News CNN reporter thinks Copenhagen is the capital of the Netherlands

[Ivan Seeking]

Missouri and Alabame aren't independent countries. If you expect us to know that, then you should also know the separate provinces of Belgium.

That's like asking if you know the counties in California. The USA is a big country, and many of our States qualify as countries in terms of population and GDP.

For the record, I think Erin Burnett is an idiot and I never watch CNN anymore. But I think many Europeans and other abroad fail to grasp the size of this country. I was once struck by this by a young Israeli man who was sitting next to me on a flight from NY to Portland. He just kept shaking his head and saying this country is too big. What? You didn't know how big the USA is, really?

 

[edward]

I just watch The View. There is nothing better than seeing and hearing five women all talking at the same time.

 

[micromass]

That's like asking if you know the counties in California. The USA is a big country, and many of our States qualify as countries in terms of population and GDP.

They might have the population of an actual country, but they're not an actual country. The USA is the country, not the individual states. So if I want to know all countries in the world and all the capitals, then I don't need to know the capital of Alabama.

Obviously, I understand that individual states are important to you, as an american. But to a foreigner, they're really not more important than the provinces of any other country.

 

[MarneMath]

They might have the population of an actual country, but they're not an actual country. The USA is the country, not the individual states. So if I want to know all countries in the world and all the capitals, then I don't need to know the capital of Alabama.

Obviously, I understand that individual states are important to you, as an american. But to a foreigner, they're really not more important than the provinces of any other country.

Yet, I think that's his point. People tend to focus and know what's locally important to them. I'm sure very few of us can go to Africa and name all their countries and capitals. To an American, it isn't locally important to know that Bucharest is the capital to Romania or where exactly Luxembourg is. That's all just for intellectual gloat. Just as I am sure Europeans can hardly care where Lincoln Nebraska or St Louis Missouri are located, but for someone in the Midwest those are clearly locally more important. I'm nearly positive it takes the same amount of geographical awareness for an American to generally know all 50 states and capital as it takes a European to know the countries and capitals of Europe. I'm sure the intersection of the two groups is much smaller in similar proportionality.

 

[ModusPwnd]

Clearly knowing the names and capitals of European countries is much harder than knowing the name and capital of the US... I am not sure why the comparison is made, but it does get made a lot. Comparing the EU at large to the US is comparing apples to apples. It easy to expect the rest of the world to know and care about one's particular region, but that is just not feasible.

Personally, I don't know the capitals of all the states in the US nor do I know the capitals of all the sovereign states in the EU. I am not bothered in the least.

 

[micromass]

If people want to take the challenge: http://www.jetpunk.com/quizzes/how-many-countries-can-you-name.php

 

[MarneMath]

I took the little challenge. I got every European country except Andorra and San Marino. I missed 30 African Countries. I got all Central and South America and missed Barbuda for North America. I only got 4 Oceania countries and Australia wasn't one of them!

 

[Danger]

You didn't know how big the USA is, really?

A lot smaller than Canada.
The difference is that people who couldn't stand the cold went to your side, and a lot of religious crap stymied birth control, so you have 10 times our population.

 

[Adyssa]

I think it's important to have more than a vague idea of world geography, particularly when it's your job to inform people. Not knowing the capital of the country you are reporting about, and from no less, is basically unforgivable. I've never been out of Australia (and if you want to talk about big countries, we qualify as a one of the biggest, and most remote), and I'm still well aware of the world out there. I don't put much effort into it. I just catch the news here and there and have a passing interest in both history and current events, which is hardly a big ask!

 

[SteamKing]

A lot smaller than Canada.
The difference is that people who couldn't stand the cold went to your side, and a lot of religious crap stymied birth control, so you have 10 times our population.

Area of Canada = 3,854,085 sq. mi.
Area of the U.S. = 3,794,101 sq. mi.

Canada looks a lot bigger because of the distortion due to the Mercator Projection used by most maps.

 

[SteamKing]

I took the little challenge. I got every European country except Andorra and San Marino. I missed 30 African Countries. I got all Central and South America and missed Barbuda for North America. I only got 4 Oceania countries and Australia wasn't one of them!

How could you miss Australia? It's right next to Tasmania.

 

[SteamKing]

I'm confused now.

This clip will clear things up:

 

[SteamKing]

That's pretty weird. The official language of the Netherlands is dutch (although there are many amuzing dialects). Flemish is spoken in Flanders, which is a part of Belgium. Of course, flemish is pretty close to dutch anyway, so officially there is no distinction.
The country that is split up in two parts is Belgium. The north speaks flemish/dutch and the south speaks French. And there's also a German part.

Shhh! The French don't want you to know they are in Belgium. That's why they call themselves Walloons.

 

[Andre]

Let me explain
It's really a lot less complex than the British Commonwealth

 

[Ryan_m_b]

Let me explain
It's really a lot less complex than the British Commonwealth

Beat you to it

Hopefully this will help with the confusion:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eE_IUPInEuc

 

[Danger]

Area of Canada = 3,854,085 sq. mi.
Area of the U.S. = 3,794,101 sq. mi.

Canada looks a lot bigger because of the distortion due to the Mercator Projection used by most maps.

Call me a nit-picker, but I consider 60,000 square miles to be rather significant. That's just slightly larger than the state of Georgia. While it's miniscule as a percentage of total land area, it's still bigger than a lot of countries.

That video is bloody hilarious! Thanks for posting it. (It sure cleared everything up for me... )

Australia is awesome and I'd love to visit if my health and finances ever allow it. I think that I also prefer the wildlife there. Given the option of encountering a wombat or a grizzly whilst out on a picnic, it's a pretty easy choice. (But then again, you have those nasty spiders...)

