NPR's coverage of Pakistan since 2001

When looking at the coverage NPR has done on Pakistan since 2001, it is difficult to break through the vast amount of stories and information. Over the past few months, NPR has reported heavily on Pakistan. This past week, Senior U.S. and Pakistani officials met to discuss foreign relations. NPR’s coverage was aimed largely at two things; timely reports on how the talks were going, and the effects these talks would have in determining the US relationship with Pakistan. The most recent story, “U.S., Pakistan Seek To Build Trust With Talks” on Morning Edition touched on both of these issues. What is notable is the amount of information NPR provided, with at least a story each day that touched on Pakistan.

    If NPR is reflecting the news media, it seems that there is a huge focus on Pakistan. Looking back on the November Presidential election, it seems that Pakistan was not close to being as much on the news radar as it is today. One story I found very by Talk of the Nation entitled, “Obama Promises ‘New Dawn’ of World Leadership” is an extremely interesting approach to covering Pakistan. In this segment, experts and host Neal Conan, had international listeners call in and answer, “What role do you want the U.S. to play in international issues?” In this hour-long session, there is a discussion about Afghanistan and Iraq but no mention of Pakistan.

This brings me to my first question: Do you think that with middle-eastern conflict, do you think the news media reacts in a timely and efficient manner to get the public interested? 
   
    The stories that did emerge from NPR during Obama’s election were largely centered on whether Obama would “succeed” with international relations. Some articles are entitled, “Status Report” Obama and the Middle East”, “Examining Obama’s Plans for Afghanistan”, “What To Expect From Obama’s Afghanistan Address”. These stories show a news media that is attempting to use Obama as a face for the US, rather than asking, for example, what is the military doing with Pakistan? NPR picked up coverage of Pakistan following Obama's plan to send more troops to Afghanistan.

My following questions stem from this as well:

Do you think that the news media looks too often to official sources to receive information regarding Pakistan?

Do you think the American public has had ample opportunity and information to fully understand the Middle Eastern conflict? How can reporters work to create a more informed public?