By Trent Rosser
This time of year, I usually write a little thing about Thanksgiving. I also try to abstain from writing about politics or religion. Hey, I said I try to abstain, I didn’t say that I always do! But something really has got my goat. Something has pushed my buttons where I can no longer ignore it. Jim Acosta and CNN.
As most everyone knows, our President, Donald Trump, along with many others, has declared CNN fake news. If you didn’t know, this is what happened the other day. Jim Acosta has credentials for the White House to sit in on press conferences. He, along with many members of the media, have special privileges to report what is going on there and ask questions. Most of the time, everyone is cordial. Mr. Acosta was not. Jim asked a question, and the President responded. But Mr. Acosta was not done, he kept trying to provoke the President. The President try to call on other members of the media for their question, and an intern tried to take the microphone away from Mr. Acosta. When Mr. Acosta moved to block the intern, his arm touched her arm. It was in no way a violent act, and no one was hurt (aside from a few feelings). The President said a few things to him and it became heated, but not too bad. Mr. Acosta’s White House credentials were immediately revoked.
Now when I was growing up, we had consequences for our actions. For example, When I ditched class and Mrs. Bowser from Crockett Jr. High caught me, I was in ISS (In School Suspension). When I was caught fighting with another student, we both received swats. Something that they taught us in school was: For every action, there is a reaction. Not all was bad either. If you worked hard, you would be rewarded. Jim Acosta's actions showed that he needed the swats. He was out of line and needed to regain his credentials by working towards it. Or maybe if he apologized, it would have never been taken away? Probably not, this is not the first time he has shown discontent and disrespect toward the President. CNN has many other journalists that have White House credentials, instead of sending someone new or moving someone that has worked hard to get the opportunity to be a part of the White House press, they sue to get Mr. Acosta credentials back. Really? This is a major news source and they are resorting to “I will tell my mommy” tactics? That really blew my mind. Instead of working with the White House and try to repair the relationship, they sue. Here is what gets me, the judge ruled that Mr. Acosta is to have his credentials restored. So just to get this straight, if you go to City Hall and clap, you are arrested for disrupting a meeting, but if you disrupt the President at a press conference, you just doing your job?
I can’t put all the blame on CNN and Jim Acosta, I blame all the media. Well, most of the media anyhow. Just about every news source is bias to some degree. Some go after certain politicians and some will sugar coat everything that the politician does. For instance, If a politician is caught with a prostitute, one headline will read;
Lady of the night and politician caught red handed at local motel
While another headline would read;
Politician donates hotel room to help prostitute get off the streets
Every story could be spun in so many different directions. The idea of a headline is to get the reader's attention. So a headline that may say something one way, could actually be something different. With all the bad news now a days, maybe journalists need to take responsibility. Jim Acosta should go back to CNN and work an anchor job or an editorial position. That way he can say what he wants with no repercussions. I believe that the journalists are the keys to happiness in the world. They are the ones that report the news and they need to start to spin stories in a positive light. Why does everything have to be so bad. Here is an example of what we can do. A while back, our Mayor Ginger Nelson had a man arrested for clapping at a meeting. His charge was “disruption of a meeting”. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram headline was;
Amarillo City Council; Kip Billups arrested for clapping during meeting
It could have been so much better and friendlier if the headline said:
Mayor Nelson spares dozens from jail time; one man arrested
It doesn't even have to be about politics. Instead of the headline;
Motorist gridlocked due to more interstate construction
It should be printed as;
A small delay for a new and improved highway
It’s not that hard to make a world a better place. Smile when you can, respect others even if they disagree with you and be prepared for the consequences of your actions. Not just Jim Acosta and CNN, but all networks and media sources. After all, if you go to a business and disrupt daily operations, you will be either asked to never return or arrested. That is just common sense, but then again, common sense has left this world long ago.
Maybe, just maybe, this is about Thanksgiving.. I am thankful that I have creative control of my column and I am thankful for my editor and publisher for allowing me to print my little stories, no matter how stupid they may seem to some people. Most of all, I am glad I am not a journalist. I am just a columnist that tries to put a smile on a face and in a world of darkness I try to show some light and hope. Happy Thanksgiving!
