The topic of this interview was what really pulled me in. The way in which the world watches U.S. elections is something I think many Americans are interested in, whether they're defensive or open about it. But it's difficult to bring in four panelists from four regions of the world and have them package the views of millions of people into 100- to 200-word responses. I think the interviewer was careful to present them as four individuals sharing their honest perceptions, but I wonder if there was a way to bring in some statistics or news clippings—something to serve as a backdrop for the discussion. My final criticism is that all the panelists were men, though I don't think that took away from the content. Overall, I thought ... More »

Another excellent interview from the team at the News Hour. While one must accept at the outset the credentials of the representatives of each region, their knowledge and competence to express their perceptions provide a general picture of what is being said about Obama vs McCain. Of course, the review is not an in-depth one (because the breadth of the subject), but it is a valuable overview.

The guests did a good job of characterizing world reaction to the U.S. presidential race, although some statements are low on evidence.

For the limited sources this is a good story and of interest. The USA needs to improve our work with the other nations.

It is of course impossible for one person to speak accurately about responses throughout a major region but this seems a fair minded attempt to present 4 commentators from diverse regions. Host Judy Woodruff does a credible job in keeping the conversation on topic and the comments of all seem reasonable. I think the segment reflects a widespread hope that America will regain its moral focus and resume leadership of the democratic world.

While this is collection of opinion that is generally understood to be highly reflective of the regions represented, it was an awkward interview piece. While US policy and leadership have always been a daily part of the rest fo the world's existence because the global effects of many US policies, there is no mention of the exponential increase in news outlets providing the information about the US nominating contest and Presidential campaign. No mention of how much broadcast and print coverage compared to 2000 and 2004 and if this was simply greater interest or greater marketing of the content. Without derailing the primary collection of opinions, how could one consider they were providing a balanced story about other than ... More »