 

[Andre]

Thanks Dan for pointing out,

Call me a nit-picker, but I consider 60,000 square miles to be rather significant. That's just slightly larger than the state of Georgia. While it's miniscule as a percentage of total land area, it's still bigger than a lot of countries.

True, considering that the Netherlands only comprises of 33,889 square kilometers of land (13,122 square miles)

Now please pick the country with the most inhabitants from this list and estimate the difference to the runner up:

Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Ireland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Czech republic, Hungary, Portugal, Greece.

 

[russ_watters]

Missouri and Alabame aren't independent countries. If you expect us to know that, then you should also know the separate provinces of Belgium.

I'm just going to procrastinate learning the European capitals until the EU ratifies a constitution, thus relieving me of the requirement of learning even the states, much less their capitals.

Nether-what? Isn't that where Michael Jackson lived?!

And apropos:

Btw, I'm Pennsylvania Dutch. Have fun with that...

 

[jobyts]

Nether-what? Isn't that where Michael Jackson lived?!

MJ's home is Neanderthaland.

 

[Cthugha]

Nether-what? Isn't that where Michael Jackson lived?!

MJ's home is Neanderthaland.

Actually, the Neanderthal (or Neandertal) is a region in the western part of Germany, close to Düsseldorf. It is therefore indeed close to the netherlands. Just saying.

 

[Andre]

Actually, the Neanderthal (or Neandertal) is a region in the western part of Germany, close to Düsseldorf. It is therefore indeed close to the netherlands. Just saying.

Poor Germans ... *runs from Godwins Law*

 

[SW VandeCarr]

Nether-what? Isn't that where Michael Jackson lived?!

.

That would be "Neverland". If you told Erin Burnett that the name of the country was "The Neverlands" , she would accept it without a thought. However she might question the statement that Michael Jackson was King of the Neverlands. She would know that Michael Jackson never lived in Copenhagen.

 

[edward]

That would be "Neverland". If you told Erin Burnett that the name of the country was "The Neverlands" , she would accept it without a thought. However she might question the statement that Michael Jackson was King of the Neverlands. She would know that Michael Jackson never lived in Copenhagen.

Just for clarification, the CNN reporter who made the blooper in the OP is Max Foster. He is British, lives in the U.K, and is a foreign correspondent for CNN.

 

[SW VandeCarr]

Just for clarification, the CNN reporter who made the blooper in the OP is Max Foster. He is British, lives in the U.K, and is a foreign correspondent for CNN.

British? Amazing! I apologize to Erin Burnett.

 

[edward]

British? Amazing! I apologize to Erin Burnett.

Actually she may have said something even worse had she been there. Most of the 24 hour news skirts are hired for their appearance. (oh boy am I ever going to hear about that)

Although I used to enjoy watching Burnett and Jim Cramer interact on the early morning financial news.

 

[SW VandeCarr]

Although I used to enjoy watching Burnett and Jim Cramer interact on the early morning financial news.

I like the title of that video clip. Cramer got a little flustered there. BTW who is Canute? I know there was a Dane by that name who ruled England in the early 11th century (also spelled Knut or Cnut). Maybe Max Foster was thinking of Canute the Dane he when misspoke about Copenhagen being the capital of the The Netherlands although I have no idea why.

 

[mfb]

Oh, an interesting thread.

We would hope that Americans read the news and are "global citizens" when realistically, the average populace of other countries are just as ignorant.

Are you sure?

In the case cited by AlephZero, no American employee should be sent to a foreign country without a thorough briefing on the country to which they are going. That is negligence on the part of the employer and stupidity on the part of the employee.

It is telling that this could be necessary.

The English speakers have made it difficult, in the native language it's easy: I live in "Nederland", I am a "Nederlander", and I speak "Nederlands". Couldn't be simper.

I agree, it is the same in German: You live in "[die] Niederlande", you are "Niederländerin" (based on your nick)[/size] and you speak "niederländisch".

As for Americans not understanding Europe, how many Europeans can tell me the capital of Missouri or Alabama without looking it up? Missouri has a higher GDP than some countries, and that's one of our little states in economic terms.

If I would be in that state? Easy. If I would report about something there in the news? ...
Alabama and Missouri have 5-6 million inhabitants each. The Netherlands have 17 and they are a sovereign country.

Here are some countries from Europe with similar population (4-10 millions), their capitals are in the spoiler. Bonus question: how many (US-)americans recognize the name of the country as a country in Europe?
Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia

Spoiler

Minsk, Sarajevo, Zagreb

Now please pick the country with the most inhabitants from this list and estimate the difference to the runner up:

Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Ireland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Czech republic, Hungary, Portugal, Greece.

Nice list ;). It is not a coincidence that the Dutch increase the (dry) size of their country.

 

[SW VandeCarr]

Oh, an interesting thread.

Most of the quoted items have assumed that it was an American who misspoke. As edward pointed out, it was a Brit. While it's true that many Americans are geographically challenged, a false assumption was made here. Now consider that the British CNN reporter was standing in Dam Square (Amsterdam) just across the North Sea from Great Britain. Would the typical American, standing in the heart of Amsterdam to witness the coronation of the new king of The Netherlands, think he or she is in Copenhagen?

I made the same assumption, and thought Erin Burnett was the guilty party, but I apologized (for what it's worth).

 

[mfb]

Would the typical American, standing in the heart of Amsterdam to witness the coronation of the new king of The Netherlands, think he or she is in Copenhagen?

Problably not.
Thinking that you are in a different city is probably a rare mistake, and I would not expect a strong correlation between its frequency and the origin of those who make it.