Anti-Americanism

Clive Davis has had a number of responses to an excellent article he wrote for Tech Central Station about anti-Americanism in the UK. Here’s an extract from the piece:

There’s no question that media bias plays a major part in skewing public perceptions. The BBC, which once brought us that epic TV series “Alistair Cooke’s America”, seldom misses an opportunity to portray the States as violent, dysfunctional and imperialist. A left-liberal mind-set is de rigueur at Broadcasting House, tarnishing what is still, in many ways, a great institution. In this closed world neocons, not Islamists, are regarded as the great threat to democracy. Unfortunately, even in these days of multi-channel broadcast, the Corporation’s huge resources and its immense cultural reach mean that it still sets the agenda. While the national press is slightly less shrill, pro-American commentators are very much a minority. When the first bouts of hysteria erupted over Guantanamo Bay, it was the Mail on Sunday — regarded as the voice of Middle England — which published some of the shrillest commentary.

And here’s one of the responses.

*I cannot tell you the number of Brits I meet–ALL of whom immediately comment on how little Americans know about Europe and how little they travel here. I know it’s not the same thing as anti-Americanism itself, but it’s a version of it–the tone is always derogatory. I usually respond by asking them where Kansas is and what states border it (proving they know s**t about America)… And then I remark that with only two weeks of annual leave per year (which includes sick leave) most Americans can only dream of traveling, and don’t have the luxury of free time to sit at a cafe and talk to foreigners about American arrogance–they’re too busy working…. I’m unhappy with the mess that is America right now, but Brits do seem to have a special knack for making it personal.

You can find the rest here.