UNWORTHY

[NanceGreggs]

I made a terrible mistake tonight. I turned on a TV news network – or what passes for one in today’s melange of mainstream mediocrity – and listened.

What I heard was appallingly mindless and shockingly superficial – and I realized that my country’s story is being told, as it unfolds on a minute-to-minute basis, by people unworthy of doing the telling.

Unworthy.

This nation’s history is being recounted, on a daily basis, by those once perceived as watchdogs who have become attack dogs, by those once meant to be on-the-scene purveyors of fact who have become perpetrators of actions that create events rather than report them as they happen, by those who seek to shape history by opining on it instead of presenting it as it is – warts and all.

There is something obscene about turning each chapter of our country’s rich and varied tale into a soundbyte meant to entertain rather than inform; there is something viscerally wrong with being reliant on ratings rather than reality.

But more to the point, there is something downright un-American about recounting our collective stories in terms of interpretation and politically-driven perspective in place of delivering the truth – unvarnished and unadorned – as captured by the unforgiving lens of facts-on-the-ground, as seen by those who live it as opposed to those who seek to package it like so much useless fluff, in ways considered consumer-friendly and appropriately dumbed-down in order to appeal to the lowest common intellectual denominator.

Unworthy. A simple word, fraught with meaning. Those who currently claim the title “journalist” are so apparently devoid of ethics, morals, and a sense of the call of their once-lofty profession, so as to render a previously esteemed title as nothing more than an epithet hurled at liars, propagandists, sell-outs – people willing to tear the tapestry woven of our nation’s many threads into disposable rags to be sold between commercials.

Our story will be told, our history will survive. We, the People – in the course of our daily lives – will tell our children what we saw, what we heard, what we remember. We will tell them the facts we ferreted out; we will remind them that the truth is out there, betwixt and between the “official story” they’ll see on YouTube decades from now.

We will tell them the stories – of 9-11, of Katrina, of WMDs that never existed, of “liberation” that never came. We will recount these events through the eyes of NYC firefighters, through the mouths of returned vets, through the photographs of NOLA in the aftermath and Abu Gahraib as it happened, through the placards carried by anti-war protestors, through the words of the visionaries who spoke of hope and change.

We will tell the tale, through the anger of the truth-seekers who heard the lies, the mis-information and the mis-representations, and refused to let the official Record of our nation’s participation in world events be diminished or dismissed, apologized-for or excused by way of omission, relegated to the dustbin of history by way of well-groomed, ill-informed, TV new “personalities” willing to say anything to please their corporate sponsors and appease the angst and anger of their viewing audience.

Unworthy. In a word, the media whores who are willing to sell out their country’s ideals and their fellow citizens’ trust are unworthy – unworthy of the task-at-hand they purport to execute, unworthy of the responsibility they pretend to take seriously, unworthy of the burden they feign to bear on our nation’s behalf.

It would be a bright moment in our history were we able to pass the truth of all things on to our children and grandchildren because those in the news media were vigilant in their alleged “chosen profession”, and in the doing turned a non-blinking, non-biased eye on unfolding events – preserving them for all time in meaningful words, in honest reaction, in unedited-for-the-faint-of-heart film.

Unfortunately, it is a sad commentary to note that the truths that make up our history will be passed down, one generation to another, by citizens intent on telling our story not as we wished nor hoped it would be, but as it was – a cause not aided by our present-day “journalists”, but one which will endure in spite of them.

How sad that we have come to this - people who live in a world of instant messaging and as-it-happens world-wide communication, relegated to telling the tale of our glorious/inglorious history to our neighbors over the backyard fence, to our children between Twitters about alleged death panels and celebrity sightings, to ourselves lest we forget who we are, what we believe in, and what we as a nation are determined to remember amidst the idle ramblings of the microphone-endowed.

There is something to be said for the seemingly silent who turn off the TV in disgust, and speak their minds and hearts to everyone - anyone - willing to listen.

And in my own small way, I hope I have said what needs to be said on behalf of those truly worthy of telling our story to the generations that follow ours.

[AllentownJake]

1. K&R

[cliffordu]

2. K&R

[thunder rising]

3. #5 ... off to the greatest page. I haven't turned on my TV to watch programming in years

Except the superbowl

[firedupdem]

4. K&R n/t

[saltpoint]

5. Yes indeed. Cheered hard and recommended with expedition.

[wiggs]

6. knrnt.

