"It's a small world" probably ought to be a cliche by now—except for one thing. There is so much poignancy, so much hope, and so much yet to be done to make that phrase fulfill its promise. If our world is small, the scope of our citizenship is large, and the answer to the question "Who is my neighbor?" becomes more important each hour. In this kind of world, mutual understanding isn't just a good idea; it's basic to survival and progress. We have to find out not only what is going on in the rest of the world but what it means—to us, to our fellow citizens, and to our mutual well-being.
That is why Mary Baker Eddy's establishment, more than eighty years ago, of The Christian Science Monitor is so crucial. The potential for professional communications media that are solidly sustained by spiritual vision and healing purpose was recognized by Mrs. Eddy. They can provide a framework for a global peace process and mutual understanding by providing news in a context. This context is one of honest, objective reporting—and of concern for meeting humanity's deepest needs. With the launch this month of The Monitor Channel, a new twenty-four-hour cable service in the U.S., the framework for news gathering, news reporting, and news understanding becomes even more immediate and available.
Cable television, according to observers of trends in electronic media, is fast becoming a powerful force in television's future. Subscribers to cable television networks currently number about fifty-five million U.S. households. One commentator estimates that of the major cable programs currently offered, roughly 5 percent deal in news and news commentary. John H. Hoagland, Jr., chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Monitor Television, Inc., comments that cable television involves "the movement of greater amounts of data in and out of homes, providing far more choice of programming and the promise of interactive systems ... directly into the home, giving people access to the knowledge they need for enlightened citizenship."
