The Global Journalist: News and Conscience in a World of Conflict - Softcover

Seib University Of Southern California, Philip

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0742511022 ISBN 13: 9780742511026

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2001

Synopsis

In many U.S. news organizations, international coverage is accorded minimal importance. The conventional wisdom seems to be that international reporting costs too much and does too little to win and keep an audience, and thus only sensational or government-highlighted incidents are reported. But does this meet standards of professional responsibility? Philip Seib says no. This provocative book argues that not only do U.S. news media have the duty to cover international events that affect the interests of the public and the government, but they also should 'shake awake the world's conscience' by bringing more attention to international conflict and suffering-in hopes of spurring humanitarian action or intervention to help those in need.

About this title

About the Author

Philip Seib is a professor of Journalism and Public Diplomacy in the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California. He is also a veteran television and newspaper journalist.

Review

Seib spells out economic and political complexities leading to an extreme reduction of foreign coverage by American news bureaus. Case studies present news reporting in Somalia, Bosnia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, East Timor, and Kosovo, providing useful understanding of how coverage (or lack of it) produces political and social consequences and places moral burdens on news organizations. All levels. (CHOICE)

Philip Seib makes a compelling case for the journalistic responsibility to determine foreign news and against corporate profit incentives that deprive the American public and decision makers of contextual reporting about crucial developments and events abroad. Our lack of understanding of the Muslim world before 9/11 is but one example. This book is an ideal choice not only for students of communication and journalism but also for American government courses that explore the role of the media in domestic and foreign policymaking. (Brigitte Nacos, Columbia Univeristy)

Provocatively argues that U.S. media has the duty to 'shake awake the world's conscience' by covering more international stories and highlighting global suffering and conflict. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Phillip Seib's &ltThe Global Journalist> is a clear, concise argument for global journalism as a moral enterprise. . . . A timely work made more so by the events of Sept. 11, should enlighten readers concerned about world affairs..... (The Dallas Morning News)

The book is a must-read for journalists, journalism scholars, policy-makers and anyone interested in the issues of world affairs. Philip Seib knows how to merge the voices of journalists, policy-makers and scholars to give a full report on the current situation and problems in global journalism. (European Journal Of Communication)

Philip Seib's The Global Journalist makes a strong case for the need for more international coverage by the U.S. media. In the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks, we have seen the sad results of the media ignoring important global issues. The American public needs much more, not less, news about the rest of the world. Seib does an excellent job of explaining the global trends in the '90s that led many U.S. media companies to make the shortsighted decision to downplay international news. The Global Journalist presents compelling examples of how major international stories were uncovered or under-covered by the media. The result of this lack of coverage is an uninformed U.S. public that doesn't have the information it needs to respond to a fast-changing world. (John Schidlovsky, director, Pew International Journalism Program)

Phillip Seib's is a clear, concise argument for global journalism as a moral enterprise. . . . A timely work made more so by the events of Sept. 11, should enlighten readers concerned about world affairs. (The Dallas Morning News)

A highly relevant, readable book. The book can appeal as much to a policy decision maker, a journalist, or an academician, as to a lay person. (International Communication Bulletin)

About this edition

• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0742511022
• ISBN 13: 9780742511026
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192