[JeffR]

7. A rec, a kick

and a pinch...

[NanceGreggs]

8. I appreciate the rec and the kick ...

... but surely "the pinch" should be relegated to a PM.

Just sayin' is all ...

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

9. Very well said.

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

10. Whatever the goals of media may be, facts or truth fall towards the bottom of that list. nt

[Enthusiast]

46. You said it! nt

[jmondine]

11. Oh, Nance. Why would you turn on TV news? Just back away slowly

[CaliforniaPeggy]

12. My dear Nance...

In your own small way...

Not small!

You have been shouting the truth from the rooftops, and we hear you!

And we will pass the story down the ages...

K&R

You will shortly have mail...

[HughMoran]

13. Superficial

The Good: people are less likely to act on their more craven instincts as this requires effort.

The Bad: everything you've pointed out in your essay

Where do we go from here?

[BrklynLiberal]

14. K&R

[madamesilverspurs]

15. Yes.

And I just emailed this to a friend; we'd had a discussion about this very subject over coffee earlier today. For some time I've thought that we'd be in much worse shape without the blogosphere, that we can be thankful that the far-right failed to anticipate its explosive growth, that without it the Bush regime would not have ended. In a way, our cyber spaces have become the new backyard fences over which we visit with neighbors. For me the proof of that came during the caucuses that brought droves of citizens into rooms that had previously hosted mere trickles. People knew something was wrong in spite of what we were being told.

Clearly we need every honest voice. Thank you for yours.


---

[FrenchieCat]

16. This needs to be read and anyone and everyone who works in the News Media.....

I just sent it to Chuck Todd, and told him I read this, and then I cried.

[debbierlus]

17. Wow, Nance. Bravo! Nice counter voice, we just need to get more people to hear us!

If we can confront the liars, thieves, and criminals with the courage of truth and the righteousness of our anger, we can fight them and we can win.

Our biggest problem...it isn't passion, intelligence, understanding, knowledge...none of those things.

Our problem is that we are a movement with no leadership.

[bertman]

18. You have, Nance. You definitely have.

Recommend.

[The Wizard]

19. Hurst set the stage

Murdoch seized the weak minded, and the nation is the victim.
Fox News allows the rest of the media to behave badly. Not being as bad as Fox doesn't make them honest journalists.

[me b zola]

52. The push to dismantle our public education system is adding to this

It pains me when I see community leaders who can't see the larger picture push for the privatization of our schools.

[Odin2005]

20. Don't worry Nance, the Revolution won't be televised, but it will be FACEBOOKED!!!

And BLOGGED! And TWITTERED!

The Old Media must die!

[Vidar]

21. K&R

[NYC_SKP]

22. K&R

[Occulus]

23. Speak it, girl. Enthusiastic K&R. n/t

[voc]

24. Well written. nt

[Mind_your_head]

25. Nance, you're a BRILLIANT writer....truly!

I'm an american~small 'a' (and ashamed to be one right now....)

[anniebelle]

26. K&R! n/t

[zoff]

27. They are many things, and unworthy is the kindest adjective.

[Roland99]

28. We'll one day be gathered around fires near a river or rusted R/R tracks...

while our books are burned in the cities behind us.

[impik]

29. Terrific post. Everyone must see this:

It's all in there.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8oauFqw--k

[G_j]

30. K&R

[Bluenorthwest]

31. Nice post

[babylonsister]

32. Stellar, Nance! Thank you! nt

[rasputin1952]

33. The days of Edward R. Murrow, Huntley and Brinkly and Cronkite

are long gone.

Many years ago I listened to recording of Murrow as he stood atop a building in London during the Blitz, I was enthralled, even though this had happened some years. before I was born.

I distinctly remember Cronkite informing us out president was dead in Dallas, and later, post-Tet, that the war was essentially lost.A young girl running, naked from napalm.

I can still recall, as of it were yesterday, firefighters pulling people from the Twin Towers....people arm in arm, handkerchiefs shared as they left the area; black, white, hispanic, asian...people handling out water and what little they had to help...tears had washed the dust away from some faces; other faces showed the determination of those that would do the work that was to come.

Pretty faces w/perfectly coiffed hair, (male and female), and little more than air between their ears tell us what is "true".

