Every day I read the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) newspaper online. I am always interested in what is going on in Sydney and Australia but I am even more interested on their take on the news in this country. The SMH has excellent coverage of world news with a particular focus on US News. Every day there are several articles about something happening in this country.
Even though I have lived here in the US for 18 years, I still find myself feeling like a foreigner a lot of the time. Often with major political, cultural or business stories I enjoy reading the Australian take because it provides an outsiders perspective.
In this day and age you could live in the US and never really immerse yourself in the culture here. You could read the SMH, watch Australian TV, keep in contact with all your Aussie friends through IM, Facebook and email. But to not also immerse yourself in the US perspective I believe is a mistake. I made a conscious effort to learn about the US when I arrived here. I read TIME magazine, listened to National Public Radio, watched local TV news and read my local newspaper, the Denver Post. I still try and do some of these things every day.
I enjoy living in this country and want to be part of it. Key to doing that, I believe, is understanding what is going on. I have an added benefit because I don’t just get one perspective, I also see how outsiders view what is happening here.
