Project Proposal -- Cooperative Study of Foreign News
and International News Flow in the 1990s
Rationale. The end of the Cold War
demands new maps, both cartographic and conceptual. The many political
and technological changes of the past decade have in their various ways
produced changes that our old maps cannot register. The schema of three
worlds, of developed centers and underdeveloped peripheries have given
way to market globalization and a new world (dis)order.
The international news agenda pre-1989:
Pre-1989, the international geography of news gathering seemed to have
solidified into a pattern structured on cold war rivalries and tensions.
For news gathering through the 1980s, numerous flow studies had shown a
remarkably similar pattern of global news coverage. This pattern meant
that in most major news channels across the regions of the world, there
were the continual newsmakers of the United States and Western Europe,
the "hot spots" of Third World crisis and a comparatively invisible
world of state socialism. The South did not learn much about other regions
of the South. Broadly, because the patterns had been identified, it made
sense to claim that the world of the news was "known."
International news flows were dominated by the "big four"
Western news-gathering agencies. There was an imbalance in news flow with
the Third World receiving far more material about the First World than
vice versa. Such evidence and arguments culminated in the demands for a
NWICO, politicizing debates within UNESCO and the Non-Aligned movement,
and leading to the withdrawal of the United States, United Kingdom, and
Singapore from UNESCO in 1984-1985.
The new(s) environment post-1989:
The world has changed radically, both politically since 1989, and technologically.
New forces of nationalism, new struggles for development and democracy,
new concerns about human rights and the environment all clamor for news
media attention. In a context of such flux and crisis, the questions as
to what the international news agenda both is and should be have become
urgent ones.
While access to media is still radically uneven between the industrialized
North and the South, broadcast signals are available to more and more of
the world's population. News gathering has changed also, with the rapid
distribution of live television news perhaps the key new ingredient in
the global new environment. There are also new corporate and regional players
in international news provision, with CNN, BBC World Service Television
and Reuters among the major global players. The tendency toward global
concentration in the production and distribution of video news footage
might be even more marked than the "big four" domination of wire
service news in the 1970s. There has also been a growth of Southern international
news gathering agencies attempting to provide something of a "contra
flow" to the major western agency news flow. There is also a new tier
of organizational actors -- the regional news exchanges -- which take in
mainly non-regional news feeds from the agencies and distribute them to
their respective national broadcasting organizations.
We need new maps of the emerging global news geography, both in terms
of the major suppliers of news, the geographic and cultural maps that news
coverage represents, and the discourses and images of "otherness"
that define "foreign" news. Indeed, one of the concerns of this
study, in a period of challenge to the sovereignty of the nation-state
is to examine how much news about the "foreign" is actually located
at home.
In the emerging geo-political order, it is not clear where friends and
enemies are to be found, and since international news coverage has often
had a very close connection to the prevailing attitudes toward international
relations, even in societies with the "freest" media, a mediated
news map provides indication of emerging trends in international relations.
It would also show whether the geographic regionalism evident in older
studies is now reinforced, or whether there are new criteria of selection
emerging, using notions of "cultural proximity" such as Islam
for example, that work to construct a cultural, not geographic, map of
relations. With tendencies both toward globalization and toward localization,
it is a pertinent moment to analyze this new, emergent geography of "foreign"
as well as international news.
We need a large-scale baseline research project that could provide a
reasonably complete analysis of the current geography of international
news coverage, at least as presented via mainstream media channels in different
countries. All other established social science disciplines generate regular
baseline data, and international communication in 1994 badly needs a new
baseline study of the geography of international news available in major
national media outlets.
Hence this study of international news provision will include national
systems in ALL regions of the world, will examine both press and broadcast
(television and/or radio) news content, and will provide qualitative analysis
of the news frames and language of "otherness" manifested in
foreign news.
Scope.
This is a voluntary, collaborative effort to produce a large and detailed
portrait of international news and global news flow in the 1990s. It will
build from previous and current work, especially the UNESCO Foreign Images
study, but will not merely replicate any other study. The incentive to
participate will be the promise of rapid access to the full data in return
for a limited contribution and the opportunity to contribute authored chapters
to publications based on the project. At this point, we cannot realistically
anticipate financial support for participants. However, we may be able
to reimburse some out-of-pocket costs, and we continue to seek broader
support.
