Feature Article

American Media: An Ethnocentric Education

By Alli Hardwick

Media often act as cultural educators to their audience. The discussion of the strange, unknown, or exotic characteristics of another culture draws in viewers and holds their attention; meanwhile, the media carefully illustrate the other culture’s backwardness in relation to the civilized western world. Researchers Peter Dahlgren and Sumitra Chakrapani explain in their article, “The Third World on TV News: Western Ways of Seeing the ‘Other’,” that three major themes of reporting occur frequently when addressing issues of a third world nation.

Social disorder is the first of the three major themes. To illustrate this issue, Western media draw attention to violence and unrest within the third world country’s culture. The media often attribute the violence to instability and the instability to violence, forming a cycle that is very difficult for an underdeveloped country to escape. Subversion and combat are common topics used to promote the theme of social disorder. These topics point out that while the foreign country may be taking great developmental steps toward modernization, its progress is still threatened by particular hostile groups or individuals. For example, in Mariam Fam and Ola Galal’s Bloomberg Businessweek article, “Libyan Leaders Declare National Liberation from Qaddafi’s Rule,” the journalists explain that although Libya’s corrupt leader, Muammar Qaddafi, was killed, his son promises to keep fighting. They also state that the new government will need to take steps to restore order and unite with the rebels who fought against Qaddafi.

Second, journalists focus on the flawed development of other countries. The media may inform the audiences about reforms or elections taking place that suggest that the nation is attempting to make positive progress, such as the Libyan elections that are expected to occur within the next eight months. However, the focus is often placed on the major barriers to development including corrupt government officials and the violation of human rights.   

Finally, media also highlight the primitivism of third world countries. Citizens are often portrayed as lacking the civilized structure built on Western ideals. As a result, it is implied that the foreign nation is inferior to the Western world. For example, Fam and Galal’s article on Libya mentions the citizens celebrating Qaddafi’s death by displaying his dead body in public and firing guns into the air. The foreign culture is still seen as underdeveloped and must take great strides to catch up to the forward-thinking, proficient western world. The media provides facts, such as Libya’s devastatingly high unemployment rate of 30 percent, to confirm their claims that the foreign nation is far less successful than the United States.

By drawing attention to these major themes, the media teach the audience to view other nations and cultures from an ethnocentric standpoint. By informing audiences about the backward ways of “the other,” the media strengthen the idea that the American way is the right way. Through these stories, the American public is convinced that the “other” needs “us” and that they want to be more like “us,” although these other countries may say otherwise.