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A random thought before bed...
We're right up to Murrow in history class, now, and there was mention Monday of the Murrow-McCarthy thingy, which is the central (only) story of "Good Night, And Good Luck", which I just watched a few weeks ago to review. Tomorrow we have a lovely doco on the matter.
I was just reading our textbook chapter on this story, and remembering the scenes from the movie as each episode was mentioned in the book.
When I was in the theater, listening to David Strathairn's wonderful impersonation/interpretation of Murrow, I shivered involuntarily several times, and was brought to tears twice with the heady, breathtaking shock of how relevant the moment was to our modern world. Reading some of those words again had the same effect on me. Granted, Murrow was a sweet talker, almost a poet of his craft, so there's that, but what stirred me wasn't so much the style of his words as the content and context.
Between Murrow and my beloved Molly, I think there's no doubt in my mind now that this profession is in my blood. Well, it is, literally, but more than that. I may yet be crushed by disappointment in the milquetoast suckup fest that modern news media have become, but in a way, seeing how pathetic it is now compared to the brilliance of Murrow and the few brave gladiators still fighting the good fight just energizes me. The movie looks like it's taking off, both with awards and audiences (go see it!!) and I hope that visibility opens a lot of minds and eyes to what journalism can still be, if we have the courage and optimism to make it such.
Journalists are probably the second most-hated profession, right behind lawyers and somewhere on par with politicians, and it's a damned shame. The media itself carries most of the blame because of the degeneration into pulling for ratings instead of dignity, but some of that is also because of skillful manipulation by mostly-Republican politicians over the last few decades, handing the media over to corporate owners who run them for the profit of shareholders, not the information needs of the public. The whole thing is just such a dirty mess, it's no surprise people would rather watch "reality" tv instead of tv about reality.
I want to get involved in changing that. There are surely others like me out there who feel the same. And if there aren't, I'll start my own media--beyond what I've already done. But the other side of things has to happen, too. Obviously, the media need to work harder to earn back public respect, but the public also have to get their heads out of their collective asses and start demanding real news and information again, instead of blowing it all off as if it doesn't matter.
If you don't read your local paper or watch the local tv news regularly, ask yourself why. Is it because those things suck, or is it because you just don't give a shit about what's going on in the world around you? If you're getting your news online or from other independent media, great. But are you getting it from more than one source? Are you looking beyond what bias you're getting from the sources you choose? Do you choose only news that reflects your viewpoint? Do you know who owns the media you choose and what their agendas are? Do you only seek out news about matters of particular personal interest? Do you look into what's happening beyond your doorstep? Do you know the names of your national and state representatives? Did you vote in the last election (that would be today, for many places)?
If you can't answer those questions, or don't want to answer those questions, do me a favor and SHUT THE FUCK UP. If you EVER complain about politics or the way the news is run, and you don't make an effort to get involved on your end of the bargain, kindly fuck off.
Yes, a lot of politicians are corrupt. Yes, a lot of media is infotainment garbage. But that didn't happen entirely on its own. It takes the apathy and shallowness of the public to keep fueling that irrelevance and unethical behavior. I'm not suggesting you paste your eyeballs to the news 24/7 and attend local water board meetings, unless that's really your fetish, but for the love of fuck, do SOMETHING.
I'm going into this profession because I want to go beyond sitting here bellowing platitudes into empty pixels. I want to do something more than voting and paying attention and having fits. I have more blind hubris than a lot of people, so I fancy I can do this without committing mass murder somewhere along the line. Fair enough for those without such arrogance.
But please, I beg you. Do your part on the other end of the paper, the screen, the radio. Listen. Watch. Read. Learn. Know. And put that knowledge into action by the choices you make. I want to give you real, honest news someday. I hope that when I'm ready to, you guys are out there, wanting to hear it.
We're right up to Murrow in history class, now, and there was mention Monday of the Murrow-McCarthy thingy, which is the central (only) story of "Good Night, And Good Luck", which I just watched a few weeks ago to review. Tomorrow we have a lovely doco on the matter.
I was just reading our textbook chapter on this story, and remembering the scenes from the movie as each episode was mentioned in the book.
When I was in the theater, listening to David Strathairn's wonderful impersonation/interpretation of Murrow, I shivered involuntarily several times, and was brought to tears twice with the heady, breathtaking shock of how relevant the moment was to our modern world. Reading some of those words again had the same effect on me. Granted, Murrow was a sweet talker, almost a poet of his craft, so there's that, but what stirred me wasn't so much the style of his words as the content and context.
Between Murrow and my beloved Molly, I think there's no doubt in my mind now that this profession is in my blood. Well, it is, literally, but more than that. I may yet be crushed by disappointment in the milquetoast suckup fest that modern news media have become, but in a way, seeing how pathetic it is now compared to the brilliance of Murrow and the few brave gladiators still fighting the good fight just energizes me. The movie looks like it's taking off, both with awards and audiences (go see it!!) and I hope that visibility opens a lot of minds and eyes to what journalism can still be, if we have the courage and optimism to make it such.
Journalists are probably the second most-hated profession, right behind lawyers and somewhere on par with politicians, and it's a damned shame. The media itself carries most of the blame because of the degeneration into pulling for ratings instead of dignity, but some of that is also because of skillful manipulation by mostly-Republican politicians over the last few decades, handing the media over to corporate owners who run them for the profit of shareholders, not the information needs of the public. The whole thing is just such a dirty mess, it's no surprise people would rather watch "reality" tv instead of tv about reality.
I want to get involved in changing that. There are surely others like me out there who feel the same. And if there aren't, I'll start my own media--beyond what I've already done. But the other side of things has to happen, too. Obviously, the media need to work harder to earn back public respect, but the public also have to get their heads out of their collective asses and start demanding real news and information again, instead of blowing it all off as if it doesn't matter.
If you don't read your local paper or watch the local tv news regularly, ask yourself why. Is it because those things suck, or is it because you just don't give a shit about what's going on in the world around you? If you're getting your news online or from other independent media, great. But are you getting it from more than one source? Are you looking beyond what bias you're getting from the sources you choose? Do you choose only news that reflects your viewpoint? Do you know who owns the media you choose and what their agendas are? Do you only seek out news about matters of particular personal interest? Do you look into what's happening beyond your doorstep? Do you know the names of your national and state representatives? Did you vote in the last election (that would be today, for many places)?
If you can't answer those questions, or don't want to answer those questions, do me a favor and SHUT THE FUCK UP. If you EVER complain about politics or the way the news is run, and you don't make an effort to get involved on your end of the bargain, kindly fuck off.
Yes, a lot of politicians are corrupt. Yes, a lot of media is infotainment garbage. But that didn't happen entirely on its own. It takes the apathy and shallowness of the public to keep fueling that irrelevance and unethical behavior. I'm not suggesting you paste your eyeballs to the news 24/7 and attend local water board meetings, unless that's really your fetish, but for the love of fuck, do SOMETHING.
I'm going into this profession because I want to go beyond sitting here bellowing platitudes into empty pixels. I want to do something more than voting and paying attention and having fits. I have more blind hubris than a lot of people, so I fancy I can do this without committing mass murder somewhere along the line. Fair enough for those without such arrogance.
But please, I beg you. Do your part on the other end of the paper, the screen, the radio. Listen. Watch. Read. Learn. Know. And put that knowledge into action by the choices you make. I want to give you real, honest news someday. I hope that when I'm ready to, you guys are out there, wanting to hear it.
