Not racism, then.

[jennyaxe]

I was listening to a podcast of a Swedish radio program about reporting. One of the participants was asked how come the news programs spent a lot of time reporting about the storm Gustav and theories on what might happen when it entered the US, and very little time reporting on an actual earthquake in China and an actual flood in India.

The response was that "It's not that we're racist or that we don't care about what happens in India or China - it's simply that what happens in the U.S. is more important."

I cannot properly convey the sound I made on hearing that.

Comments

[hanspersson.livejournal.com]

I heard possibly the same program. One thing that came to me was that this has at least a partial cultural background. Quite a few people here have friends and relatives in the US, but rather few have that in China or India. Not that that rules out the racism argument, but I think it's at least a partial explanation.

[jennyaxe.livejournal.com]

I do understand what you mean - except that I'm not sure that it's true. Among the people you and I know, you're probably right - but there are quite a few people in Sweden who've immigrated from India and China. Are their friends and relatives less important?

And your reason wasn't the one given in the show (Medierna) - the guy who spoke talked about the importance of something that might not even happen in the US versus the unimportance of a lot of people dying elsewhere.

It really really bugs me.

[hanspersson.livejournal.com]

People have moved here from China and India, but I expect them to be in the thousands or so. Don't forget that over a million Swedes moved to the US a little more than a century ago, and I think many of those have kept in contact with those back home (and vice versa).

[also-huey.livejournal.com]

I think there's probably another argument in favor of 'more important': a tsunami hits Indonesia, and a bunch of people die and a bunch more have their houses destroyed. A hurricane hits New Orleans, a bunch of people die and a bunch more have their houses destroyed, and gas prices all over the world go up by twenty cents a gallon, since that's where about a quarter of the US oil refineries are at. One has a global impact in a way that the other doesn't.

Plus, reporters find it a good excuse to visit New Orleans.

Happy birthday :)

[rodluvan.livejournal.com]

Happy birthday to you!
I hope you have a nice day.
:-)
http://www.acc.umu.se/~wschedin/vacation-2008/horse-08-07-14b.jpg