The circus is in town.
The last few weeks prominent members of the Greensboro community have been embroiled in sensational antics orchestrated by a small group of ringleaders. And I’m here to argue that it’s a distraction.
I understand that I’m young and relatively new to the journalism industry. I didn’t go to J-school and I didn’t study journalism in college. But in the last five years of working week to week, interviewing sources, crafting stories and putting out a paper, there are a few things I’ve learned about what journalism is and is not.
At its best, journalism is a tool to hold the powerful accountable. Journalism is not a tool to be used frivolously without sufficient evidence.
Secondly, journalism should be for the people. It should always reflect the community’s highest needs. Journalism is not an avenue for a select few who are driven by their egos to go after their own personal hit list.
Here, let me define community: To me, community is the amalgamation of the people in our cities, the ones that work our streets, our cafes, our stores, who vote, who protest, who show up and make change and fight despite the odds against them. They are the ones journalism should be uplifting, protecting, working alongside. The community is not a handful of old, well-off white people, specifically white men, who want to take up space to fling their shit at each other whilst the rest of us are forced to watch.
The community is comprised of the people who are forced out of their homes unjustly, the ones losing their rights to their bodily autonomy, the ones who are being forced back into the closet, the ones fighting to be paid a living wage, the ones who continue to be marginalized.
Let me be clear: Holding the powerful accountable, of course, includes being critical of our city leaders if and when they abuse their power. But an over-exaggerated, overanalyzed, over-focused attention on a single person led by a few people who have a collective axe to grind only serves their privileged group. Many of us don’t even have an axe to wield.
So my question is, who asked for this? The community?
Because I would venture to guess, not so much.
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For the love of Mike, what are you talking about? The virtue-signaling above is precious but you didn’t have the integrity to tell your readers what specifically you were referring to. Platitudes may make you feel better but they are empty and meaningless.
BTW, Here’s what journalism actually is: reporting the who, what, where, when and why objectively, with no bias, no advocacy, no political narrative to feed. You’re not a journalist. You’re an activist. A hack. Somehow you got there without the benefit of a worthless “journalism degree”. Good for you.
One more thing: No one gives a shit about your pronouns. Grow up child.
Who? What? When? Where? How? I see good intentions. I’m concerned this generation praising being untrained and uneducated is not anything to be proud unless you a Hamilton, Hurston, Garret Morgan, or natural intellectual. Hard work and study may serve your causes to provide credibility and actual information that would allow others to join Greek Chorus against something you obviously believe to be inherently wrong.
The headline pulled me in. Unfortunately I learned nothing after reading this, other than you apparently hate old white men. The title is Greensboro’s Shit show. What specifically are Greensboro leaders doing that makes it a shit show? What specific things would you propose they do in order to change it?
Where is the article? The intelligible content? what is the point?
Having to log in for essentially no useful content here with 2-factor authentication is much too much trouble for an article empty of any informative content that I can discern. Dr. Dan Heck
Hey! You pissed off David Mitchell. Well done! He seems like the kind of dude I’d like to piss off.
Hey David, my pronouns are he/him.
Journalism should not be so opaque to leave the reader confused. I don’t know who you are referencing on city council? Who is the person they are focused on? What conduct is appalling?
Your disclaimer explains quality of this piece.
The press is meant to inform of facts, not manipulate with bias. You are clearly biased as your own words confirm. Your agenda is evident. I fail to see any factual information in your write-up. There is really no content. It’s simply a bunch of whining. And, when speaking of the “Greensboro community” as a whole, you are, in fact, including ALL who live in Greensboro, not just those YOU choose to define as a part of the group. But, I can’t say I’m surprised that someone from your generation is posting a public piece adopting victim mentality instead of jumping in to work and advocate for the population you so pity. You’re right, youth is a factor in your prejudices. Life experience has a way of providing you with a true education. Prejudice gets us nowhere. You’d be better informed if you took time to meet with these leaders you so detest to get the true facts of the issues of which you speak. Just a note…none of us agree with all of the politicians and leaders. If you want change, run for office. But, don’t for a second think that typing something from your computer and posting it online gives you any credibility if you can’t back your accusations up with factual evidence.
In a newsroom, the rule used to be “assume the reader is unaware of the news,” meaning tell the background and identify individuals clearly. I don’t know what “prominent members of the Greensboro community have been embroiled in sensational antics orchestrated by a small group of ringleaders,” but it would be helpful here. Welcome to journalism. We need more of you.
I’m pretty sure I know what this is in reference to and it won’t take much for the rest of you to Google or look at Facebook and you can find it. Might I suggest Downtown Greensboro Alliance. I agree with the writer except I do think there are some good questions regarding this individual’s potential conflict of interest and the rampant cronyism in Greensboro.