Some hard truths:

We are involved in two wars, neither of which are justified.

The nation is bankrupt.

We have gone from a "production" state to a "service" state, something that is unsustainable.

More people worry about how women treat their bodies, than if there will be a roof over the head of the "forced" birth.

People die every day because they cannot afford health care or medications, that could save or extend their lives.



I cold go on...but except for CSPAN, I rarely watch AM TV....but today, Chris Wallace, a nasty little creature, has Limbaugh on a nasty large creature...and for the pure value of a sick taste for the macabre, I think I'll watch that...

[saltpoint]

34. I'm extremely comfortable with your description of Chris Wallace as "a

nasty little creature."

[rasputin1952]

36. He is a little wormy cretin....

I wonder how many hundreds of lips Wallace will grow jut to kiss Limbaugh's butt...

[saltpoint]

37. And the really sad part is that the man is intelligent, but chooses to

use his smarts in the service of right-wing propaganda. He works for propagandists. And he knows he works for propagandists.

[rasputin1952]

38. For most of these people, it's all about the cash flow...

There was a time when I thought Greta VanSusterin was pretty smart. Today, I wouldn't hire her to write up a simple contract.

[saltpoint]

39. Agree. The ring of the cash register is the news networks' sweet music.

But they are such clumsy dancers.

[rasputin1952]

40. Speaking of which...

That brought to mind a mental pic of Hannity, which in turn brought out the notion of of DeLay....

[saltpoint]

41. LOL! Tom Delay: THE DANCE OF DENIAL.

[orbitalman]

35. NanceGreggs: Truly your greatness "unvarnished and unadorned." n/t

[Name removed]

42. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[dalaigh lllama]

43. Ta ta, troll

[dalaigh lllama]

44. It is said: history is told by the victors

I sure wish I could be around in 100 years to read the history books on this time period.

[Enthusiast]

45. Thank you so much

for saying this. The American people do not even recognize this for the most part. I am reminded of this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq5qME0gnjc

Sheep (Waters) 10:19

Harmlessly passing your time in the grassland away;
Only dimly aware of a certain unease in the air.
You better watch out,
There may be dogs about
I've looked over Jordan, and I have seen
Things are not what they seem.

What do you get for pretending the danger's not real.
Meek and obedient you follow the leader
Down well trodden corridors into the valley of steel.
What a surprise!
A look of terminal shock in your eyes.
Now things are really what they seem.
No, this is no bad dream.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want
He makes me down to lie
Through pastures green He leadeth me the silent waters by.
With bright knives He releaseth my soul.
He maketh me to hang on hooks in high places.
He converteth me to lamb cutlets,
For lo, He hath great power, and great hunger.
When cometh the day we lowly ones,
Through quiet reflection, and great dedication
Master the art of karate,
Lo, we shall rise up,
And then we'll make the bugger's eyes water.

Bleating and babbling I fell on his neck with a scream.
Wave upon wave of demented avengers
March cheerfully out of obscurity into the dream.

Have you heard the news?
The dogs are dead!
You better stay home
And do as you're told.
Get out of the road if you want to grow old.

[gtar100]

47. Thanks.

[earcandle]

48. I have tears in my eyes, and so much respect for you. Thanks for sharing your picture.

I feel honored to be part of this group that houses people
like you.

[bvar22]

49. K&R

Bill Moyers Journal is one of the very few left.
It is painful to watch because it reminds me of what we have lost.

[stlsaxman]

50. Nance- I'm reminded of "The Book People" of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451

maybe each person will be given a story like Watergate or Mai Lai or The Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rice War crimes Trial at The Hague...

[stlsaxman]

51. Nance- I'm reminded of "The Book People" of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451

maybe each person will be given a story like Watergate or Mai Lai or The Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rice War crimes Trial at The Hague...

[K Gardner]

53. An historic post.. one to print and post on my wall. Thank you Nance. K&R

[Cyrano]

54. Another great essay, Nance.

There's much justifiable anger in your words today.

All too often, I find myself despising what our country has become. But there are bright spots here and there. Today, I was paying my monthly bills and one of them was my annual membership fee for the ACLU. They enclosed a bookmark that had the Bill of Rights printed on it. And I took the time to read it which reminded me of what we are supposed to be about.

