Will America Change?, By Ziauddin Sardar and Merryl Wyn Davies
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.These authors' previous book was called Why Do People Hate America?, so you get some idea of where they're coming from. Their thesis here is that America has got to change, for all our sakes, but that there are precious few signs of its doing so. They analyse the US media and drama shows to produce evidence of an ideology that is both insular and aggressive; they reveal telling facts such as that in 2006, only six of the 100 staff in the Baghdad Embassy could even speak Arabic.
The authors accuse the US of failing to cultivate a sympathetic understanding of other cultures, yet they don't follow their own prescription. America is always spoken of as a monolith, with no recognition of dissenting voices within. Though the authors can't be blamed for not foretelling Obama's election, they can certainly be blamed for not recognising the face of America he represents.
"Urgent, compelling and provocative", it says on the back of the book. Pious, patronising and one-sided might be nearer the mark.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments