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Generally, Americans do not pay attention to or are concerned with US foreign affairs. This has been proven over and over again by media and political communication scholars. One way out for this lack of attention is to can argue that the US is so huge with so many events taking place, it is hard enough to know what's going on the country. The US has always had an isolationist background, only broken by the need of the US to become an active world power after WWII.

However, when the US is involved in an war - as is currently case - Americans pay more attention to the area where the conflict is taking place. The clear reason is that Americans know people - relatives, friends, etc. - in harms way and there is a natural human need to know daily information on their status and the status of the conflict. But, there is a fairly direct relationship between the degree of involvement in a conflict and the amount of interest by the American public. For instance, because the US didn't have many boots on the ground in Bosnia and most action took place by air, Americans were not heavily interested in news from the area and US relations with the region.

The true ebb and flow of information on foreign affairs comes from the American media. While, the information environment today is rich, complex, and comprehensive, most Americans do not search out news and information of foreign affairs, even news on, say, Iraq, outside of the major US media sources. Americans that simply read foreign news sources like the BBC, the Economist, El Pais, etc., are in a much better position of understanding US foreign affairs. Understanding US foreign affairs leads to a concern about the correct and incorrect actions taken by the US government.

When major news outlets such as ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and papers like the New York Times, Washington Post, and LA Times, are featuring and setting the agenda with news on foreign affairs, more Americans pay attention. There is a question here of chicken-and-egg. The media cover certain issues and events because there is an audience for it. But, many Americans don't hear news about US foreign affairs unless presented by the media. Generally, the media are the ones setting the agenda, but the economics of the news business must assure that the agenda has an audience.

Although it currently appears that Americans know more about foreign affairs, particularly the Middle East, and are more concerned than even a decade ago, this is mostly an apparition. When the time comes that the US pulls out of Iraq, Americans will become less concerned with the region. Americans know the basics of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, but what is happening on with relations between those countries and the US is still a mystery for most Americans. Given the current ethno-background of Americans, there is decent knowledge and concern over US affairs with the European Union.

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