Early television was so powerful because for the first time people didn't need reporters telling them the circumstances. Reading about or seeing a photo of something never told the whole story. I think TV was the main spark of the civil rights movement. All of a sudden middle America was SEEING, in real time, black people beaten, attacked by dogs, blasted by fire hoses, etc, and realizing there's something seriously wrong going on down there.
Now? You can watch two video clips of the exact same thing and they're edited or spun to be exactly opposite, and most people will only believe their sources version of it. Every time.
If Biden can win in November and make it stick, because many Republican leaders have already signaled they will not accept the result if Trump is defeated, then I do feel somewhat more hopeful about energy and climate change than I have since I became aware of the issue. The Inflation Reduction Act has set a number of very useful programs in motion that will help to decarbonize our economy, especially in terms of leveraging public money to unlock private investment, but they will only be fully realized with a second Biden term.
We are only going to abandon fossil fuels when renewable technologies are less expensive. That has already happened with coal. It could happen with oil. It may be very hard to get there with natural gas. This may not result in a fast enough transition to avoid cooking ourselves, but it is as fast as we will go, so I hope it's sufficient. This is what passes for optimism round these parts. :)
I'm very pleased that you've finished your book, Will! Looking forward to reading it.
Good piece. I struggle with the “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times”’feelings myself.
Title is good but made me think of Phil Hartman’s radio segment on Newsradio: The Real Deal with Bill McNeil.” Looking forward to another book! Congrats.
I am honestly surprised that you don't read the Sunday paper, Will. It's the only local paper delivery I get, and it might take me until Tuesday, but I read all the sections except sports (sorry). I miss the lightweight-ness of Parade Magazine and the Sunday ads. I know paper media will be gone by the time my kids realize they need deeper detail than Twitter or Tik Tok can give (and I'm on Twitter a lot, especially for breaking news), but I'm happy to have had it.
The stats show that people are more tolerant than ever before--support for same-sex marriage in Mississippi is about what countrywide support for interracial marriage was 30 years ago. Support for increased immigration is near all-time highs. High-profile incidents are indicative of unrest over issues that had previously been resolved, in a bad way. You cannot say that people are worse now than they were in the 90s, any more than you can say the people were more racist in the 1950s and 60s versus the 1930s, when racism was written into the New Deal.
If you think that Trump is worse than Dubya, then you are making an Express argument that norms are more important than lives. I probably agree with that, but we need to be honest. There is no basis, for all of Trump's horrors, to think he will kill more people than Bush 43.
Finally, the people most repelled by Trump, in a way that actually motivates voting, are MLK's much-maligned white moderates, specifically college-educated women. In NC, Biden is going to get the highest white support of any Democrat since Carter in 1976, and liberal Democrat since LBJ or maybe even FDR. But the most racist major-party candidate since Nixon, xenophobic since Ike, anti-Arab since Dubya, and antisemitic since Nixon is going to get the highest GOP Black, Hispanic, Arab, and Jewish support since 1960, Ever, 2000, and 1976, respectively. How do we reconcile that?
Machismo is core to fascist ideology? I'd be shocked if Black, Hispanic, Arab and Jewish _women_ vote for Trump in greater numbers than any previous election in North Carolina.
Congratulations on finishing the draft! I like the title but the two words “Gentle Edicts” stand out the most and sound vaguely titular too. I’m excited and curious to learn what those ten are (and who Lloyd is).
I appreciate your taking both angles in Robert’s assignment. Definitely gave even more to think about. It’s such a delicate balance between hiding from the ever-churning news cycle and feeling informed. 2024 has seen me engage with news and media less than anytime since 2020, and I’m mentally healthier than at anytime since 2020. Maybe it’s a coincidence, or maybe some of us just aren’t made for that access.
Congrats on finishing the draft! I'm sure that's an incredibly satisfying feeling.
I took today's topic with me on a hike with my 18yo son. We got a lot of mileage out of it literally and figuratively. I'd love to say that he was more optimistic than I was, but it's just not true. He is well read for a kid his age, and the downside of that is there's no innocence left to protect him from the harsh reality of where the world is right now. But at least he understands the challenge his generation is inheriting. That's gotta count for something.
