British vs. American journalism

Stumbled on an interesting article in the Columbia Journalism Review about American vs. British journalism titled Superiority Complex: Why the Brits think they’re better.

Here's an excerpt:

Having recently surveyed the American landscape, the bbc’s Sambrook is confident that his network’s breadth and depth in international coverage gives it a real competitive edge. He’s hardly the first to point out what’s happened to global news here–namely that the top three broadcast networks (and for that matter many big newspapers and newsweeklies) have shuttered many overseas bureaus and shrunk the hole for international stories. In contrast, the bbc ”decided to go in the other direction,” says Sambrook, and has been bolstering its foreign coverage, with nearly five dozen bureaus around the world.

...

Porter argues that one big reason U.S. readers have flocked to the bbc’s Web sites is that they’re seeking a fresh, non-U.S.-centric take on world events.

The article nailed the reasons why I personally like to read the BBC website, and have been reading the site since the fiasco of a 2000 presidential election and then September 11th. I remember reading all their stories skeptical of the reasons for going to war in Iraq, and at the time finding that skepticism refreshing.