I would like to point out what I consider a major obstacle to world peace. It is the news. The vast majority of news is bad news of some type as opposed to good news. This is due simply to the very nature of news. Basically, good news isn't news, it's bad news that is news. Bad news is often spectacular in nature, while good news tends to be mundane. Even when good news does come suddenly, it is often the reversal of previous bad news, such as miners being rescued after a mine collapse.
Have you ever noticed that when you read news of foreign countries, you hardly ever read anything good? It is almost all bad. But we should understand that this is what I will term "news distortion". The news informs us of what is happening, but in doing so distorts our view of the world. This is not done purposely but is due to the simple fact that good news isn't news while bad news is news. If all we ever read about a certain foreign country is bad, we will naturally tend to develop a negative concept of that country because of the inevitable news distortion. I am certain that this is a significant barrier to world peace.
History has the same downward slant. Most of history is about wars. The history of human beings is basically a history of warfare. History is just the news of the past and concerns itself with changes in the status quo, which are usually accompanied by warfare. If you read the history of a particular country, a major part of what you read will be about it's wars and if you read today's news in that country, you will most likely read one bad thing after another. Countries usually only look good in the news when compared with other countries where the news is even worse. Clearly, the most fortunate countries are those which are rarely in the world news.
My solution is a monthly publication of which I have been virtually a life-long reader. I find that National Geographic Magazine is an excellent counterbalance to the news. It has plenty of news and history in it but the focus is on daily life and ordinary people and what is important in the world.
It is an American magazine but focuses on the entire world. It has a very broad range of features and gives a very realistic view of the world and beyond. It counters the inevitable news distortion. My belief is that it should be required reading for anyone who deals with the world outside their own country. And I do not work for National Geographic nor did they hire me to promote it.
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