Always trenchant, Will; thanks for a good read. I too have been thinking about the immediacy and ubiquity of news, remembering a media class I once took that accused television of being a 'soma.' lulling the masses to sleep. That was long before social media, which now pushes our buttons to a point of stimulus generalization. Same world, though. You made me think of Morrissey's song "Spent The Day In Bed,' in which he sings:
I appreciate seeing Ebert sprinkled amongst this piece - having worked at the Sun-Times years ago, I remember meeting him - nice guy - and, a really tragic physical ending to his life.
A huge thanks to North Carolina State: its run was the difference for me. :) And thank you, Will -- as a writer who's never gotten to sit on the other side of the editor's desk, it was fun to think of someone else's assignment for once.
You've pulled me back in. Masterfully written. I only wish the good part was 2nd, so I was more likely to remember it, instead of quietly despairing after reading the negative. Oof, too be young and preparing for soccer camp. "NINE-NINE!"
So Wil with the T20 World Cup being played partially in the United States at the moment will you be writing about it at any stage (it’s cricket but narrowed down not just from 5 days to one day like the one day games but narrowed down to 3 hours with lots of big hits and athletic baseball inspired fielding)
Nice read, and perhaps the most important point always to remember... Today's news consumption is tailored to what we already believe. And that's really the root of it all.
Early television was so powerful because for the first time people didn't need reporters telling them the circumstances. Reading about or seeing a photo of something never told the whole story. I think TV was the main spark of the civil rights movement. All of a sudden middle America was SEEING, in real time, black people beaten, attacked by dogs, blasted by fire hoses, etc, and realizing there's something seriously wrong going on down there.
Now? You can watch two video clips of the exact same thing and they're edited or spun to be exactly opposite, and most people will only believe their sources version of it. Every time.
It's ... kind of distressing!
If Biden can win in November and make it stick, because many Republican leaders have already signaled they will not accept the result if Trump is defeated, then I do feel somewhat more hopeful about energy and climate change than I have since I became aware of the issue. The Inflation Reduction Act has set a number of very useful programs in motion that will help to decarbonize our economy, especially in terms of leveraging public money to unlock private investment, but they will only be fully realized with a second Biden term.
We are only going to abandon fossil fuels when renewable technologies are less expensive. That has already happened with coal. It could happen with oil. It may be very hard to get there with natural gas. This may not result in a fast enough transition to avoid cooking ourselves, but it is as fast as we will go, so I hope it's sufficient. This is what passes for optimism round these parts. :)
I'm very pleased that you've finished your book, Will! Looking forward to reading it.
I'll take all the optimism I can get at this point. (And I hope you like it!)
Good piece. I struggle with the “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times”’feelings myself.
Title is good but made me think of Phil Hartman’s radio segment on Newsradio: The Real Deal with Bill McNeil.” Looking forward to another book! Congrats.
Anything that reminds people of NewsRadio is good with me.
I am honestly surprised that you don't read the Sunday paper, Will. It's the only local paper delivery I get, and it might take me until Tuesday, but I read all the sections except sports (sorry). I miss the lightweight-ness of Parade Magazine and the Sunday ads. I know paper media will be gone by the time my kids realize they need deeper detail than Twitter or Tik Tok can give (and I'm on Twitter a lot, especially for breaking news), but I'm happy to have had it.
Yeah, I would love to ... but honestly, I'm usually too busy taking these kids to some sort of practice on Sundays!
The stats show that people are more tolerant than ever before--support for same-sex marriage in Mississippi is about what countrywide support for interracial marriage was 30 years ago. Support for increased immigration is near all-time highs. High-profile incidents are indicative of unrest over issues that had previously been resolved, in a bad way. You cannot say that people are worse now than they were in the 90s, any more than you can say the people were more racist in the 1950s and 60s versus the 1930s, when racism was written into the New Deal.
If you think that Trump is worse than Dubya, then you are making an Express argument that norms are more important than lives. I probably agree with that, but we need to be honest. There is no basis, for all of Trump's horrors, to think he will kill more people than Bush 43.
