Considering its economic and strategic significance for our national interests£¬
the Arabian Peninsula iS not well known to the general public£®Media report¡ª
irig and comment are at best sporadic£®and usually intensify only at moments of
international tension when American interests appear to be in jeopardy£®The
public tends to regard the Arabs and Islam£¬their predominant religion£¬as
backward£¬morally deficient£¬and as t11reatening£¬both economically and
politically£¬to the industrialized democracies£®This perception naturally colors
the popnlar interpretation of news and other discussions of the region£®
The question is not one of deliberately distorted reporting£»our journalists
sent to the area are mostly competent and consciemious£®However£¬since
access to these countries is ditiicult£¬broad and sustained coverage is imprac¡ª
tical£®Editonal conceptions of what constitutes a good news story add a further
element of selectivity£®Understanding the societies of the Arabian Peninsula
requires an intimate acquaintance that relatively few outsiders have the oppor¡ª
tunity or the inclination to acquire£®
Since the days of our founding fathers£¬Americans have assumed that the
principles on which our nation¡¯S political institutions are based are universally
and eternally applicable£®We have become convinced that if our manner of
conducting public affairs were faithfully copied everywhere£¬the common
aspiration of all humanity toward peace£¬material progress£¬justice£¬and civil
liberty wonld be realized throughout the WOrld£®We tend to iudge another
society according to its government¡¯S resemblance to our own£®We overlook
the fact that our nation s principles evolved within a tradition of thought
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