Joseph Pulitzer, journalism pioneer, called for an accurate press.
“Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light,” Pulitzer said.
Certainly if Detroit is to be guided by the light of reports such as Hansen’s, we might as well turn off the lights and leave the city.
Last Friday Wayne State University School of Journalism honored Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Leonard Pitts Jr.; Lynette Clemetson, founding editor of the Root.com; Osama Siblani, publisher of the Arab American News; Walter Middlebrook, assistant managing editor of the Detroit News; and myself with the Helen Thomas Spirit of Diversity Awards. The award is named after Thomas, dean of the White House Press Corps.
The students in attendance heard from virtually every speaker on how significant diversity is. Because when stories like the one “Dateline” aired on Detroit are reported it underscores why we are fighting for diversity in the media. Because if we depended on the one-sided view of the Hansen-type reports, Detroit would be cast in the dark ages.
Diverse voices in the media help to unmask the kinds of subterfuge presented as special reports by media outlets that have shown what their editorial agenda is.
Watch senior editor Bankole Thompson’s weekly show, “Center Stage,” on WADL TV 38, Saturdays at 1 p.m. This Saturday’s program, April 24, will feature a feature a special roundtable discussion about the “Dateline NBC” report on Detroit with Tony Mottley, Emmy Award-winning producer; Deidre Bounds of Brogan and Partners; and Bertram Marks of the Detroit Council of Baptist Pastors. E-mail bthompson@michronicle.com.
Photo credit of homes: www.urbanophile.com
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