I know that Anderson Cooper of CNN is possibly the most overrated person in media right now, but here’s the thing: I love him.
I’m watching him on Oprah, talking to Hurricane Katrina survivors. This woman is crying and looking at him, telling him that she can’t afford a uniform shirt for her daughter to go to school. He looks so devestated for her, and so sad for her. His ability to listen to her and not look like a smarmy jerk is impressive.
Here is a journalist with a social conscience. Here is a journalist with a real desire to make a difference. Here is a journalist willing to speak out and say that what is happening is not right.
That is so very rare today. This is what journalism is supposed to be. The people of our generation do not remember the days in which journalism wasn’t about ratings but was about serving. Ultimately, journalism should be a service profession. Just like politics. Just like law. Ultimately, people should take their gifts and turn them into something that benefits the rest of the world. Spiderman’s Uncle Ben said it best: “With great power comes great responsibility.”
To those much is given, much is expected. Journalism, politics, and law are all professions that should be encouraged, admired, and appreciated. Instead, journalists are called useless, politicians are called lazy, and lawyers are called crooks. Something is seriously wrong in a society where the public good is so devalued and so unimportant.
The youth of my generation, those who grew up in the era of Monica-Gate and Geraldo Rivera, where politicans were dirty and journalists were a joke, don’t know that they should respect and honor those careers. They don’t know this becuase there are so few role models. Anderson Cooper may be overrated right now, but at least he’s standing up and making a difference.
Anderson Cooper and the state of service today…
February 21, 2006 · Filed under social commentary, what the hell?
I know that Anderson Cooper of CNN is possibly the most overrated person in media right now, but here’s the thing: I love him.
I’m watching him on Oprah, talking to Hurricane Katrina survivors. This woman is crying and looking at him, telling him that she can’t afford a uniform shirt for her daughter to go to school. He looks so devestated for her, and so sad for her. His ability to listen to her and not look like a smarmy jerk is impressive.
Here is a journalist with a social conscience. Here is a journalist with a real desire to make a difference. Here is a journalist willing to speak out and say that what is happening is not right.
That is so very rare today. This is what journalism is supposed to be. The people of our generation do not remember the days in which journalism wasn’t about ratings but was about serving. Ultimately, journalism should be a service profession. Just like politics. Just like law. Ultimately, people should take their gifts and turn them into something that benefits the rest of the world. Spiderman’s Uncle Ben said it best: “With great power comes great responsibility.”
To those much is given, much is expected. Journalism, politics, and law are all professions that should be encouraged, admired, and appreciated. Instead, journalists are called useless, politicians are called lazy, and lawyers are called crooks. Something is seriously wrong in a society where the public good is so devalued and so unimportant.
The youth of my generation, those who grew up in the era of Monica-Gate and Geraldo Rivera, where politicans were dirty and journalists were a joke, don’t know that they should respect and honor those careers. They don’t know this becuase there are so few role models. Anderson Cooper may be overrated right now, but at least he’s standing up and making a difference.
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