Publishing and broadcast media

• Main national newspapers: There are 1480 daily newspapers, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal
• Television stations: 10 major independent networks, many commercial stations
• Radio stations: 7 major networks, many licensed commercial stations

Mass media as a phenomenon was born in the US. No other society has ever had anything quite like US network TV, or moved so easily into the world of multichannel TV; homes with 50 or more channels are commonplace. The Internet, the most recent in the series of nationwide communication revolutions, is now used regularly by the majority of the population. Newspapers, mostly local rather than national, tend to have very low cover prices, and gain most of their revenue from advertising. They are under increasing threat from cable TV and other outlets. Radio broadcasts remain popular, with outspoken disc jockeys, often expressing views firmly on the right-wing end of the political spectrum.

• Main languages spoken: English, Spanish, Chinese, French, German, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Italian, Korean, Russian, Polish
• Population density: 32/km2 (84/mi2) (Population density low)

The urban/rural population split

Religious persuasion

Ethnic makeup

Population age breakdown

The demographic, economic, and cultural dominance of the white community is firmly entrenched after almost 400 years of settlement. However, the balance of ethnicity is rapidly shifting. An immigration boom peaked in the early 1990s, with many new arrivals from Latin America and Asia. The birthrate is particularly high in the Hispanic community, now the largest single minority in the US. The Census Bureau projects that in the year 2050 almost 25% of the population will be Hispanic, 14% black, and 9% Asians and Pacific islanders.

More than two-thirds of the Hispanic, or Latino, population originated in Mexico, and thousands of Mexicans risk their lives crossing the border every year. Despite its growing size, the Hispanic community still struggles to compete politically and economically with the better established, and more politically sensitive, black population.

Within the black community, their ancestors infamously brought to the New World as slaves, an African–American business leadership class has grown up, but only two black people – media moguls Oprah Winfrey and Robert L. Johnson – make the list of the 400 richest Americans.

The country's original inhabitants, the Native Americans, or Amerindians, were dispossessed in the 19th century and now make up little more than 1% of the population. Some of the worst poverty and deprivation in the US can be found in their reservations.

The separation of state and religion is guaranteed by the constitution, but Christian values dominate. Many evangelical churches, particularly well established in the south, forcefully oppose abortion, the teaching of evolution, and the social acceptance of homosexuality.

• Dates of last and next legislative elections: L. House 2004/2006 U. House 2004/2006
• Head of state: President George W. Bush

The US is a democracy with a federal system of government. Many issues are dealt with by the 50 individual states. Each state sends two senators and a varying number of representatives (according to population size) to Congress.

Profile

US politics is dominated by two main parties. With few major differences between them, the right-wing Republicans and the right-of-center Democrats regularly trade position in control of the White House and Congress. Presidential elections are based largely on personalities, with televised debates, inaugurated in the 1960s, playing a significant role. Election campaigns are lengthy and increasingly expensive affairs; Republican candidates are traditionally better funded.

Republican George W. Bush won the presidency in 2000. His predecessors, whether Democrat or Republican, had struggled to get major initiatives enacted by a hostile Congress, but in midterm elections in 2002 Republicans gained firm control of the House and the Senate, giving Bush a complete congressional majority, which he retained in 2004.

Main Political Issues

The prestige of the presidency

George W. Bush faced questions of legitimacy even before he took the oath of office in January 2001. The contentious manner of his election (with fewer actual votes than his rival Al Gore), concern over voting procedures in Florida, his "big business" affiliation, and controversial policies (notably on energy), were added to a string of verbal gaffes and an lack of current affairs knowledge to divide popular opinion. He gained overwhelming popular support, however, when a wave of patriotic emotion generated by the al-Qaida attacks on New York and Washington D.C. on September 11 rallied the nation behind him and his declaration of a "war on terrorism."

By the end of his four-year term, Bush's popularity had been battered again, this time by the quagmire of Iraqi occupation, the debate over the reliability of the intelligence that had suggested the existence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and revelations of controversial personal ties to the Enron financial scandal. His administration was struggling with a record deficit, which peaked at $300 billion in 2003. The most potentially damaging moment in 2004 was the publication of the 9/11 Commission's report, which cast doubt on the government's assertion of a link between al-Qaida and Iraq, discrediting the invasion's justification; some left-wing critics were openly calling Bush corrupt.

Nonetheless, with security dominating the agenda of heartland America, Bush was able to capitalize on his war-president image to beat off a serious challenge from Democrat John Kerry to win the 2004 presidential election.

The limits of government

The US has a strong tradition of resisting the extension of government powers. The vigorous defense of constitutional liberties and the rights of citizens, such as freedom of speech or the right to bear arms, is sometimes taken to lengths which appear extreme to other societies. States resist the arrogation of powers by the federal authorities. In areas such as health care and education, conservatives oppose as interference what others see as the proper concern of government with social welfare. "Big government" is also denounced in the economic sphere. Opponents of environmental controls, for example, portray them as an obstruction of free enterprise and wealth creation. Under Bush, social issues such as homosexual unions have taken on a particularly high-profile role in the battle between federal and state control.

Energy and the environment

Bush advocated some controversial energy policies in 2001, amid a pressing crisis over electricity shortages in California. Conservation activists were appalled by plans to allow further oil exploration in Alaska, and the Senate excised funding for the search from the 2004 budget. The expansion of nuclear power was also revived under the energy plan, while the US chose to repudiate the international Kyoto agreement on cutting carbon dioxide emissions, suggesting it could harm the economy. To offset criticism, Bush has earmarked $1.2 billion for research into hydrogen fuel cells.

Welfare

The provision of state support to the unemployed, poor families, college students, and the elderly provides a rare ideological divide between the main parties. The Republican Party favors cuts and the intervention of private groups (particularly "faith-based" charities) while Democrats call for a repeal of recent tax cuts in order to bankroll a broader funding program. Reform of the system is held back by strong state control, but remains a key issue in political campaigning.