With the election season winding down, I've decided to use my space for a guest blog from our political reporter. Christopher Conover, take it away...
Story By Christopher Conover
October 21, 2010
I don't usually do this, as I think it is my place to provide information and not to give you my personal opinion. However, in this instance, I cannot remain silent. My comments have to do with civility--yes, that time-worn, biblical adage about treating others as you would have yourself be treated. I am referring here to the CD8 debate we hosted the other night.
Since the recent CD 8 debate many people have commented on the proceedings. The most common response I have heard so far is “Wow, that was crazy!” The people who made that repeated comment weren’t talking about the high level of discourse, or the candor of the candidates. They were talking about the audience.
The official count of those who attended and watched the debate in person was 1500. A new record for a live event hosted by Arizona Public Media. And I have to admit that I was happy to see that many people give up Monday Night Football, the Major League Baseball playoffs, and Dancing with the Stars to come out and take an active part in our democracy. By the end of the night I wasn’t so sure. Big crowds at political events mean big cheers and jeers. That is to be expected. But the anger was not.
Many of us remember the town hall on health care meetings two summers ago, which were marked not by the listening and passing along of information but instead by shouting, name calling, and insults. If you missed those town halls, just watch some members of the crowd at the CD 8 debate. There were calls of “bottom feeder” and “what about the Ponzi scheme” directed at the candidates. There was the woman in the white Giffords t-shirt who shouted comments at Jesse Kelly while he tried to answer questions; there was the man in the purple shirt who also tried to shout down Kelly. The police ended up talking with him. But don’t think it was just the supporters of Gabrielle Giffords causing the uproar--there were plenty of Kelly supporters who engaged in the same activity. The man in the blue denim shirt and Kelly hat who made enough comments during Giffords’ answers that even Kelly staffers were forced to turn around and “shhh” him. And the voice yelling “you lied” at Giffords from the back of the room.
It seems we can no longer simply agree to disagree on things. We have to shout the other side down, we have to make it personal, we have to be more intimidating even when it means letting respect fall by the way side. So you don’t like Gabrielle Giffords or Nancy Pelosi, or even Barack Obama. Great. Maybe you can’t stand Jesse Kelly, John McCain, and Sarah Palin. Good for you. But where is the respect? Some of these people were elected by a majority of the voters, some are veterans of the military, all are humans. Do we have so little self-respect that we now have to belittle those who don’t think like us? I’m not saying don’t support your candidate, I’m not encouraging people to sit on their hands. What I am saying is remember what you learned as a child. Treat others like you want to be treated.
The second most common remark after the debate was really a question: “Who won?” I really don’t know if you can “win” a debate, but I do know who lost. We all did when we lost the ability to respect that not everyone thinks like we do.
Here's an interesting article about ambitious plans spearheaded by four public broadcasting entities elsewhere in the country to spend $100 million on expanding news staffs in their cities to 100 reporters and editors per market, and emphasize getting news out in a more timely, tech-savvy manner rather than suffering the usual broadcasting delays.
Without giving too much away, I can tell you that we're taking baby steps in that direction independently at Arizona Public Media, although we're not planning to spend anywhere near that kind of money, and any reporters or editors we add to the staff over the next three years will be countable on a single hand. Stick around and see how things develop.
One question that goes unasked in the link: What, exactly, counts as a "reporter"? Let's remember that somebody calling in a tip--or merely a rumor--is, at best, a "source," and by no means a reporter, just as somebody who attends a concert and summarizes how enthusiastic the audience was and how the main performers swayed as they played is hardly a critic. I hope the mega-initiative in Minnesota, Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles will focus on quality, not crowdsourcing.
After hearing a story about Albania on NPR, I realized I don't know much about the country, except for what I learned on a sitcom. It's odd to say, but it still sticks with me.
Did you know Albania borders on the Adriatic? Did you know it's mountainous and its chief export is chrome? Take a look below and you'll see what I learned many, many years ago. I'll warn you...you'll be singing this song for days.
We have an underwriting spot, for my own presenting organization, that announces "the Czech Nonet, from the Czech Republic." As opposed to, maybe, the Czech Nonet from Burkina Faso? Tucson is rampant with such redundancies, but usually only when a foreign language is involved. Spanish: Rillito River ("rillito" means "little river"). Italian: Enoteca Wine Bar (an enoteca IS a wine bar). French: that menu favorite, French Dip au jus with gravy ("au jus" means "with [its own natural] juices"; don't get me started on "with au jus," which means "with with juice"). Other examples?
New episodes of The Desert Speaks and WaveLengths premiere beginning Oct. 28! The 19th and final season of The Desert Speaks will premiere on Thurs. Oct. 28 at 9 p.m. on PBS-HD Channel 6 immediately followed by the first installment in the third season of WaveLengths at 9:30 p.m. Both of these Emmy-Award® winning series are produced right here at Arizona Public Media and are terrific examples of your membership dollars at work.
In this final season, The Desert Speaks host, David Yetman, stays close to home exploring the border with Mexico and many unique Sonoran desert treasures. WaveLengths with host, Vicki Chandler, will explore "Genes, Germs, and Greenhouses,” in its premiere episode featuring the agri-science that is growing solutions which make crops safer from the farm, to the plate, to another planet.
On Monday, Oct. 11th at 9 p.m., PBS-HD Channel 6 premieres God in America - a 6-hour special co-production of AMERICAN EXPERIENCE and FRONTLINE airing over 3 consecutive nights. This series explores the potent and complex interaction between religion and democracy. Watch a preview of each episode and share your stories here.
The annual Fall Radio Membership Drive begins Monday, October 18 through Monday, October 25! Last year's successful pledge drive provided the resources to add in-depth news features on local and regional topics to Morning Edition. Call in your renewal or additional gift at 621-1600 or go online to make or renew your membership now.
Leading up to the August 24th state primary, AZPM provided more than two dozen debates and roundtables focusing on the different races and issues here in Southern Arizona. We will continue with even more debates and forums leading up to the election including complete coverage on election day and night. Visit the AZPM elections 2010 website for candidate interviews and proposition information. And don’t miss the live debate for Congressional District 8 between Gabrielle Giffords and Jesse Kelly on Monday Oct. 18th at 7 p.m. at the University of Arizona Student Union Ballroom, on PBS-HD Channel 6, NPR-KUAZ 89.1-FM and 1550 AM, and streaming online at http://ondemand.azpm.org/. This debate is a production of AZPM and is produced in association with the Associated Students of the University of Arizona and with production partner, Cox Communications.
Finally, I am delighted to report that 22 Emmy nominations were received by several of our talented staff from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Rocky Mountain Chapter, for television productions broadcast on AZPM stations over the last year. This is up from 12 nominations just a year ago and speaks volumes about the quality of our productions, and our people. The Emmy winners will be announced on October 9th, 2010. Keep your fingers crossed!
On behalf of all of us at AZPM, thank you for your continued support.
