Is your country "Internation" or "National" minded?

MrWhereItsAt · January 15, 2003, 20:36

I hve been in Australia for a summer scholarship for 9 weeks now, and I have noticed something different to living back in New Zealand that puzzles me.

A certain introversion in news and opinions.

Oddly, I noticed this while listening to the Sports Radio here, trying to find out what the cricket score was in the latest one day match between New Zealand and India back home. I certainly wasn't expecting live coverage, but when we got to the sports news, all that was mentioned was a late addition to the Oz cricket team (not playing until the next day) and the Australian Open (the tennis). This deeply surprised me, as at home the news will cover national and international sporting events in at least SOME detail.

Another small detail, but it is in the small details one finds the truth: at home, when referring to Oz, we will say "across the ditch", meaning across the Tasman sea that separates NZ and Oz. Here, there seems to be no equivalent expression, and the impression I get from Australians here is that New Zealand is at about the same level in their minds as it is to Americans or Russians, except that a few more Australaians actually know where New Zealand is.

Granted NZ is a small country of under 4 million people, but it is directly next to Australia, and the two countries share much in heritage and there is much cooperation between both nations in many areas. I am most surprised that the Oz financial news on TV doesn't seem to even mention comparison with the Kiwi dollar!

This is not isolated to NZ either. The Australian newspapers I have seen have a small internationl section, dealing almost exclusively with the war on terrorism and Middle East problems. You would think nothing else happens in the world outside of Australia. The Oz news on TV too shows little beyond these shores.

All of this adds up to what I believe to be a characteristic of certain countries - they are "national" countries, concerned with domestic matters, and foreign matters are considered only when they will cause considerable national ructions. NZ, OTOH, is an "international country", reporting on much that happens overseas, even if it doesn't concern its citizens directly, such as, say, the NBA final or a riot in Nigeria.

Tell me - in your own experience is this really a characteristic of different countries' media and public conscience or is NZ the exception in that it is highly internationally concerned due to our heavy reliance on other countries' economies, and that every other country is as inward-thinking as Australia?

Buck Birdseed · January 15, 2003, 23:31

Of the two countries I live in, Sweden is very International minded and the UK is probably the most introvert place I've ever been to, especially when it comes to culture. There seems to be absolutely no connection with the mainland at all.

MrWhereItsAt · January 15, 2003, 23:48

Traditionally the UK ( I guess more so England) has been anti-Europe (or at least not overly pro-Europe), and I guess this could contribute there.

Is this sort of thing responsible for what an odd bunch Americans are? You get the incredibly friendly world-wise ones and then the absolute dyed-in-the-wool America-is-best fanatics.

Nubclear · January 16, 2003, 00:36

America is internationally minded

Just not in a good way.

alva · January 16, 2003, 02:41

Too international here, but then again, we are the among founding fathers of europe

KrazyHorse · January 16, 2003, 04:46

International, compared to the one place I've seen enough of to compare with.

US news, for example, you can really feel shifting gears when going from a US story to a foreign story...

Asher · January 16, 2003, 04:47

Canada's news must be international, if we focused on national news people might care enough about the ****ed up government to the point of changing their voting patterns...

KrazyHorse · January 16, 2003, 05:00

Canadians are, on average, happier with their lives and much happier with their national situation than the people of any other Western nation, Asher...

http://people-press.org/reports/files/report165.pdf

Asher · January 16, 2003, 05:06

Ignorance is bliss.

KrazyHorse · January 16, 2003, 05:07

Admit it: Canadians like the Welfare State. They like knowing their government is there for them. They like being taxed.

KrazyHorse · January 16, 2003, 05:10

You should live in one of the real parts of the country, not that capitalist preserve we set up so generously. Come on: oil and cattle? You don't believe that that came about naturally, do you? Someone was having a bit of fun. "Let's see how much like Texas we can make it"...

Asher · January 16, 2003, 05:15

My relatives all live in Ontario and Quebec.

I've visited them way too many times to care.

It's awful living in either of those provinces. All ****ed up.

Dauphin · January 16, 2003, 11:17

UK is too introverted. The press doesn't mention anything about Europe unless it affects Britain, and even then its usuallt shown in a negative light.

Bereta_Eder · January 16, 2003, 11:21

Quote:

Originally posted by Sagacious Dolphin
UK is too introverted. The press doesn't mention anything about Europe unless it affects Britain, and even then its usuallt shown in a negative light.

