Staying in the "Know"

One thing I was worried about when I came here was that I wasn't going to have any idea what was happening in the United States. Turns out the French kick our butts when it comes to staying informed. I'm pretty sure they had more of an idea what happened in our elections than most Americans--and I can assure you, they are pointing their fingers and laughing about this one. While I've been here, I think I've stayed more "in the know" than I did at home. I think this is largely because of the differences in media.

In the United States, media works as a business: how can we get people to watch our show? How can we sell more papers? What do people want to hear? In my opinion, media here wants to actually inform people. I've also seen the media here used as a form of debate.The news is interactive. This has been made most evident with the recent Wikileaks scandal. I have no idea if NYTimes has the intention of publishing these once secret documents, or if they already have (yes, I am well-informed), but I do know that France has had no problem publishing the documents. As a result, many arguments have been started about how much news is too much news, why someone would steal these documents, was it right, and what happens now? Everyone does agree on one thing: international discussions will probably not be the same anymore. I wonder how many Americans realize this. I wonder if I would realize this if I were only reading American news sources instead of French ones. No question exists that American media ideals are different from that of the French, but after a scandal like this, I have to wonder from where these ideals originate. Do they come from a strictly capitalist standpoint, or do they really think this is too much news to give to the public? As of right now, from where I stand across the ocean, it just seems as if we are one step behind everyone else in the news.

***Sorry for the word vomit I produced over the last couple of days. I hope you forgive me for the incredibly short blog I've written today. :)