Finally, the people most repelled by Trump, in a way that actually motivates voting, are MLK's much-maligned white moderates, specifically college-educated women. In NC, Biden is going to get the highest white support of any Democrat since Carter in 1976, and liberal Democrat since LBJ or maybe even FDR. But the most racist major-party candidate since Nixon, xenophobic since Ike, anti-Arab since Dubya, and antisemitic since Nixon is going to get the highest GOP Black, Hispanic, Arab, and Jewish support since 1960, Ever, 2000, and 1976, respectively. How do we reconcile that?
Machismo is core to fascist ideology? I'd be shocked if Black, Hispanic, Arab and Jewish _women_ vote for Trump in greater numbers than any previous election in North Carolina.
Of course it is, but I didn't specify based on sex. Good chance we'e both right.
Most racist since Woodrow Wilson*
Congratulations on finishing the draft! I like the title but the two words “Gentle Edicts” stand out the most and sound vaguely titular too. I’m excited and curious to learn what those ten are (and who Lloyd is).
I appreciate your taking both angles in Robert’s assignment. Definitely gave even more to think about. It’s such a delicate balance between hiding from the ever-churning news cycle and feeling informed. 2024 has seen me engage with news and media less than anytime since 2020, and I’m mentally healthier than at anytime since 2020. Maybe it’s a coincidence, or maybe some of us just aren’t made for that access.
This strikes me as inherently sane.
I wanted to win because well who doesn’t. But kudos to RSpuhler for coming up with a fine topic for a newsletter.
It really was a terrific topic to play with.
Congrats on finishing the draft! I'm sure that's an incredibly satisfying feeling.
I took today's topic with me on a hike with my 18yo son. We got a lot of mileage out of it literally and figuratively. I'd love to say that he was more optimistic than I was, but it's just not true. He is well read for a kid his age, and the downside of that is there's no innocence left to protect him from the harsh reality of where the world is right now. But at least he understands the challenge his generation is inheriting. That's gotta count for something.
I look forward to having these sort of conversations with my kids when they're 18. (Well, maybe not THIS exact conversation.)
Always trenchant, Will; thanks for a good read. I too have been thinking about the immediacy and ubiquity of news, remembering a media class I once took that accused television of being a 'soma.' lulling the masses to sleep. That was long before social media, which now pushes our buttons to a point of stimulus generalization. Same world, though. You made me think of Morrissey's song "Spent The Day In Bed,' in which he sings:
And I recommend that you
Stop watching the news
Because the news contrives to frighten you
To make you feel small and alone
To make you feel that your mind isn't your own
I don't know if I agree with Morrissey on this!
I appreciate seeing Ebert sprinkled amongst this piece - having worked at the Sun-Times years ago, I remember meeting him - nice guy - and, a really tragic physical ending to his life.
A huge thanks to North Carolina State: its run was the difference for me. :) And thank you, Will -- as a writer who's never gotten to sit on the other side of the editor's desk, it was fun to think of someone else's assignment for once.
You've pulled me back in. Masterfully written. I only wish the good part was 2nd, so I was more likely to remember it, instead of quietly despairing after reading the negative. Oof, too be young and preparing for soccer camp. "NINE-NINE!"
Will I'm like 77% sure that ball was foul.
So Wil with the T20 World Cup being played partially in the United States at the moment will you be writing about it at any stage (it’s cricket but narrowed down not just from 5 days to one day like the one day games but narrowed down to 3 hours with lots of big hits and athletic baseball inspired fielding)
You know, I've always wanted to get into cricket. Maybe now that the book is turned in I'll have time to actually do so!
Especially if you can avoid seeing the score before hand strongly suggest watching USA v Pakistan from last night
T20 is a great introduction to the game
20 overs per team
Lots of big hitting (purists like me dislike how much bat dominates ball in this format, but for newbies I’m guessing that’s not going to be an issue)
Over in 3 hours
And given the World Cup is being hosted currently in the US and Caribbean then time zone wise it should work out ok for you viewing time wise
Nice read, and perhaps the most important point always to remember... Today's news consumption is tailored to what we already believe. And that's really the root of it all.
I see the Cold War finally going hot this generation. Not sure where that fits into everyone’s perspective of reality.
But my hope is that Joker2 gets released on time this fall and theaters still open their doors with no mask requirements. Priorities.