An article in the Norwegian daily Bergens Tidende on July 4 again demonstrated how parts of the European media are struggling to present a non-biased picture of the U.S. presidential election despite their support for Barack Obama. The article sought to analyze the most important battleground states and discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the two main candidates. However, with the headline "Obama's Most Important Battlegrounds" and the assertion that "If Obama is to win, three areas of the U.S. where he has a realistic chance will be vital," the article, perhaps unwittingly, painted a picture of the election from Obama's viewpoint. The three battlegrounds analyzed by the article (Ohio, Florida, and the triangle of New Mexico, Nevada and Colorado) are, of course, just as important to John McCain.
The article also began with an interesting reference to the Fourth of July celebrations: "The Americans today celebrate their constitution: they raise the Star Spangled Banner, wear their flag pins, and grill marshmallows." The predictable caricature aside, the article contains two errors in the same sentence: The Fourth of July holiday, of course, celebrates not the Constitution but the Declaration of Independence, and the Star Spangled Banner is the national anthem, not the flag.
‘Obamas viktigste slag (Obama's Most Important Battlegrounds)’ Bergens Tidende, July 4, 2008
This post was written by Ola Ulmo, Transatlantic Media Network Intern
