Lately I have been following closely the situation in Ukraine in the media. It has as much been a lesson in Eastern-European/European politics as it has been a lesson in media criticism. I am a news junkie and typically when I read news I read newspapers and websites in both English and in my native language. I also read from various web resources as I find it important to get the news from several perspectives. I mostly read BBC, CNN and NBC and Al-Jazeera in English. However, lately I have found that CNN's coverage of the situation is Ukraine has been incredibly bad. It has been vastly historically inaccurate, overly simplified, ignorant of historical and cultural factors at play and very diminishing towards Ukraine. It has been woefully unprofessional and badly done.
There are several things which I would like to make clear about how wrong they are, especially in regards to a certain article - this opinion on CNN - which is absolutely terrible. So settle in because I am about to go politically European on y'all.
1)First of all, Europe is not an unknowable mass or the same country - it is an entire continent with many complicated factors involved.
Europe is not a single mass of countries, it is an entire and vibrant continent of around 50 countries - each of them different from each other and each with their own culture, history, language, geography and feelings towards Europe/EU. There are a lot of cultural and historical factors at play in Europe and European culture. There is an uneasy balance as some countries share more common history and heritage than others, some countries are more at odds with each other and the relationships between countries are different. Each country has a different perception of Europe and what it means to be a European. It is not a simple black/white picture but instead a very complicated one. It is not the benevolent West versus the Evil East. There is no evil Russian/old Soviet Union versus the good EU/EFTA/Any country west of Poland. It is so much more complicated than that. Believe me, I am a staunch European that has lived here my whole life and there are still so many things I am learning.
2)The situation in Ukraine does not in any way threaten the independence of other European countries and certainly not the independence of the USA.
Anyone who gets this idea knows nothing about European politics. To begin with, European countries are masters at being empires and colonizing others - Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Belgium, Portugal and Britain being the biggest culprits. All of these countries have throughout history been independent. In fact, they have all at one point or the other dominated European culture and still do. These are European powers that have never been threatened by Russia (instead they threaten others... ) And, none of them were a part of the Soviet Union. So their independence is not in any way threatened by the situation right now. The same goes for the Nordic countries. Aside from Finland. Some were independent from the beginning and others were under the rule of other Nordic countries but have been independent since the early 20th century. None of the Nordic countries has ever been threatened by the Soviet Union/Russia and it continues to this day. To suggest otherwise is mad.
Russia does not rule the roost in Europe - if anything the European Union does and trust me, they are strong and will not go down. Many countries in Europe have never been under the threat from Russia and that isn't going to change. There are so many factors at play and considering the control and power the EU has, no one dares go against it. So no, in no way is the independence of my own Nordic country threatened by this. Neither is the independence of Portugal, Spain, The Netherlands et cetera.
There are several things which I would like to make clear about how wrong they are, especially in regards to a certain article - this opinion on CNN - which is absolutely terrible. So settle in because I am about to go politically European on y'all.
1)First of all, Europe is not an unknowable mass or the same country - it is an entire continent with many complicated factors involved.
Europe is not a single mass of countries, it is an entire and vibrant continent of around 50 countries - each of them different from each other and each with their own culture, history, language, geography and feelings towards Europe/EU. There are a lot of cultural and historical factors at play in Europe and European culture. There is an uneasy balance as some countries share more common history and heritage than others, some countries are more at odds with each other and the relationships between countries are different. Each country has a different perception of Europe and what it means to be a European. It is not a simple black/white picture but instead a very complicated one. It is not the benevolent West versus the Evil East. There is no evil Russian/old Soviet Union versus the good EU/EFTA/Any country west of Poland. It is so much more complicated than that. Believe me, I am a staunch European that has lived here my whole life and there are still so many things I am learning.
2)The situation in Ukraine does not in any way threaten the independence of other European countries and certainly not the independence of the USA.
Anyone who gets this idea knows nothing about European politics. To begin with, European countries are masters at being empires and colonizing others - Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Belgium, Portugal and Britain being the biggest culprits. All of these countries have throughout history been independent. In fact, they have all at one point or the other dominated European culture and still do. These are European powers that have never been threatened by Russia (instead they threaten others... ) And, none of them were a part of the Soviet Union. So their independence is not in any way threatened by the situation right now. The same goes for the Nordic countries. Aside from Finland. Some were independent from the beginning and others were under the rule of other Nordic countries but have been independent since the early 20th century. None of the Nordic countries has ever been threatened by the Soviet Union/Russia and it continues to this day. To suggest otherwise is mad.
Russia does not rule the roost in Europe - if anything the European Union does and trust me, they are strong and will not go down. Many countries in Europe have never been under the threat from Russia and that isn't going to change. There are so many factors at play and considering the control and power the EU has, no one dares go against it. So no, in no way is the independence of my own Nordic country threatened by this. Neither is the independence of Portugal, Spain, The Netherlands et cetera.
And let's not even begin with the US. Who in the world gets the idea that USA's independence is being threatened? I mean, USA is the most domineering and leading country of power in the world today. There is no possible way that Russia will go against it like the article assumes. Not when USA is the world's leading military power as well.
3)It's about Ukraine and the people's rights for a better future, not about the USA.
I am going to be honest - I am so bugged and annoyed that the author of the article turned it into a simpering article about the USA, how everything is at stake for the USA in this. Therefore, they should care about it, not because Ukrainians are fellow human beings but NO - because it potentially (in some arbitrary and strange sense) harm USA. I mean seriously!
USA has done a lot for Europe - no argument there. As a country is has done a lot for European countries and sacrificed a lot and believe me, we are thankful for it. I mean, really thankful. But the fight in Ukraine right now is not about the USA, it is not about the independence of other European countries - it is about the fight of a nation that has been to hell and back and suffered a lot. It is about people claiming their rights to live in more safety, better economic prosperity and the right to belong to Europe in more ways than geographically. It is about Ukraine, through and through. And let's keep the focus on that.
Having said all this I urge whoever comes across this blog to ignore CNN and their coverage on the topic and instead read BBC. I find it provides by far the best coverage. Read about Ukraine, read about the subject and keep yourself educated. But most importantly, ignore CNN!
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