tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7686152.post-1092073684656249142004-08-09T10:43:00.000-07:002004-08-09T10:52:29.523-07:00I read a large feature in a newspaper recently that told the tale of a rich white young man struck down in his prime, made all the more tragic for the fact that, let’s face it, he was a rich white young man struck down in his prime. People die everyday – not all of it is news. Not all of it should be news. And tales of accidents with no uniqueness about them except that they struck down a rich white young man in his prime, are not major national news stories, or shouldn’t be. <br /> <br />When they are treated that way, they demean all those other deaths that are not deemed significant because they were not rich or white or young or men. The implication being that if instead of a denizen of Bay Street dying in a high powered water toy at an exclusive resort, it was a dishwasher in a crummy restaurant in Parkdale who died in an industrial accident, his or her life and death would certainly not warrant national attention. <br /> <br />I don’t want to point to a specific article because that would just be cruel and pointless. For the family of the young man who died, it is in fact, a horrific and tragic event and I would not in any way want to insult that. My issue is with the more objective decisions being made about what constitutes news, or more particularly, a particular level of news. Was this an issue on the level of import as Darfur? Then why was it treated as such? <br /> <br />Decisions have to be made as to what to cover and my hope always is that the point of a major story on a personal tragedy is to focus on some larger issue related to that personal tragedy, one that informs and enlightens us, instead of in essence, telling us that some kinds of personal tragedy are more important than others. I did not learn anything from this particular article except that a stupid accident happened and people suffered as a result. Well, yes they would, and they do, everyday. That, unfortunately, is not news. And even more sadly in my mind, is that fact that it is still not news that the lives of some people seem to count for more than others. <br />Bubbleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01781146531102954747noreply@blogger.com