Impact of the News Media on World Affairs

Queen Margrethe talked about the "age of communication." She spoke of the tremendous influence the news media has and called the press the "4th Power" in governments. She said that she would like to point out that there is no "5th Power" to keep an eye on the media. She related examples of the Persian Gulf war media coverage. She spoke of the ties between Danish and American people. Many early settlers in the United States are of Danish decent. America's Independence Day is celebrated in Denmark as a show of the close bonds. This event is the largest 4th of July event outside the U.S. Queen Margrethe is the first queen in the ten centuries of Danish monarchy. She was named to the throne in 1972 at age 31, the day after her father died.