The project includes three distinct elements. First is a quantitative
analysis of a two-week sample of foreign and international news from mainstream
media of countries throughout the world and from major international news
services in September, 1995. This follows a two-day trial run in May, 1995.
Second is an historical analysis and assessment of changes in international
news production and distribution in each national context, looking at the
changes in media structures and organization.
Third is a qualitative analysis of two specific events, using an informal
sample of texts from various countries as the anchor of a qualitative assessment
and comparison of coverage. The two events will be the 50th anniversary
of the end of World War II in Europe (part of the May two-day trial run)
and coverage of the UN Women's Conference in Beijing in September.
All participants will have immediate access to the full data and are free to analyze and publish as they prefer. They are encouraged to participate in what we anticipate will be two joint publications.
1. A summary of the project, probably with Sreberny-Mohammadi and Stevenson
as editors, will include an overview of the results, method, and short
chapters (10-15 pages in draft) contributed by each participant. Emphasis
will be on changes in the news media environment of each country in the
past 10-15 years, and analysis of the quantitative and qualitative data.
Chapters will be authored by participants. This phase of the project incorporates
quantitative data from national media and the news service "menu/diet"
study and the qualitative assessment of changes in national media from
participants (elements one and two in the paragraphs above).
2. As soon as the composite quantitative and qualitative (text/video)
data sets are compiled, they will be distributed to project participants
for use in wide-ranging exploration and hypothesis testing. At some point
later -- probably a year after the data sets are distributed -- we will
edit a second volume, which emphasizes theory testing and comparative analysis.
We intend to publish this volume with a copy of the data set disk included
for use in seminars and other research settings.
The qualitative analysis of the coverage of the end of World War II
in Europe and of the UN Women's Conference in Beijing will be handled separately.
At a minimum, it will produce a set of conference papers and journal articles,
which may be published in book form.
Two publishers have expressed interest in the project. Participants
will get the chance to author chapters in both books, receive courtesy
copies, and possibly a small honorarium.
Sample.
We assume that each national team will analyze a minimum of three domestic media:
1. The most influential national daily newspaper. Normally this would be a serious daily published in the capital, widely read by government officials and other elites, frequently quoted abroad. It may reflect or oppose government policies or report independently. In the United States, the obvious newspaper would be the New York Times or possibly the Washington Post; in Britain, the newspaper could be the Times, Guardian, Daily Telegraph, or Independent.
2. A second leading newspaper. This could be a popular newspaper with high circulation, an important regional paper, or special-interest paper. This could be the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, or Los Angeles Times. In general, we would exclude large-circulation tabloids because they carry little international news and have little influence; in some cases, however, they may be influential and should be included.
3. The leading newscast. Normally this would be the early-evening or
primetime national TV newscast with the largest audience. In a few countries,
this may be a radio newscast. In Britain, this could be the BBC or Channel
4 early evening news or ITN News at Ten; in the United States, this would
be one of the three commercial TV network early evening newscasts.
As resources permit, the sample should be expanded to other media. Other
influential mainstream newspapers or newscasts could be included, or specialized
services such as cable or satellite, minority-language media, or elite
media with a limited audience. In general, we prefer to focus on media
with political and social influence rather than those with a large audience
but little influence.
Dates to include in the analysis are Sunday, Sept. 3, through Saturday,
Sept. 9, and Sunday, Sept. 17, through Saturday, Sept. 23. The two dates
for comparison of the media "diet" with the news agency "menu"
are Thursday, Sept. 7, and Friday, Sept. 8. However, if for religious or
cultural reasons, media are not available on Friday or research is difficult,
substitute Wednesday, Sept. 6. If the appropriate media do not normally
appear on a sample date because of religious or political traditions, skip
the date. If you fail to capture the sample on the designated day because
of newspaper delivery or VCR failure, use the following day.
Include the entire newspaper or newscast but code only material with
a clear foreign or international element. As noted in the variable Focus
of Story, all stories with foreign datelines would be included, but stories
originating domestically would also be coded if they contained a international
content. Examples of each type from a U.S. perspective:
-1 (Foreign dateline; no involvement of own country) TOKYO -- Japanese officials increased efforts to rebuild Kobe after earthquake.
