When I was in college, like most of the other young men around me, the prospect of being drafted and sent to Vietnam and fight in a war I didn’t believe in terrified me. And that prospect, which was far from imaginary, made some of very angry as well.
When I was a freshman, a small but insistent minority of students protested against the war and organized to convince more of us to join their ranks. At the same time, many students had been affected by civil rights marches led by Martin Luther King and wanted to do something about racism in our society.
Our the four years I was in school, the ranks of students willing to join the antiwar and civil rights demonstrations grew considerably until it felt like we were in the majority, though the math of the matter showed that wasn’t the case.
Other related movements emerged, led by the feminist, LBGTQ and environmental forces. Since most of us were still quite young, we probably underestimated how difficult it would be to achieve any of the fundamental changes we sought. In any event, we met plenty of resistance, which only made us angrier and more likely to demonstrate.
In my case, I read everything I could find about all of these issues and participated in strictly non-violent ways for a while, though as I was finding my role as a journalist, increasingly I covered the demonstrations rather than actually participated in them.
Our generation didn’t necessarily see a conflict between activism and journalism at first, although as we grew older and more experienced our attitudes evolved. By twenty years after my graduation, many media executives were actively prohibiting student journalists and young reporters from even attending demonstrations —to avoid any appearance of bias or conflict on contentious issues.
Those with my type of history were not happy about this but we gradually recommended that our interns and students and new hires make a difficult ethical choice. We told them if they wanted to be successful journalists they had to guard their credibility by not openly demonstrating. Otherwise they would be seen as partisans, which might end up limiting their career options.
In today’s world, the partisan divide feels much deeper and more fractious than it was in my youth. Even a casual glance through the daily headlines confirms that. So what can a young, sincere journalist do to cover these controversies, like abortion?
Trying to remain open-minded about something as emotional and deeply personal as abortion is going to challenge anybody. Hyperbole and extreme statements rule the airwaves.
So yes it is a difficult time to be a young journalist. Sort of like in the 1960s. There is really just nothing easy about this career choice and never will be.
TODAY’s LINKS:
Supreme Court further erodes separation between church and state in case of praying football coach (CNN)
Does Hungary Demonstrate Our Authoritarian Future? American conservatives recently hosted their flagship conference in Hungary, a country that experts call an autocracy. Its leader, Viktor Orbán, provides a potential model of what a Trump after Trump might look like. (New Yorker)
46 migrants were found dead inside a semitruck in San Antonio, with 16 more hospitalized, authorities say (CNN)
Supreme Court’s abortion ruling sets off new court fights (AP)
Green Day lead singer says he’ll renounce citizenship over abortion ruling (WP)
Louisiana judge temporarily blocks abortion ban after U.S. Supreme Court ruling (Reuters)
Pence leans in on abortion as other potential GOP candidates are more cautious (WP)
Zelenskyy joins G-7 summit as U.S. plans to send Ukraine new missile defense system (NBC)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged Western leaders to supply anti-aircraft defense systems to his embattled nation as Russian forces assaulted Lysychansk, the last big city still held by Ukrainian troops in eastern Luhansk province. (Reuters)
Russia in debt default as payment deadline passes (BBC)
Russian missile strike hits shopping mall with more than 1,000 people inside, Ukraine says (NBC)
Missile Strike in Kyiv Rattles Residents After Weeks of Quiet (NYT)
NATO set to increase its high-readiness forces to over 300,000 in massive military buildup (CNBC)
Oil prices rise amid G7 talks on new Russian sanctions (Reuters)
The public hearings by the Jan. 6 committee may not change the minds of Trump's devoted followers, but they could stymie his efforts to delegitimize criminal charges that prosecutors may wind up filing against him. There is some evidence that the hearings are having a broad impact on the national conversation, S.V. Dáte writes.[HuffPost]
With violent rhetoric and election denial, podcaster becomes GOP force (WP)
Jan. 6 panel adds last-minute hearing Tuesday afternoon (NBC)
Afghanistan is reeling after 2 earthquakes in a week (NPR)
The Dutch government plans to build at least two new nuclear reactors in the coming years, at a time when more countries are closing existing plants than opening new ones. Nuclear power became taboo but it's the most efficient source of electricity, and given the impacts of fossil fuels and climate change, the Netherlands is taking another look. [HuffPost]
Families brace for changes to pandemic-era free school meals (AP)
Gas Stations Now Hold Up to $175 of Your Money When You Swipe (WSJ)
Incredible Virus Discovery Offers Clues About the Origins of Complex Life (SciTech Daily)
Navy Ship Found Off Philippines Is the Deepest Shipwreck Ever Surveyed (WSJ)
Authors are protesting Amazon's e-book policy that allows users to read and return (NPR)
Realistic Concept Art For New Luxury Condos Features Homeless Man Getting Arrested (The Onion)
TODAY’s LYRICS
“The Grass Is Blue”
By Dolly Parton
I've had to think up a way to survive
Since you said it's over
Told me goodbye
I just can't make it one day without you
Unless I pretend that the opposite's trueRivers flow backwards
Valleys are high
Mountains are level
Truth is alive
I'm perfectly fine
And I don't miss you
The sky is green
And the grass is blueHow much can a heart and a troubled mind take
Where is that fine line before it all breaks
Can one end their sorrow
Just cross over it
And into that realm of insensitive blissThere's snow in the tropics
There's ice on the sun
It's hot in the Arctic
And crying is fun
And I'm happy now
And I'm glad we're through
And the sky is green
And the grass is blueAnd the rivers flow backwards
And my tears are dry
Swans hate the water
And eagles can't fly
But I'm alright now
Now that I'm over you
And the sky is green
And the grass is blue
And I don't love you
And the grass is blue
No comments:
Post a Comment