Wonder if Putin had anything to do with the size of Russia as depicted there? Hmmmmm?

Um, yes? See also maps showing the great circle routes used by airlines.

If you really want a change of perspective, look at it upside down. Having North at the top leads to an unconscious bias that it's the most important hemisphere (along with the way the Mercator exaggerates things the farther they are from the equator).

For years I've preferred the Authagraph projection, which accurately preserves the size of the continents. Most Americans probably still don't realize that Africa is the second biggest continent.

Another excellent reason not to have TV! I reason many articles use distorted maps also BUT when I look at stats I compare population numbers to get an idea of an area. Daily Kos does some good work at sorting out the reality!

I don't need a more distorted view.