What is the Fascinating America blog?
This website explains various aspects of the United States to international readers. The US is a fascinating place: a large and powerful state, the first modern democracy, and a destination for immigrants and tourists from around the world. Its history is built on the belief that the United States is different from every other country. Shared traditions have been designed to overcome obvious regional differences. Because of its size and complexity, America can seem mysterious and even self-contradictory. This column provides the necessary context and describes, in mainly European terms, how Americans and their leaders think, and how they are influenced by their country’s history, traditions, media and politics.
What makes this blog different from others?
Building upon a 20-year career in magazine journalism, Mike Pilewski writes this blog as a structured magazine column. Fascinating America fills the gaps left by the US media, as it is designed specifically to explain all aspects of life, culture and politics in the United States to readers abroad.
Fascinating America offers:
- context you won’t find in your daily newspaper
- a bicultural perspective
- simpler language for international readers
- background on American perceptions and media
- the benefit of first-hand experience
- a look at the stories behind the stories
- humor where you least expect it
Doesn’t the name “America” refer to a whole continent, not to just one country?
No, not in the English language today. In this column, “America” refers only to the United States, with no disrespect intended to other countries in the Americas.
Who is Mike, and what makes him an expert?
Born in Ohio, raised in Pennsylvania and educated in Arizona, Mike Pilewski is claimed by Midwesterners, Northeasterners and desert nomads as one of their own. In search of the broadest possible perspective, Mike earned degrees in physics and German before doing his graduate work in history and political science. Experience, however, is the best teacher. With one half of his life spent in the United States and the other half in Germany, Mike observes how each country views the other through its own particular filter, and how each country’s media apply their own filter on top of that. It is his persistent hope that readers of the blog will nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize for promoting cross-cultural understanding and generally being a nice guy.
Pilewski’s not an American name, is it?
You mean it’s not an English name. Every name is an American name. The United States is mainly a country of immigrants and their descendants.
Does this column claim to be objective?
Even if that were possible, no. It does, however, make a serious attempt to be fair to people of all political stripes and to criticize politicians of any party who say things that are demonstrably not true.
Is this a language-learning site?
The first 240 Fascinating America columns (February 2009 through March 2015) were written for the language-learning site Spotlight Online. There you will find German translations of difficult English words used. The current site fascinating-america.com includes all of these columns, but does not have the capacity to provide translations. However, an effort will be made to explain new North American expressions as they are used. Readers are also welcome to ask for an explanation of any phrases they find difficult to understand.
This site looks boring! There aren’t any pictures!
Patience, my young Padawan. Everything in good time. The site will be expanded in the coming months.
Are you available to talk to my students / school class / discussion group / TV viewers?
Yes. Feel free to get in touch. Whether the talk is in English or German is up to you to decide.