I don't care if you disagree, I have to give the guy credit for having the balls to speak the truth.
Tom Robbins used his keynote address at the National Association of Broadcasters conference on April 14 to speak out about the "dangerous lack of diversity of opinion" that characterizes the state of broadcasting today.
I urge you to read this article and if you get a chance listen to the speech.
I sent it to a friend, and he pretty much ripped Robbins apart saying "Anyway, Robbins is a flake. This whole speech made me want to puke because he's going on and on how the industry needs to change for the better. Money makes the world go round. Always has, always will. He acknowledges that the companies need to be profitable, but he just doesn't get it if he is making this speech to begin with."
And though in some ways he is right, I feel that the situation is changing. This is HOW change HAPPENS. First people feel, think, that someone speaks up, that causes a ripple, more people speak up, causes a wave and action comes next. Media can change, little by little and educate people different. Business is still driven, but perhaps we can improve the "fuel"...kind of like switching to renewable?...
Thanks to technology, it is easier for us (who have access) to influence content. We can make a difference. Look at the rise of Open Sourse, look at the issues we are discussing. We need to take responsibility, be informed and inform others.
Another video that goes right in hand with Robbins, is this one by Clay Shirky
So...i wanted to share that. Hope they cheer you up as well.
Enjoy and stay posted
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1 comment:
I dispute your friend's contention that Robbins is flake. He does his homework. One of the flaws of Dead Man Walking was Robbins' obsession to cram in every last detail and nuance of the Death Penalty debate, and this made this film drag on and on. The television broadcast of his play Embedded had footnotes! One can call Robbins a geek, yes, but a "flake", no.
As to your friend's implication that Robbins' acknowledgement of the need for news corporations to make money necessarily entails the acknowledgement that diversity of opinion is not profitable, this is just nonesense. Diversity of opinion does not exist not because it is unprofitable but because of media consolidation which squelches competition and, by extension, views alternative to the ones proferred by Murdoch and GE.
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