"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Sunday 6 March 2016

IN OUR OWN TIMES

Is Dave Robinson has left a new comment on your post "THE DAILY BEAST....WHAT IS THAT?": 

The Daily Beast was the name of the newspaper in Evelyn Waugh's classic satire of journalism, Scoop. Journalists often are idealists at heart but keep this quality semi-protected by a thick shell of cynicism. The name was brought to real life as a political/cultural website about a decade ago by Tina Brown and others. It has since merged with Newsweek but has a wide following. 

Posted by Dave Robinson to  Our Town and Its Business at 6 March 2016 at 09:55

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Thanks Dave . I  just learned of the Evelyn Waugh classic, SCOOP.

I thnk journalists are mostly creative writers who work as reporters to pay the rent and put food on the table. 

Every story is shaped by good and evil ...has  a hero,a villain, plot, a counter-plot and the reporter gets to decides which is which. 

On the other hand, it may be, the writing is just to encourage readership. 

In general, the business of newspapers and media, is not news. It's  advertising. The reality is everybody has to make a living . 

In particular, in politics, the story is never  Once upon a time and Happily ever after. 

Politics is about differences and complications. 

Democracy is about the right to be different ...and the right to be wrong without being the bad guy. 

The times are troublesome. But not for first time troublesome. 

A comment this morning opines there is no qualified candidate, Democratic or Republican,  in the race for office of American President. 

I beg to differ. 

No candidate is better qualified than Hillary Clinton nor has invested more of herself to make a difference in the lives of others. 

But the media has, not surprisingly, chosen Bernie Sanders as the hero.

To kin a phrase, the role is gender specific. He is the Man From La Mancha. 

He's not really but it's generally how a story unfolds. 

Sanders is as much opportunist as B.B. the Trumpeter. 

A villain must be also be cast. 

It's hard to be fair and negative about Hillary at the same time. They do it clumsily but they manage with the  proverbial thousand  small, telling, cuts.

I'm not even sure they know they're doing it  It's about trimming the narrative to fit the format or more precisely, cutting the coat to fit the cloth. 

The late Charlotte Whitten, Mayor of Ottawa in the fifties , a woman of  keen wit was quoted:

"Whatever women do, they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good ; fortunately,
it's not difficult." 

Years of trying to make a difference in the public sector, has no doubt taught Hillary Clinton to take 
nothing for granted. She will stay the course  because it's harder not to. 

 She doesn't know how. 

On Friday, I watched the  newly -released Oscar-nominated movie TRUMBO. It's the  tale of the 
Shameful House Committee on Un-American Activities. 

I've been so looking forward to the movie. It relates toThe Hollywood Ten ,writers in the early forties, who were blacklisted from making a living at their profession.

To-day Nancy Reagan died at ninety-four. Stories of her life returned us to those ugly times in Hollywood and American politics. 

As we speak , a great historic drama  is writing  itself. 

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

The good news is that the talk-show host/ loud mouth is not looking at a majority or even a plurality of American voters.
It's all smoke & mirrors.

Anonymous said...

I think Miss Nancy died after watching that last republican debate in which they all claimed to be following in Regan's path.

Anonymous said...

A lot of people pointed fingers during that un-American Activities period. They caused terrible harm. You hear echoes of it now in
phrases like " If you are not for such and such, you cannot be a real american and should just leave "

Anonymous said...

Real journalists are endangered species.

Anonymous said...

Scuttlebutt has it that Romney has filed the paperwork to run. I have no idea if that is true,

Anonymous said...

12:25 - If that is true....He will be handing this over to Trump. What an idiot.

Anonymous said...

No, Romney has not declared & Bloomberg is not running as an independent as he is hope Hillary has enough votes.

Anonymous said...


A long time until their election - a lot can happen along the way.

Anonymous said...

Trump, Drumph ,is about sound bites & playing chess with human beings.