political viewpoint as fact
I’m reading the Vietnam page on the U.S. State Department website right now for a class project. It is a starting point for info on Vietnamese history, much like Wikipedia - except that the State Dept has more credibility and no links to outside sources.
Information about the country is presented as just that: information. Fact. Truth.
But I’ve noticed some subtle and a few not-so-subtle statements, word choices, and phrases that are, I believe, more political than factual. I don’t mean political as in conservative/liberal, Democratic/Republican (although I get that feeling a bit), but in a larger, geopolitical sense. It is pro-capitalism, pro-Westernization, pro-globalization.
I hadn’t planned on only reading this site, partly because it is not very detailed and it lacks any discussion of women’s issues, which is vital for this project. (It’s for Global Women’s Health and Human Rights.) But for those who would - those who accept the word of the government without a critical eye or without at least looking at other sources - I wonder how this would affect their overall view of Vietnam and of Vietnam-U.S. relations.
(x-posted to Tumblr)
Information about the country is presented as just that: information. Fact. Truth.
But I’ve noticed some subtle and a few not-so-subtle statements, word choices, and phrases that are, I believe, more political than factual. I don’t mean political as in conservative/liberal, Democratic/Republican (although I get that feeling a bit), but in a larger, geopolitical sense. It is pro-capitalism, pro-Westernization, pro-globalization.
I hadn’t planned on only reading this site, partly because it is not very detailed and it lacks any discussion of women’s issues, which is vital for this project. (It’s for Global Women’s Health and Human Rights.) But for those who would - those who accept the word of the government without a critical eye or without at least looking at other sources - I wonder how this would affect their overall view of Vietnam and of Vietnam-U.S. relations.
(x-posted to Tumblr)