tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684843.post3385487512666474123..comments2024-03-26T22:16:26.572-04:00Comments on Terrierman's Daily Dose: Jessica Elgot is a Racialist, Not a ReporterPBurnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05781540805883519064noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684843.post-84857617760606409202012-01-16T08:54:30.469-05:002012-01-16T08:54:30.469-05:00I'm afraid Ms. Elgot's journalism is indic...I'm afraid Ms. Elgot's journalism is indicative of her age and the type of mentors she's associating with. The editors don't pull her out nor retract because it's in their best interest to create sensation which attracts more readers. <br />Yes, I agree. You were very kind to state she was lazy. But this is not the only article with racialist enflamed wording that she has written. Therefore, she doesn't care to correct herself nor do the editors. She is motivated by the typical marketing strategies that so many journalists employ these days. What will the customer buy? Her age might be an influence yes, but her character dictates a pattern of "slash and burn" then go over the tactics to see what the outcome is... Hmmm. Yes, come to think of it, many of my reporter friends did this kind of thing to a lesser degree when it was about competing for a job. I'm not surprised about the reporting of this journal because there are so many more doing the same thing. I do love this entry because it speaks my sentiments exactly. Thanks.Sanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07406377633382100731noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684843.post-48720460477273665762012-01-15T10:27:24.327-05:002012-01-15T10:27:24.327-05:00Wow. You sure took Ms. Elgot to talk, Mr. Burns. ...Wow. You sure took Ms. Elgot to talk, Mr. Burns. I'm glad that I'm not in her position. <br /><br />She does deserve it, however (and so do her editors). You were actually merciful when spread the blame around to the editors, the nature of the publication (the JC), and the fact that Ms. Elgot might be incompetent ('not very well-trained and lazy') rather than malicious. It is nice of you to do that, because Mr. Elgot's article is the journalistic equivalent of a drive-by. <br /><br />I don't know what the culture is like in the UK, but here in the USA, accusations of racism and antisemitism are radioactive. They don't have to be true in order to be damaging. Calling PDE "Nazi-linked" and saying that Jewish breeders want PDE to be pulled entirely is, at minimum, grossly irresponsible. Ms. Elgot's article is full of weasel words and semantic gymnastics (I am actually going to save it to give to my composition and rhetoric students--it will be an excellent pedagogical tool). Yes, a drive-by. Definitely.<br /><br />If Ms. Elgot is held accountable for what she wrote, then this could be a real learning experience for her. I think your blog post might be the catalyst for this. When I was an undergrad, I wrote political opinion for my school paper. One of the earliest articles I wrote was a critique (actually, a drive-by) of libertarianism. I went to an internet forum for libertarians and cut-and-pasted some objectionable posts there in order to argue that libertarians were racially insensitive goons. It was low-hanging fruit and totally unfair of me to do that. I was LAMBASTED and had to make a humiliating retraction and a public apology. I was embarrassed that I was being publicly shamed, but mostly I was embarrassed that I'd done something so sleazy. Boy, did I learn my lesson! No more yellow journalism for me!<br /><br />Maybe Ms. Elgot will have a similar experience now. Or maybe not. But she wrote it and now she owns it, and you are entirely right to call her out on it. <br /><br />Ro Martinet<br />romartinet@gmail.comRo Martinethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05773162929408671789noreply@blogger.com