The art of the foreign story: Why Americans should care about international issues
The American media is well-acquainted with the foreign story, yet their scope of what that entails is limited. Many countries around the globe don’t get the airtime they desperately need and many Americans wouldn’t be able to tell you what happened during the Nagorno-Karabakh 2020 war, or what human rights violations Palestine is facing. Covering these issues are not only important, they’re valuable to our moral understanding.
In this article, I lay out 4 reasons as to why Americans should care about international issues and what makes them important and relevant to all people.
The pubic learns more about history.
Paying attention to international news helps people understand history in a way that textbooks can’t even explain. Many of the modern disputes between countries have a deep-rooted history. For example, in order to understand the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, when it comes to the Nagorno-Karabakh region, one must understand the historical context of racism against the Armenian population, as well as the role Soviet dictator Vladimir Lenin played in the destruction of the country's borders.
Current global threats are unveiled.
Understanding the issues people face in their own country can be a warning to Americans about what to do in order to preserve their own rights. Seeing the country of Cuba struggle with its communist dictatorship, while human rights activists are being thrown into prisons for speaking out, serves as a reminder for Americans to preserve their own democracy and right to speech with all the power they have.
It holds world leaders accountable.
Journalists have a watch-dog role in our society. They help keep people in power accountable. It’s important for the United States, the most powerful country on earth, to pay attention to the cries of other nations. By covering foreign issues, the American media helps keep all world leaders accountable by revealing what is hidden in the dark.
People understand the importance of human rights more deeply.
Sometimes Americans live in their own bubble, taking for granted the rights they have that other people around the world could only dream of. By seeing what other countries go through, the public will be able to understand the immeasurable value in defending their human rights. In the 1990’s, when the Soviet Union finally collapsed, so much information about concentration camps and human rights violations were finally being exposed to the world. When one realizes the capacity of what humans are capable of, people tend to band together to fight it, ensuring it never happens again.
As a daughter of refugees, I can say that being represented in the media is vital. Not only for my community and I, but for the greater good of mankind.
Author bio: Jane Partizpanyan is a public relations major at California State University, Northridge. She works as a contributing writer to the Daily Sundial and is a published poet. In the future, she hopes to pursue an MA in creative writing.