-2 (Foreign dateline; significant involvement of own country) GENEVA -- U.N. officials said United States forces would play major role in withdrawal of forces from Bosnia.
-3 (Domestic dateline; no involvement of own country) WASHINGTON -- French ambassador to US said EU would continue active role in Bosnia.
-4 (Domestic dateline; significant involvement of own country) WASHINGTON
-- Congress voted to reduce foreign aid.
Stories with only a brief, minor reference to other countries should
not be included. An example would be a story about domestic economics with
a sentence inserted at the end about the exchange rate of the domestic
currency in foreign markets.
Mechanics.
Researchers experienced in content analysis have developed their own
techniques for recording information. We suggest a coding sheet something
like the sample shown below. It can be reproduced with some information,
such as name of country, already in place. The keywords under the column
markers are useful to make sure that each variable is coded in the proper
column(s). They also make it easy to do some of the mechanical coding at
one time and the more complex coding separately.
This is one approach:
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ ...
Country --------- Date ------ Story ID No. ----
This can be reduced so that each story takes up only a single line.
Another approach makes it easy to keep the code sheet and newspaper page
together is this:
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Country --------- Country ---------
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Date ------ Date ------
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Story ID No. ---- Story ID No. ---- ...
One or more variables can be coded in each "column" so that
each story is coded in a single vertical line. You can repeat the columns
and record several stories on a single page.
Begin by checking each story in the paper that will be coded and assign
it a number, starting with 001, for each issue of each paper. The specific
story can be identified later if necessary by examining the MEDIUM, DATE
and STORY ID NUMBER. Mark the ID number on the story itself (get an extra
copy of the papers to submit for the one-day qualitative analysis).
We have no good method for resolving ambiguous coding decisions. The
most trouble will come on variables such as MAIN TOPIC. Analysis of the
trial run data suggests that each national team has arrived at a reasonable
and consistent way of dealing with this problem. We have made some modifications
to the categories of a few variables and rewritten some of the definitions
since the trial run in May. One criterion to ask yourself is whether the
full quantitative representation of each article captures the important
elements of the article. Use of multiple categories such as topics and
countries mentioned avoids the problem of selecting a single topic or country
to represent a complex story.
Hints on coding specific variables:
Name of country. Use the three-digit geographic codes to identify your team. Austria=302; Zimbabwe=552. Save time by writing this information on the coding sheet before you reproduce multiple copies.
Medium. We assume no team will code more
than ten media, including the news agencies. Assign a separate one-digit
code to each medium, using the guidelines on the coding instructions. Make
sure you tell us what each code means so we can include a complete list
in the final data set. This is one variable where the values will be different
for each country, that is, New York Times=1 in the United States, The Independent=1
in Britain, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung=1 in Germany.
Date. Use the calendar date. September 3=03, etc.
Story ID number. Before you begin coding
each issue of the paper, mark the stories to be included and number them
consecutively, beginning each issue of each paper with 001, 002, 003, etc.
If you ever need to identify a specific story with the coded data, you
can use the combination of Medium, Date, and Story ID Number.
Focus of story. This variable acknowledges that "foreign" news can take place at home as well as overseas. It includes two elements -- geographic location of the event and involvement (or lack of it) of your country. Select for coding all stories that take place overseas and those at home with a substantial international element. Omit foreign stories with a minor domestic connection. See example above.
Type of story. This variable separates news from opinion in media that make that distinction. It also distinguishes among several techniques of presenting information. In general, any story that clearly presents the opinion or personal interpretation of the writer will be classified as 2-Editorial/commentary. This includes critical reviews of performances, books, movies, etc. In many papers, editorials and commentary are found on a separate editorial page and often on an "op-ed" page, a second page opposite the editorial page devoted to interpretive columns, readers' letters, etc. Broadcast material should be coded as editorial/commentary if it is presented clearly as personal opinion and understood as such by viewers.
