04.25.07
The Way I See It #216
This is what was on my latte cup today:
A very bad (and all too common) way to misread a newspaper: To see whatever supports your point of view as fact, and anything that contradicts your point of view as bias.
– Daniel Okrent, first ombudsman of The New York Times and author of Public Editor #1.
Well, I think I have to disagree. This is a subtle way of stating that truth is relative. Your facts are different from my facts, and that’s OK. The responsibility to report the facts is removed from the newspaper, and is twisted into the fault of the poor dumb reader to overcome his biases. Plus, the statement itself is the product of a particular bias that Mr. Okrent is unable to separate himself from.
Tim said,
April 29, 2007 at 11:44 am
Since there probably is no good way to misread a newspaper, the first part of the quote should read something like: “An all too common way to misread a newspaper:”
What a numbskull…
A. C. Mercer said,
April 26, 2008 at 1:00 am
It’s a good way if, due to the misunderstanding, a terrorist fails to arrive at the right destination. Or something similar. You know what I mean. There are some good quotes on my blog.