And now, reading your post is my second bright spot of the day. Do you suppose we'll survive the current-day version of the "dark-ages" we are living through?

[Canuckistanian]

55. You're SO right, Nance

Future historians, while fact-checking the NUMEROUS distortions, exaggerations and outright LIES will discover another America - one that is still reeling from the 8-year catastrophe that was the Bush administration.

The Fourth Estate has ALWAYS had the privilege and the duty to chronicle contemporary events and to draw the CORRECT interpretations. They have failed miserably.

There is no "official record" any more. Only attention whores and co-opted propagandists.

[texastoast]

56. Proud to K&R

And give you another Molly.



Everyone needs to print what is important for our children to know. Vaporization is a real thing.

Tuck it away . . .

[texastoast]

57. Alright, who is the asshole who unrecced THIS thread?

[Kurovski]

58. K&R.

Shepard Smith is still hot.

Hiya! long time, no see. Good to read you again.

[NanceGreggs]

60. Good to hear from you again!

[winyanstaz]

59. K & R......

I have to agree with you NanceGreggs...once again you are right on the target.
Once again you speak truth to power...and I thank you.

[SeattleGirl]

61. Well said, Nance

Definitely K&R'd.

[stellanoir]

62. Well put hon.

It's odd. The luvs in my life who live happily do not watch the tube or listen to the radio.

I marvel and semi envy their contentment.

Still I care too much about our fledgling democracy.

I blame it on my 13th gernerational American maternal genes.

Journalism has gone into the toilet truly.

Rachel, Olbermann, Stewart, Steph, and Hartmann can only save us.

Blessings to you and Jeff and them and your pooches.

best

[Gamey]

63. Nance! Time to take it to the next level!?

I believe it to be a glorious event every time DU offers you a woundrous platform from which to base your "facnts" - fact filled rants. Nance's Facnts?

Anyway, if that Palin person can secure $1.25 million for garbage, your recycling karma should be in the billions! I'm often cryptic but that means you deserve much much more than her! Perhaps someone more clever can work that out?

Unfortunately for you but good for Palin and Fox is that smart people are reluctant to give anyone money.

Unless they take it to the next level?

Unlike you, Nance, how is it that so many can say so much with so little like SP and Joe and somehow gain from it?

The media is nothing but a sales job against people like Nance and many others. It's a crime! And their listeners are accessories to it.

[kentuck]

64. Thought-provoking.

I'm glad you write for our side.

However, it seems to me that politics is biased by definition. "News" people cannot report politics without a bias, it seems. Perhaps the only time "politics" should be in the news is when a politician falls short of expectations or when they might pass meaningful legislation for the people?

[Gamey]

66. "Perhaps the only time..." halfway misses the point

Journalism isn't all about sleuthing politicians' shortfalls or expectations.

[donheld]

65. k & R

[DFW]

67. My late father is one of those you mourn, so I thank you on his behalf

He was a celebrated (by both right and left, in the Congressional Record no less) for his fairness.

Congresspeople of both right and left called him up to complain when they thought he had been too hard on them.
I'm sure they all had good reason. If they messed up, right or left, he WAS hard on them. That was his job.

During the Clinton impeachment and the press obsession with trivialities, he railed at the fact that so many
of his fellow "journalists" had completely lost sight of what their job was. Among his contemporaries, only
Helen Thomas stood her ground, and refused to yield to the temptation to attain star status via sensationalism.
In the electronic media of national stature, only Dan Rather and Bill Moyers joined the sentiment (this was 1998,
so before the era of MSNBC).

The rest of them, CNN and the rest, in essence, sold out. My dad went to his grave thinking the country would
return to its senses. He left us on NOv. 27, 2000. Two weeks later, the SCOTUS decided wrongly in Bush v. Gore,
and along with the perversion of justice and politics, so went most of the press.

Unworthy indeed. I would give anything to have my dad back, but if he were to return and see what has become of
most of his profession in the USA, he might not survive his resurrection.

[Joe Fields]

68. K&R

[calimary]

69. Kicking - 'cause I'm too late to recommend this, dammit!

They ARE unworthy. Unworthy even to visit Walter Cronkite's gravesite, much less presume to think they're his heirs.

[Uncle Joe]

70. On edit; Kicked but too late to recommend.

Thanks for the thread, Nancy Greggs.