World events continue regardless of whether the public are paying attention or not. Famines spread, economies rise and fall, and political disagreements turn into wars. The public are often the last to know. In this hard-hitting survey, an American journalist explains why the public cannot keep up with world affairs. Vividly illustrated with anecdotes, he argues that while individual reporting is at its peak, the whole news is not delivered to the public. Ruthless, cost-conscious and forever second-guessing the public's appetite for stories, the media substitutes thin coverage for true substance. Including interviews with leading correspondents, this book goes behind the scenes and explores the pack mentality that drives reporters, showing how it distorts what we know about the world. Full of on-the-spot reporting, this is a consumer guide to the news business which reveals how world events are analyzed and packaged.