Length. This is admittedly an imprecise variable. In coding, consider emphasis as well as space or time. We have dropped the codes of "long" and "short" in favor of "major" and "minor" because length alone is not always an indicator of importance. Newspaper front pages may have several "major" stories; inside pages, if broken by advertising, usually have only one or two. Typically a "major" story will be featured at the top of the page, will have a multi-column headline, and will be integrated into a display that includes a picture or other graphical devices. In broadcasts, a "major" report will feature a reporter on the scene or, less frequently, a live interview in or from the studio.
A "minor" story, in contrast, is typically incorporated into a column with a general headline of "roundup" or "highlights" or "summary." It may also be a one-paragraph filler at the bottom of a column. It often has no separate headline or at most a general label headline. A minor broadcast story is read in the studio by the anchor/reader with at most a slide or static illustration. It probably runs no more than ten seconds and consists of one or two sentences of script.
"Medium" stories, of course, are in between. Broadcast stories usually include film or videotape but with narration read by the anchor/reader. In print, "medium" stories will have their own headlines and separate display. They may be the only story on a page filled mostly with advertising or a secondary story on a full page. Stories above the fold on the front page of a full-size broadsheet paper are usually "large."
Source. Identifying specific sources of
news is one of the most difficult elements of quantitative analysis because
practices vary dramatically from country to country and from medium to
medium. In some countries, all international stories are routinely attributed
to the national news agency; in others, they are simply attributed to "agencies,"
while in others, stories are attributed to as many as five or six sources.
We allow for coding of up to two separate sources. If more than two are
identified, code the first two.
In general, we have tried to group different sources: 00-09 are general
categories plus your national news agencies; codes 10-19 are the major
global agencies; and so on. The instructions allow you to add additional
sources. Keep two points in mind as you add additional codes: add them
to the appropriate general group, and let us know the definition of each
additional code. In compiling the composite data set, we will reformat
the individual additions into a standard form.
Gender of correspondent. A few problems are likely to arise. One is difficulty telling whether the name is male or female. If you cannot tell, code 0=none/can't tell. Another is the use of multiple bylines. If both (or all) are the same sex, code appropriately; if one male and one female, code 3=both.
Dateline. The dateline is the name of the city from which the news story is reported. In many countries, locally written stories have no dateline, even when they are about events in other countries. Usually the dateline is the same as the most important country, but there are anomalies. These include stories reported from an outside location (HONG KONG--The Chinese government...) and events that take place in a foreign locale (GENEVA--Negotiators for Croatia and Serbia...). If a story has no dateline because it was written locally (interpretive columns, editorials, and some feature stories are examples), use 000=not applicable/none. If the policy of the paper is not to use datelines, code the location when you can determine it. Note that you code the COUNTRY of the dateline, even though the dateline itself is almost always a city. BEIJING=China; LONDON=United Kingdom.
Most important country and other countries mentioned. A dateline must be specific, but many stories are written about groups of countries, regions, or without specific geographic reference. Another problem is that stories sometimes focus equally on more than one country. The geographic code lists (we think) all countries and major regional groupings and organizations. However, we have left space for additions. If two or more countries are represented about equally, look at the headline and dateline to see which should be considered "most important country." If that does not help, code the first country mentioned as the most important and those listed second and third as the appropriate variables.
Main topic and additional topics. These
variables are among the most difficult to code. The categories are admittedly
descriptive, ad hoc, and not derived from theory. The distinctions between
politics and war, between politics and economics, and between any two other
categories are often small and subjective. The key is to read the story
-- especially the headline and lead paragraph -- and to ask yourself: what
is the main thrust of this story? What would the reader get from it if
he or she read only this much? Stories about the same event often emphasize
different aspects; the coding will reflect the difference. Many stories
are surprisingly complex and contain several topics. We allow for up to
three distinct topics. If an unusually long and complex story contains
more than three, code the first three. If you have trouble distinguishing
the main topic from other topics and the headline and lead paragraph fail
to help you, code the first topic mentioned as the main topic and the second
and third topics as additional topics. In the analysis, you can separate
all stories that contain a particular topic regardless of its prominence
in the story.
We have taken some of the broad themes that were mentioned in the original
design -- ethnic identity, gender issues, environment, human rights --
and added them as specific topic categories.
