The Birth of Bangladesh in American Press

The American press, like other world media, followed and observed the day-to-day developments that finally led to the emergence of a new nation 10,000 miles away. The turbulent political events of the 1960s and the 1970s were adequately focused there although the readership on the issue, during that period, was negligible. In those times, the Asians did not crowd the as they do today to show greater interest in the events. Perhaps because of its internationally strategic importance, the situation later emerged crucial and made them immensely interested. On the other hand, migration of more than 10 million people from erstwhile East Pakistan to and their sufferings caught the attention of the American press as it had assumed a volatile humanitarian issue.
It is interesting to note that the small local newspapers of the interior areas of the , with more limited readership, were more interested than others on developments revolving round . The media interpreted the situation from various perspectives.
When compiling various age-old printed materials, the author had to narrate the happenings from his own view, but with an objective mind. Adequate care was taken for maintaining a neutral posture. The author, as I see while reading the compilation, had to take great pains to unearth volumes of rare documents to produce the Books. This, I hope, has given the Books the shape of a historical document.
The job of compiling the age-old materials was indeed a difficult task but it carried a valuable historical responsibility. The author had to leaf through mountains of information that found its way into the American press to produce the Books as it is today. By going through the Books, the readers will get the pulse of the independence struggle without any distortion.
The author deserves thanks for adding the useful chapter of the American press vis-à-vis the freedom struggle to the skinny list of materials on the subject.