0 comments on “Good read”

1. Hypothetically, what if you could say for certain that it had? Would you change anything?

2. I won't say who I am, or what I do for a living, but let me say that people with far less abilities than I in my industry have gotten ahead because they were liberal, or hated Bush.

   I, for one, told people years ago that I was a conservative, anti-abortion Republican, and I believe that word spread like wildfire which is why many of the plum projects in my industry have bypassed me and gone to others.

   It is the blacklist but in reverse.

   Anonymous

3. Would I change anything? I'm not sure that I could. I'm not the kind of person who can just shut-up, smile and nod my head like a bobblehead doll when I encounter liberal talking points -- unfortunately, it's just not part of my make-up.

4. Then, for the sake of debate... and admittedly not much other value...

   "Whether my conservatism has handicapped my career, I’m just not sure, but I also wouldn’t be surprised."
   "I’m not the kind of person who can just shut-up, smile and nod my head like a bobblehead doll when I encounter liberal talking points"

   Then isn't this sort of like any other trait, your layout and writing ability, or people skills? You're in that industry, and it comes with the territory.

   But then I guess the complaint is that its not "supposed" to be that way. However, there are a lot of things aren't supposed to be the way they are. I'm in an industry that isn't supposed to be political, but I've been faced with using a keyboard with the "w" crossed out. Go figure 🙂

5. Admittedly, personal relationships and "playing well with others" is the same in any workplace. I get along very well with just about all of my co-workers and the one or two I don't, I deal with professionally.

   It would be one thing if we were producing widgets. It's another thing when we are in the business of dealing with politics. As Hume describes in the Washington Post article, a conservative will see certain stories differently than a liberal. Neither way of looking at the story is necessarily wrong, but I think there is a perception deep down that is pervasive in the liberal majority that bias doesn't affect their decisions, but it does (or would) mine.

   I think that bias affects both our perceptions -- as hard as we may try to avoid it -- and I think the best (and probably only) way to have truly fair and unbiased journalism is to "have it out" verbally in the newsroom. Let's respect each others' views. Let's listen to what each side has to say and see if we can find a way to arrange a story or find just the right (no pun intended) word for a headline that is fair, balanced and accurate.

   I tossed my name into the hat for a job once that would actually have me editing wire copy and shaping stories in a way that I don't do currently. I wasn't given the courtesy of an interview, the person in charge merely looked at my resume and said I didn't have the necessary experience.

   Then they hired a nice young lady who had six or seven years less experience than I had.

   Bias? I don't know.

6. You make an interesting point, however I do not think you can ever come to a real agreement on what is fair and balanced (maybe accurate) without some sort of outside measuring stick. Every debate needs to be framed by some form of accepted rules, but I would wager that in a (news)room you cannot even get agreement on where left right or middle is. Since politics is merely a proxy for morality, take it that next step. What is right and what is wrong? Whose rules does one play by?