Foreign News Perspectives and Internet Tracking

By Steve Byers

Like many of us, I’m fascinated with the various stories coming out of the death of Osama bin Laden. Unlike most, I suspect, I’m especially fascinated by foreign takes on the story — for example, the death is described as a “hit” and a “slaying” in the Asia Times, terms we’re unlikely to read here. Nor are we going to read much in American media like the column headed “U.S. Spins Web of Self-Deceit,” which ties Osama’s death, oil, banking and governmental lies— both in America and Pakistan — all together.

Similarly, looking at stories in the Pakistani or Indian press is instructive, in that they, too, take radically different slants. I also regularly check stories from media in Australia, Europe (especially Britain and Germany) and other localities as well as Al-Jeezra English (where you can find this excellent column by Richard N. Haasson “Beyond Osama bin Laden,” which sheds much light on the Middle East).

What makes this search fascinating to me is that we now have the abilities to view these media so easily via newslink.org — and in real time. This is the upside of the new media — it can make us better informed.

On a related note — from the dark side of new media, in my view — as I was searching the Indiaworld.com site, suddenly there was a groupon for “The Best Deal in Milwaukee: Save 50% to 90% in Milwaukee” after I would “confirm your city: Milwaukee.”

Frankly, tracking software like this is scary, and the loss of privacy may ultimately kill the promise of the Internet.

Steve Byers is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Journalism at Marquette University’s Diederich College of Communication.

Seven Weeks in Lebanon

By Jim Scotton

Photo Source: Hariri Canadian University website.

I am spending about seven weeks in Lebanon this summer teaching at Hariri Canadian University outside of Beirut. I am trying to orient International Communication course toward the Arab media. I am also doing research on the Middle East media since I have a contract to co-author a book on international communication. I am doing the chapters on the Middle East, Africa and China and the manuscript is due at the end of December.

I should be used to this by now since this is my seventh overseas university teaching assignment in six countries in Africa and Asia. There are 29 students in my class, which is an elective. All the students are majoring in either Engineering or Business. The university is fairly high up in the hills outside Beirut but it still gets hot during the 2-3:30 p.m. class. We have classroom fans, but if you turn them up you cannot hear much of anything.

Hariri Canadian University (HCU) began as a College of Business in 1999 with the help of Canada and the Hariri Foundation.  It now has 1500 students on three campuses. Rafiq Hariri, a former Prime Minister of Lebanon who was assassinated in 2005, wanted to develop a university that would help moderate income Lebanese students get a university education with tuition kept low through scholarships and a cooperative education program.

HCU has some strong Marquette connections. The university President since 2004 is Dr. Abdul-Rahman Arkadan, who was on the MU College of Engineering faculty before taking his new post in Lebanon. The Chair of the Department of Humanities and Languages and my supervisor is Sandra Whitehead. She has an M.A. in Journalism from Marquette and has taught in both the College of Communication and the Professional Studies Program.

Jim Scotton is an Associate Professor in the Department of Journalism at the Diederich College of Communication.