Type of event No. 1. The topics contained
in a news story represent a partial inventory of the elements of a news
story, but when you force inherently different news stories into the same
category, you can have the sense of mixing apples and oranges. Other facets
of the story must be accounted for as well. After trying unsuccessfully
to devise a single variable incorporating some of these diverse facets,
we decided to define a set of rather simple variables. The variables reflect
recommendations of project participants with long experience in content
analysis and long-standing concerns about the style of news presentation.
These variables, together with the topic variables, can be used examine
differences in the construction of the news.
This variable distinguishes between news stories that describe a single,
specific event (1=event) and those that describe a general situation or
long-term process (2=process). Event stories are typically written with
a lead in the form, "Something happened yesterday (or today)."
It answers the questions Who? What? When? Where? Process stories may use
a specific event as a link to a broader description of social, economic,
or political conditions, background, or explanation, or they may be independent
of specific events. In English-language papers, they are often written
in the present tense -- "This is how things ARE" -- while event
stories are usually written in the past tense. They are sometimes described
as "background," "interpretation," "postcard,"
"situationer," "enterprise," or "investigation."
Type of event No. 2. This variable distinguishes between stories that emphasize disruption, conflict, and exceptional events and stores that do not. The old cliché and current complaint is that reporters cover the one plane that crashes, not the hundreds that arrive safely, or, from a Third World perspective, only "coups and earthquakes." The code 1 is used for stories that focus on war, natural disasters, accidents, demonstrations and protest (even when peaceful and legal), crime, violence, and similar kinds of activities and behavior.
Type of event No. 3. This variable addresses the question of how much news consists of routine, recurring events that reflect the normal activities of governments and societies and how much is unpredictable, disruption -- the "coups and earthquakes" syndrome. Routine events are planned and known in advance. They include sports events, stock market activities, elections, news conferences, and government reports. Irregular events are those that cannot be anticipated or planned for.
Type of event No. 4. This fourth variable considers how much news is a product of journalistic initiative and how much is a reaction to activities of others. "Initiated by media" includes investigative reports (or enterprise journalism), some interviews, and some responses or follow-up reports to events initiated by others. The remaining codes distinguish domestic and international government initiatives, private sector, and non-commercial individuals and organizations. We recognize that many stories will not contain explicit information needed by these variables. We suggest a combination of common-sense interpretation and queries of local journalists and editors to see how the specific stories in the sample were constructed or how general practices might be used to interpret elements of the stories in the sample.
Main actor. Some researchers prefer a detailed set of categories that allows a distinction to be made between, for example, a member of a labor union and a business executive or an individual acting as a private citizen and an individual as part of a group. We have chosen a set of more general categories in the interest of efficiency and because data analysis rarely uses these distinctions.
Gender of main actor. Code this like the gender of the reporter.
Specific events. This will allow you to select all stories relating to the Beijing conference for separate analysis. You can also complement the qualitative analysis with quantitative data.
Coding Instructions
Columns
01-03 Name of country. Use geographic codes.
04 Medium. Each team will assign codes to media
-1 Newspaper No. 1
-2 Newspaper No. 2
-3 Newspaper No. 3
-4 Broadcaster No. 1
-5 Broadcaster No. 2
-6 Broadcaster No. 3
-7 News agency No. 1
-8 News agency No. 2
-9 News agency no. 3
05-06 Date. Use calendar date.
07-09 Story ID number
10 Focus of story
-1 Foreign dateline; no involvement of own country
-2 Foreign dateline; significant involvement of own country.
-3 Domestic dateline; no involvement of own country
-4 Domestic dateline; significant involvement of own country.
