by John Toscano

Created on: December 15, 2008

"Trying to determine what is going on in the world by reading newspapers is like trying to tell the time by watching the second hand of a clock", Ben Hecht, US author and dramatist (1893-1964)

In the world of the 21st century, we could further expand the message of this famous quotation to include watching CNN, listening to BBC World or searching for news articles on a thousand websites. News coverage focuses on change, upheaval and the unusual, reporting sensational and exceptional events. In overlooking matters that might be regarded as routine, the news coverage we receive on any part of the world inevitably distorts the perspective and mental picture we build up regions we are otherwise largely ignorant of.

As an example, I recall how a West African friend of mine reacted to television coverage of the appalling floods in New Orleans last year. "My God", he said, "America is finished!" Fortunately it turned out that things weren't quite that bad, but that was the initial response from an educated person. I wasn't in his company when 911 hit the headlines but his reaction, and that of millions of others around the world, might have been about the same. The fact is that reports of an isolated disaster in New Orleans or a terrorist attack, however terrible, can hardly tell us much about life in the country as a whole. In the same way, whilst genocide in Darfur, intimidation of the electorate in Zimbabwe and violence in Kenya are matters of great concern that are rightly and often very well reported, they tell us little about the reality of life for most people in those countries, whilst creating a distorted view of life in most of Africa.

The real heart and soul of any country can be seen through the everyday lives of its people. If you want to know what lies beyond the news coverage of any particular place, the only way to find out is to go and spend some time there. Going as a tourist you will learn something, but unless you make a real effort to get off the beaten track, you won't find out much. Local people all over the world treat tourists in a special way, often putting on a show that bears little relation to real life in their country. People often return from a holiday and make statements about the country they have visited, not realizing that the exceptionally friendly locals they encountered were actually people who make a living by sponging off tourists. I've read articles written by tourists that make me quietly chuckle. They obviously had no idea

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