Funny that you should mention that. I was taking a look at the Times front page couple of days ago.

First news item was the Queen's knee.
Second was the pedophile scandal.

And just third on the bottom of the page UN inspections.

Of course it isn't different in other countries, it is just that Times go to all over Europe and if it keeps that up, noone's going to be buying it in a short while.

Dauphin · January 16, 2003, 11:25

The Times main points today (in order):

Blix tells Iraq: "Co-operate or it's war"
New Algerian terror suspect held in Manchester
Maxine Carr faces new Soham charges
Train services cut in punctuality plan
Spain and Italy lose UK 'chocolate' war.

Its not as bad as the tabloids.

Bereta_Eder · January 16, 2003, 11:30

A little bit better today then.

It also has made some grave errours when there was the witch hunt for the taliban and osama leaders in Afganistan.

Front page saying that omar something was captured.
(never happened) and after some days that he was (again

) captured...

Its culture section is interesting though

Clear Skies · January 16, 2003, 12:37

Quote:

Originally posted by Buck Birdseed
Of the two countries I live in, Sweden is very International minded and the UK is probably the most introvert place I've ever been to, especially when it comes to culture. There seems to be absolutely no connection with the mainland at all.

Weather report seen in national newspaper:
Fog in Channel. Continent cut off.

Arrian · January 16, 2003, 14:00

If you want to see a decent international news broadcast here in the States, you have to try to catch BBC, or better yet, ITN. Hell, even CBC.

-Arrian

Dauphin · January 16, 2003, 14:04

Quote:

Originally posted by Arrian
If you want to see a decent international news broadcast here in the States, you have to try to catch BBC, or better yet, ITN. Hell, even CBC.

-Arrian

Can you not get Sky News? BBC here is slanted, and ITN is not my viewing choice. Channel 4 news is good, but its not got a dedicated news channel.

Isn't CBC a childrens' channel?

Solly · January 16, 2003, 14:06

BBC is too liberal.

Bereta_Eder · January 16, 2003, 14:17

BBC is OK unless it deals with matters of "Britain vs others'' where it falls back to the inevitable "national" bias.

if you wanna read some thick bias (and not at all subtle) it's french press dealing with british-uk matters.

Still Le Monde is one of the finest analytical newspapers there is. (not devoided of bias either)

Arrian · January 16, 2003, 14:45

Sag,

No, I don't think I can get Sky. In fact, I can't remember what channel provides the ITN broadcasts... that might have been my parent's cable company, which is different from the one I have.

Besides, I don't get my news from TV. It is usually crap. So I get it elsewhere.

-Arrian

Dauphin · January 16, 2003, 15:10

Quote:

Originally posted by paiktis22
BBC is OK unless it deals with matters of "Britain vs others'' where it falls back to the inevitable "national" bias.

BBC news is a pile of toss. Their reporters can get very opinionated and end up trying to champion a cause. I've said it many times before, but Jeremy Bowen infuriates me.

Ozz · January 16, 2003, 15:52

You want international news forget TV and Radio, go
Shortwave, every country in the World braodcasts SW.

Get the BS straight from the source

Bereta_Eder · January 16, 2003, 15:54

BBC news website, is not a pile of **** unless , as i said, is britain against someone else.

Bereta_Eder · January 16, 2003, 15:55

and even then it struggles to try and be a bit objective

if you want really opinionated burrying of another country read liberation on britain

Bereta_Eder · January 16, 2003, 16:01

then again, im talking about international issues, dont know of course how it handles internal ones

Plan Austral · January 16, 2003, 16:12

Argentina is very national minded, that is probably because we have so many problems that we do not have enough time to care about what happens in foreign countries.

We have a very similar saying when referring to Uruguay (our brother in the region), we say "cruzando el charco" "across the puddle", the River Plate separates us from Uruguay.

Buck Birdseed · January 16, 2003, 16:35

Most annoying show on british TV right now: "What the victorians did for us", a light-hearted look at the scientific and technological advances of the 19th century... except those (ie. about 95% of 'em) that happened outside the Birtish Isles.

Solly · January 16, 2003, 19:14

Quote:

Originally posted by Buck Birdseed
Most annoying show on british TV right now: "What the victorians did for us", a light-hearted look at the scientific and technological advances of the 19th century... except those (ie. about 95% of 'em) that happened outside the Birtish Isles.

What did the Victorians do for us outside the British Isles then?