And they call themselves journalists?
by Sara Sedlacek · June 04, 2008

Aside from the fact that there is a war going on, we are also, amongst other things, in the midst of one of the most important elections in history, Iowa just had the biggest immigration raid in the history of the United States, natural disasters are killing people all over the world by the thousands and gas prices are at a devastating high. These are all enormously important things that deserve attention.

So, with such important events happening daily, it made sense that Fox News pundit Michelle Malkin last week likened a Dunkin’ Donuts commercial featuring Rachel Ray to Islamic terrorism. I’ll be the first to admit I’m not a huge fan of Rachel Ray. She’s loud and annoying and I wish bad things upon her on a quarterly basis. Dunkin’ Donuts, on the other hand, did nothing to deserve this! I’ll rewind a bit and explain the story. Michelle Malkin and other conservatives on the blogosphere attacked the Dunkin’ Donuts ad saying the scarf Rachel Ray was wearing looked like a keffiyeh, a traditional headdress worn by Arab men and now associated with Islamic terrorists. The scarf did not look like a keffiyeh! It was a nice, decorative scarf chosen for her to wear by a stylist. Of course, Dunkin’ Donuts denied any intended symbolism but pulled the ad anyway.

Malkin went on to applaud Dunkin’ Donuts for pulling the ad saying, “It’s refreshing to see an American company show sensitivity to the concerns of Americans opposed to Islamic jihad and its apologists. Too many of them bend over backward in the direction of anti-American political correctness.... Fashion statements may seem insignificant, but when they lead to the mainstreaming of violence - unintentionally or not - they matter. Ignorance is no longer an excuse. In post-9/11 America, vigilance must never go out of style.”

I wish I could look Ms. Malkin in the eyes, grab her by the shoulders and shake her! What tragedy does she think she just prevented? She’s obviously quite pleased with herself but what is apparently not so obvious to her is how much time she and her little buddies wasted on a doughnut commercial! If that’s all your editor has for you, Honey, it’s time to start looking into a new line of work! Most people are not sympathetic to Islamic jihadists, we are sympathetic to the rest of the Muslim community who are now grouped in with these fundamentalists. There is no such thing as anti-American political correctness! It may be pandering to overly sensitive groups, at times, but no one is being anti-American! This divisive language is the problem. Propaganda that spills out of the mouths of the talking heads like verbal diarrhea, that’s the problem. Ultimately, this is what’s wrong with America: 24-hour news channels who have to dig and struggle to find ratings.

God forbid they should actually just spend their time reporting on the news. They have to find morons like Malkin who can make a mountain out of a mole hill and then make it explode, sending debris in every direction and not caring what it hits. Accusations like Malkin’s do nothing but frighten and anger people. I watch a lot of Animal Planet and I can tell you exactly what most animals do when they become frightened. They attack. So, Ms. Malkin, you have not prevented anything. You have incited more prejudice, misunderstanding, fear and hate towards, not just Arabic, but all Middle Eastern people. Any dark brown person who could possibly be Muslim have been targets and, because of hate speech like this, continue to be targets.

I know it doesn’t get high ratings like action, drama and violence but wouldn’t it be nice if we began understanding these other cultures and understanding, perhaps, the meaning behind a keffiyeh rather than continue to paint with a broad brush dipped in fear? Even more frightening, what if we began to promote this understanding instead of making ridiculous accusations and coining new terms like “hate couture”?

Another disturbing thing coming from 24-hour news channels this week came from MSNBC. I was watching a webcast about Warren Jeffs, the leader of the Yearning for Zion polygamist compound that was raided in Texas. The woman delivering the newscast seemed like a professional journalist, until she opened her mouth. She began by saying authorities found photos of Jeffs with his 12-year old wives.

“Twelve-years old! Oh my God!” the newscaster said as she was delivering her newscast.

Last I checked, it’s not acceptable to add an opinion to a news story. As journalists, we are to remain unbiased, regardless of how heinous the story may be. I was completely appalled by her clear bias and ashamed at what the country is accepting as journalism these days. There is a time and a place (page 2, in this publication) to let your opinions be known and right in the middle of your news cast is neither of those.

We can complain about politicians and the government all we want, but first we must recognize what made them that way. There was a time when journalists everywhere, not just the editor of your local paper or the anchor of your local 6 o’clock news, took their responsibility of delivering the unbiased truth to the public very seriously. There was a time when news was about truth and not ratings. That time is apparently at its end.

Those of us who continue to believe in the importance of truth and the importance of, well, the important stuff will just have to press on through, I guess. Eventually, all the pundits and talking heads who call themselves journalists will go down and those of us who have remained dedicated to delivering the truth and staying committed to the importance of the people, events, places and things that really make a difference in the world, regardless of how small that world may be, well, we’ll be just fine, I think.