I feel as though I have to speak up on the subject of "simple civility."
It seems to me that since my childhood, the greater society has become less and less civil to each other in the public arena. Not so, on a person to person vernacular though it seems. Why is this?
Public statements of discord between political parties and civic groups as reported on by the news media seems to be inciting the public rather than simply showing the news as it actually happens without a "storyline" basis.
By storyline, I mean that news services around the globe seem to think that "sensationalism" is the only way to gain the "ratings" for their network. This sensationalism becomes, in my opinion, a significant factor on how the public receives the stories the news people report, such as the American news media and the world-wide news media followed the terrible news story in Arizona involving various aged people, one of which was a Congresswoman.
Our news media decided that the "storyline" would be that of a lady from Alaska who happens to say what she wants when she wants. The "storyline" was this - Sarah Palin used what looked like to be “gun sights” on the various politicians’ home districts who voted for an American healthcare bill alluding that they should be “targeted” for what they did. This young man, obviously not thinking correctly and with apparent suicide by police thoughts of a grand exit from this life saw "this" news storyline of the "gun sights" and decided he would kill one or more persons and then the police would kill him - only conjecture here.
This type of journalism is what great "ratings" are all about. I ask you - who are asking the real questions in Arizona. How is society complicit in this whole affair happening? This event happens all over the world everyday when one person kills another. What obligation to the viewing public does journalists and their employers have to filter - not what is said but rather how it is said with the view of civility and not sensationalism?
I ask you, the people of the world - why do I let this type of news happen? How can I change the way the news is reported so that I feel that the story has been investigated from all sides at once and not "story by story?" By this I mean that journalists report only one part of a story at a time allowing the story to be divided into "sound bites" for the ratings the bites will produce and then another reporter reports about another view of the story so it too can become "sound bites" for higher ratings.
I believe that civility in the world on a person to person basis is okay. Unfortunately, I also believe that television journalism using pictures to drive their point of the story is unacceptable reporting. How about taking on a story with a number of reporters and camera persons to a story that has occurred - do their individual reporting procedures - THEN come back together as one team with only one reporter reporting the story? I believe that both the journalist reporting the story and his employers would then have an obligation to report the whole story for their network once. This reporting style, though it maybe bland sometimes, will make the decision makers take a look at the story with an eye for civility and not ratings as I believe is done now by the news media as whole - sell those papers - airtime ratings - Pulitzer Prizes, etc...
Tell me what YOU think my fellow citizens and while you are at it - tell your friends about this blog and let's really debate "civility in the world today and what WE can do about."
Thank you...
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