11 Type of story
-1 News with or without picture
-2 Picture only
-3 Editorial/commentary
-4 Letter
-5 Cartoon
12 Prominence
-1 Major: multi-column headline, picture, prominent display; on-scene correspondent report; studio interview
-2 Medium: separate headline, picture, major but not dominant story on page; anchor (reader) narration of film
-3 Minor: Filler, roundup; read by anchor without film
13-14 Source 1
00-09 General
-00 None; not identified
-01 News agencies, services generally
-02 Own/special correspondent
-03 National news agency (specify)
-04 National news medium (specify)
-05
-06
-07
10-19 Major international sources
-10 Reuters
-11 AFP
-12 AP
-13 UPI
-14 WTN
-15 CNN
-16 BBC
-17 US Network (CBS, ABC, NBC)
-18 ITAR-TASS
-19
20-39 Regional services/exchanges, second-tier agencies
-20 DPA
-21 EFE
-22 ANSA
-23 TANJUG
-24 MENA
-25 PANA
-26 CANA
-27 NYTimes
-28 LATimes/WashPost
-29
40-49 Specialized agencies and services
-40 IPS
-41 PacNews
-42
-43
15-16 Source 2 Code as above
17 Gender of correspondent
-0 None/can't tell
-1 Male
-2 Female
-3 Both (multiple bylines)
18-20 Dateline Code from geographic list attached
21-23 Most important country Code from list
24-26 Second country mentioned Code from list
27-29 Third country mentioned Code from list
30-31 Main topic
-00 None
-01 International politics
-02 International economics/trade
-03 International military/defense/conflict
-04 International aid/development/relief
-05 Domestic politics
-06 Domestic economics
-07 Social services/problems/education
-08 Crime/justice/police
-09 Culture/art/history/performance/review
-10 Sports
-11 Entertainment/personalities
-12 Oddities/animals/human interest
-13 Energy/conservation/environment
-14 Natural disasters/accidents/weather
-15 Civil war/domestic conflict
-16 Religion
-17 Human rights
-18 Globalization/internationalization
-19 Migration/immigration
-20 Gender issues
-21 Ethnic issues/identity/politics/assimilation
-22 Other
-23 History/historical feature
-24 Terrorism/political violence
32-33 Secondary topic No. 1 Code as above
34-35 Secondary topic No. 2 Code as above
36 Type of event No. 1
-0 Can't determine/not applicable
-1 Specific event
-2 Process not tied to specific event
37 Type of event No. 2
-0 Can/t determine/not applicable
-1 Disruptive
-2 Non-disruptive
38 Type of event No. 3
-0 Can't determine/not applicable
-1 Routine/recurring/regular event
-2 Non-routine/non-recurring/irregular event
39 Type of event No. 4
-0 Can/t determine/not applicable
-1 Initiated by media
-2 Initiated by government
-3 Initiated by private sector
-4 Initiated by public, civic organization, individual
40 Main actor
-0 Can't determine/not applicable
-1 State official/"nation"
-2 International organization official
-3 Private sector/business official
-4 Private citizen
-5 Public sector/civic organization/individual
-6 Other medium
41 Gender of main actor
-0 None/can't determine
-1 Male
-2 Female
-3 Both
42 Other actor No. 1. Code as above
43 Gender of other actor No. 1. Code as above
44 Other actor No. 2. Code as above
45 Gender of other actor No. 2. Code as above
46 Specific events
-0 None of the following
-1 End of World War II
-2 UN Women's Conference in Beijing
Geographic Codes
Note several changes and additions here from the May phase. They are out of alphabetical sequence. Some we forgot; others were groupings we did not anticipate.
