Letters to the Editor
Nequals1
Published Letters: 332 Editor's Choice: 7
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@ JohnPM
[Read the article: The role of political reporters]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]May I suggest Triggerstreet.com for screenplay assistance and support? (Founded by Kevin Spacey, it's a well-regarded peer-reviewed stie for screenplay and film production.)
Your Chi Tribune example is disappointing, but not surprising.
Way back in the mid 1970's I took a TV and Radio news writing course presented by a local weathercaster, who I believe, was the real-life protagonist for the cartoon strip, John Darling.
Our mission was always to write for a then C average high school sophomore. That was the targeted level of education and understanding in the greater Cleveland TV market at that time. Needless to say, the reporting was nigh unto useless, and the "if it bleeds it leads, and if it thinks, it stinks" mantra was learned early on - as in the first week during the introductory principles of newscasting lecture.
That television news reporting is abbreviated to sound bites with superimposed visuals makes it a marketing message to the exclusion of news reporting, which if done accurately and fairly, would include the presentation of nuance, of multivariate views and analyses and would most definitely include accurate context and background information.
The blogosphere is made up of people who each bring different filters to the news. Those filters consist of content experts on the micro and macro levels, academics, innovators, those who "live" the particular story under scrutiny, others who bring philosophical argument and critique, and so on. We serve as an aggregate filter and editor, and we get it much more accurately and comprehensively more of the time than any traditional media source, in my humble view.
However, we (the blogosphere) lack the funding for investigative reporters, for a newsroom, and for the ability to develop sources (access), for the transportation and expenses of the staff, equipment and costs of doing business as an investigative news organization.
So until the philanthropists sponsor enough bloggers and blog organizations to make a significant impact, it's the volunteer populist work that we are doing which is bringing radical transformation to traditional news reporting.
Perhaps our next iteration will be that of persuading philanthropic organizations and agents to begin to support our work in order to bring power back to the individuals and divest it from the corporations and organized power brokers.
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Re: USN and Iranian Water Tussle
[Read the article: The role of political reporters]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I have the distinct impression that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs is committed to not antagonizing Iran. In fact, every retired military leader who is now on the speaking circuit is making veiled references to the US Navy being the sole barrier shielding the US from the Bush/Cheney mania to attack Iran pre-emptively.
I think that until the facts are in (and lord knows we'll never get tham all), the best guess is along the lines of the US ships having difficulty in maneuvering in the tight space with nebulous Int'l water definitions, and in response, the Iranians decided to do some limit testing and some military might PR.
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@ ondelette
[Read the article: The role of political reporters]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Please continue being you in they way you find best. We benefit from your insights and humor. It's our loss if one or more of us doesn't "get" you.
As to your points about the news positioning and coverage, please also note that we have been inculcated, encouraged and rewarded for being passive consumers of whatever is thrust at us via print, radio and teevee marketing. Especially in the NCLB era, students are rewarded for learning to take tests of multiple choice questions - there is ALWAYS a single "best" answer. There is no cultural demand to learn about, understand and respond to nuance, to ambiguity and to multiple acceptable alternatives. We live in a binary culture: on/off, right/wrong, good/evil, tune in/tune out, either/or. The notion that issues should be presented in anything other than dichotomy is foreign to a large majority in the US.
Add to that, the traditional media penchant for "breaking news" stories to the exclusion of in-depth and longitudinal reporting, and we have the many rabbit holes of stories sensationalized and quickly forgotten, devoid of context and historical significance.
I believe that this explains some of the ability of the neocons to "re-write history" and lead so many down the jackbooted fascist path so easily. How many of those blind, deaf and not stupid followers actively participate in civic life?
They are glued to their teevee or computer screens, playing games and indulging in virtual reality. But if it feels real, sounds real, and looks real....
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Re: Crying and Tearing
[Read the article: Chris Matthews is right ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Producing tears and crying can be caused by a variety of factors: noxious chemical stimuli, mechanical irritants to the eyes, nasal passages and orophrynx, as a reaction to physical or emotional stressors, and as an emotional release. The reaction has no affect on or by cognition in humans.
Ergo, it has no bearing on executive decision-making and higher cognitive function. The meaning(s) ascribed to crying has been ritualized by gender and by social role. That is arbitrary and is not an inherent quality.
No one in the media (traditional and blogospheric, as far as I have yet read) has asked the fundamental question of why this spurious claim (crying implies or equates with impaired executive function) is being advanced by anyone, and why it is not being debunked.
Not to mention, of course, any discussion of substantive issues (love the Charlie Savage executive power example) being ignored en toto.
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@ Bebop-O
[Read the article: Chris Matthews is right ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Email me at the address on my dormant blog's ABOUT page. Check my credentials there, as well. I will help you de-ooze, dry up and get the micro-terrorists contained, restrained and extradited.