Groundbreaking book by an award winning Dutuch journalist who explores the contradictions in Western media with on-the-ground realities of the Middle East. Told with humor and wit, Luyendijk comments on how the media again and again favor stories that confirm poularly held (and often overly simplified) Western beliefs about the Middle East.

"People Like Us helps explain the geopolitical tragicomedy of the past eight years ... Much of Luyendijk's argument is familiar from the field of media studies. However, what sets People Like Us apart is that it is theory written by a practicing journalist about a profoundly misunderstood region. The book applies beyond the Middle East: in Russia, where journalists trot around Kremlin press conferences as if that was the way to find out what was happening; and in South Africa, where journalists living in white Johannesburg suburbs were stunned by popular support for Jacob Zuma." - Simon Kuper, Financial Times