What I’m Reading
April 13, 2023
Today’s What I’m Reading post ends a pause. I had planned it as a step back from writing, photography, and journalism. My goal for that step back: recharging my batteries from the stressful last couple of years.
I accomplished that in some respects. But I also have to continue to work for that ease of mind as I go forward. From now on, though, it’s hand-in-hand with writing, photography, and journalism. I’ll share more on how keeping busy and productive, and how writing and photography help me stay centered when A Journalist’s Diary returns. The first fresh lines for that series are coming to a screen near you this Saturday.
But now to today’s topic: reading recommendations. The two articles I’d like to share include a New York Times story on the changes in American society and how they relate to the political landscape. I found it a valuable read that offers glimpses of explanations for people’s behaviors; more on that and the concerns I have for the direction of journalism below.
The second article details one of my favorite writing techniques: the free write.
Understanding & Journalism
The arrival, presence, and departure of Donald Trump on the stage of American politics caused unrest; in the political arena, the real world, and journalism.
I was tired from all that noise. The exhaustive coverage was often, as “normal” for headline topics, superficial, driven by quotes, lacking a deeper dive into why people cherished behavior that would have been unacceptable for most politicians in the past.
Journalism was faced with the challenge of covering a public official who attacked the integrity and trustworthiness of journalism. How do you hold such a public official accountable (one of the key functions of journalism)?
Journalists shouldn’t care what political spectrum people believe in or if they like or dislike Trump. They should be interested in listening to what people from all walks of life have to say and be open to hearing arguments from as many sides as possible, trying to be aware of their own biases and the fact that there is no such thing as total objectivity.
That’s the theory, at least. In reality, the quest for objective reporting is much more complex. Maybe we can break it down to something very simple:
I see journalism as a chance to explore the world and yourself to learn from those who differ from you. That I believe is true for those that practice the craft and those in its audience.
But in an increasingly complex world where dis- and misinformation has become a political tool, journalism needs to be that critical thinker and help in the fight against “fake news” and for accountability.
The story I send along today includes positive and negative aspects of journalism wrestling with that task.
Last October, The New York Times published Their America Is Vanishing. Like Trump, They Insist They Were Cheated.
The reporters Michael H. Keller and David D. Kirkpatrick turned to data to offer a glimpse into why people stood and continue to stand by Trump’s side, despite everything that was done and said before, during, and after his presidency.
The bottom line: a receding white America feels threatened by a new, more diverse America and tries to protect itself by following someone who promises to keep their America alive. And people are okay with breaking political and behavioral norms in that pursuit.
The story includes several strong data visualizations that demonstrate how the districts that remain supportive of Trump have changed and differ from other parts of the country.
At the same time, the piece continues the tradition of giving “both sides” room to make their arguments. In this case, the argument is that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump, the republican party, and their voters.
It’s an argument that has been widely disproven, in the political arena and in courtrooms. Yet the argument survives. And no one offers any tangible evidence.
Why does The New York Times publish a story (almost two years after the election) that includes statements the journalists know to be false and have been published in one form or another on all sorts of journalistic platforms?
Where’s the value to readers when one more person says they believe Trump won without having any evidence and, in the same sentence, defines facts as statements that can be “whatever you want them to be?”
Is that still good journalism? Or a disservice to both sides?
Is it a sound journalistic decision to let a statement like the above about the alleged nature of facts stand on its own and let the audience judge it?
Or haven’t we long reached a point where we’ve listened to those arguments often enough?
Circling back to the positives, I do like the attempt to correlate the societal makeup of voting districts (and how those districts have been changing) with continued support for Trump.
It begins to paint a picture of how one political party sees the country versus how the country shapes up in reality. The changes in diversity leave parts of a society desperate to cling to a way of life they know, even if it means they have to break with political norms as their answer to what they perceive as a threat to their America.
Looking at it from that perspective, I found the story an interesting starting point for a journey that hopefully brings people closer together again instead of seeing further division. It may be a bit idealistic, but maybe journalism can play its small part in that journey.
Regardless, I hope you decide to give this story a chance and discover the changing America yourself.
Free Your Writing
The second article is shorter and less “explosive.”
How to free your writing with free writing by Korrina Duffy of the Nieman Storyboard blog is a wonderful piece of advice for all writers.
I first experienced the free write in a writing class when I studied in the United States for the first time. I soon learned to love it as an essential part of my toolbox.
Duffy’s introduction to the free write is a unique demonstration of its qualities. I hope you check it out.
The very short version is that instead of planning everything out and hovering over every word as one writes, the free write breaks any and all editing away from the initial writing.
Set yourself a time goal and topic. Then, just write. No checking, looking up, pondering. Pen, paper, writer, topic. Go.
I still remember the sensation of free writing for the first time. Letting go. Stopping to overthink everything (that’s usually me). I needed to leap and let go of learned patterns.
The beginning was hard. But I quickly lost myself in the act of writing. I became okay with making mistakes and writing badly to write better.
That’s the flow state, where writing becomes a joy. Where you, as Duffy describes it so convincingly, place furniture into an empty house. I highly recommend you check out this article.
That’s all for today’s reading updates. On Saturday, I’ll return with A Journalist’s Diary and an item or two from my time in Ghana. Until then, enjoy your readings.