General
000 Not applicable/none
001 United Nations or UN agency
002 West/North/advanced nations/First World
003 South/Third World/developing nations
004 Socialist nations/Second World
005 GATT/WTO
006 Red Cross or other private international organization
007 (British) Commonwealth
008 Europe
009 "world community" or nations in general
010 Non-Aligned Nations
North America
101 Canada
102 United States
103 Mexico
104 NAFTA
105 Western hemisphere
106 Americas
107
108
Latin America/ South America /Central America/ Caribbean
| 201 Antigua & Barbuda
202 Argentina 203 Bahamas 204 Barbados 205 Belize 206 Bolivia 207 Brazil 208 Chile 209 Colombia 210 Costa Rica 211 Cuba 212 Dominica 213 Dominican Republic 214 Ecuador 215 El Salvador 216 Grenada 217 Guatemala 218 Guyana 219 Haiti 220 Honduras |
221 Jamaica
222 Nicaragua 223 Panama 224 Paraguay 225 Peru 226 St. Kitts-Nevis 227 St. Lucia 228 St. Vincent & Grenadines 229 Surinam 230 Trinidad & Tobago 231 Uruguay 232 Venezuela 233 Caribbean 234 Latin America 235 Central America 236 South America 237 West Indies 238 239 240 |
Western Europe
| 301 Andorra
302 Austria 303 Belgium 304 Cyprus 305 Denmark 306 Finland 307 France 308 Germany 309 Greece 310 Iceland 311 Ireland 312 Italy 313 Liechtenstein 314 Luxembourg 315 Malta 316 Monaco 317 Netherlands |
318 Norway
319 Portugal 320 San Marino 322 Sweden 323 Switzerland 324 Turkey 325 United Kingdom 326 Vatican 327 EU or elements 328 NATO 329 CSCE 330 Spain 331 332 333 334 335 |
|
Central/ Eastern Europe
| 401 Albania
402 Armenia 403 Belarus 404 Bosnia-Herzegovina 405 Bulgaria 406 Croatia 407 Czech Republic 408 Estonia 409 Georgia 410 Hungary 411 Latvia 412 Lithuania 413 Macedonia 414 Moldova 415 Poland |
416 Romania
417 Russia 418 Slovakia 419 Slovenia 420 Ukraine 421 Yugoslavia 422 Warsaw Pact 423 CIS, Soviet Union 424 Eastern Europe 425 Central Europe/"Near Abroad" 426 Serbia 427 Chechnya 428 429 430 |
|
Africa
| 501 Algeria
502 Angola 503 Benin 504 Botswana 505 Burkina Faso 506 Burundi 507 Cameroon 508 Cape Verde 509 Central African Republic 510 Chad 511 Comoros 512 Congo 513 Djibouti 514 Egypt 515 Equatorial Guinea 516 Eritrea 517 Ethiopia 518 Gabon 519 Gambia 520 Ghana 521 Guinea 522 Guinea-Bissau 523 Ivory Coast 524 Kenya 525 Lesotho 526 Liberia 527 Libya 528 Madagascar 529 Malawi 530 Mali 531 Mauritania |
532 Mauritius
533 Morocco 534 Mozambique 535 Namibia 536 Niger 537 Nigeria 538 Rwanda 539 Sao Tome & Principe 540 Senegal 541 Seychelles 542 Sierra Leone 543 Somalia 544 South Africa 545 Sudan 546 Swaziland 547 Tanzania 548 Togo 549 Tunisia 550 Uganda 551 Zaire 552 Zimbabwe 553 OAU or element 554 Anglophone Africa 555 Francophone Africa 556 Maghreb 557 Sahel 558 Portuguese-speaking Africa 559 Zambia 560 Africa, in general 561 562 |
Middle East
| 601 Bahrain
602 Iran 603 Iraq 604 Israel 605 Jordan 606 Kuwait 607 Lebanon 608 Oman 609 Qutar 610 Saudi Arabia |
611 Syria
612 United Arab Emirates 613 Yemen 614 Palestine/Occupied territories 615 Arab League/nations 616 Islamic nations 617 618 619 620 |
|
Asia/Pacific
| 701 Afghanistan
702 Australia 703 Azerbaijan 704 Bangladesh 705 Bhutan 706 Brunei 707 Burma 708 Cambodia 709 China 710 Fiji 711 India 712 Indonesia 713 Japan 714 Kazakhstan 715 Kiribati 716 Kyrgyz Republic 717 Laos 718 Malaysia 719 Maldives 720 Marshall Islands 721 Micronesia 722 Mongolia 723 Nauru 724 Nepal 725 New Zealand 726 North Korea |
727 Pakistan
728 Papua New Guinea 729 Philippines 730 Singapore 731 Solomon Islands 732 South Korea 733 Sri Lanka 734 Taiwan 735 Tajikstan 736 Thailand 737 Tonga 738 Turkmenistan 739 Tuvalu 740 Uzbekistan 741 Vanuatu 742 Vietnam 743 Western Samoa 744 Pacific Rim 745 ASEAN 746 South Pacific 747 Oceania 748 Far East/East Asia 749 Hong Kong 750 Macau 751 752 |
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Add categories as needed, but be sure to tell us what they are when
you submit your data.