Since I heard about Juan Williams firing from NPR because of this unfortunate (iditotic!) remark about being fearful on a plane when people wearing “Muslim Garb” get on board, I’ve been at a loss for what to say about it.
Public figures (reporters, celebrities, etc.) aren’t like you and me. While they certainly have the right to feel, think and believe anything they want, they can’t necessarily use their medium to express it… For instance, if you work for NPR, and since they are an actual news source that doesn’t just editorialize with great abandon, you can’t say stupid sh*t while using their airwaves. You can think it. You can believe it. You can talk about it to your friends all you want. Of course, I can stand in my front yard and talk sh*t all day long – and no one would fire me, because I’m using my own medium – my yard. Juan Williams had the resources of a national radio network at his disposal, I would have a card table and a cardboard megaphone… very different things.
When you’re watching the news, please use this little test. If the person on TV says something that can be proven empirically, that is by a factual test, then that person is reporting NEWS. If they make a statement that cannot be proven empirically, then it is an opinion show.
Rachel Maddow? Mostly news show, with bits of opinion.
Glenn Beck? Freak show.
Pretty much everything on NPR? News.
In the meantime, I’m reposting a link to this VERY awesome site that was shared by our friends over at REEL GRRLS, called “Muslims Wearing Things” – a very cool site about what Muslims wear.
Now, what Reel Grrls was doing sharing this link, I’ll never know. Maybe they were just using a medium available to them to share an opinion.
But it’s cool – they can totally do that.
Les Sterling is an artist living in Seattle, and freelance contributor to Seattle Gay Scene.
