What do you think of the United States of America? Many would agree that this is a loaded question, one that could prompt controversial answers. As an American myself, I was prepared for any response that came my way, both positive and negative. In reality, I expected two responses: hate or love. Whether one loves or hates the United States of America, people seem to always have strong feelings towards the United States. My results fit my expectations. There was not a single respondent who was ambivalent and it was clear whether for better or worse, British citizens have a strong opinion on the United States.
The responses in the video below respond to the question posed above.
Within all forms of media, if you search the United States of America, there are clear positive and negative responses. Below, I have provided different forms of media that demonstrate the clear juxtaposition of the views of the United States.
This picture of the American flag is a symbol of liberty and freedom. When used, an American flag demonstrates the ideals and opportunities of the United States, clearly sending a positive message of the country.
This picture is a convoluted map of the United States. By replacing state names with corporations, the artist of this picture argues against capitalism and the corporate focus of the United States.
This last picture is a positive demonstration of the diversity within the United States. This artist is trying to demonstrate the United States as a place of acceptance and unity.
Check out this tourism video of the United States. This video presents the United States as a welcoming place with rich sights and history and is created to promote a positive image and encourage travel to the United States.
Lastly, this graph is from an article called “How the World Sees America: They Really Love Us” from The Economist. The graph presents international results from the Pew Research Center demonstrating the opinions of the monitoring of different people done by the United States. The results depict the opinion of the majority of people that it is unacceptable for the United States to be monitoring other people, representing a distrust and resentment of the United States.
These examples demonstrate that people utilize all forms of media to make arguments about the United States. Pictures, videos, charts, or even tweets can express opinions that words alone cannot. Through different media sources, people can put their strong opinions on the United States into the public sphere, allowing the information to be accessed by all. Through this immense library of opinions and commentary allowed through different media sources, the United States of America is lauded, castigated, and everything in between.
*Note: All pictures taken from Google.com
Jenna Foti 