror," the anchor said on the Sept. 5 broadcast.
And for the next six minutes, the American audience got an earful — from four speakers who were not just expressing their own views. Crucially, they were summing up the dominant outlooks in huge regions of the planet.
Read the full column.