Yesterday she got an email ... one of those chain emails? The ones that either warn you about impending doom or tell you if you don't forward the stupid thing in 5 minutes something awful will happen to you? She says what makes people think that there's a little guy in the computer that knows not only when you open the email, but also knows exactly how many minutes later you forward it.
Anyway, I'm getting off track again which you've all learned I do a lot. The reason is my brain is about the size of a softball and I just do the best I can with it.
So she got this email and the subject is "ABC Bans Flag Lapel Pins". Now, knowing my Meme, can you even imagine her reaction???!!! Yikes! She opens the email and it says this:
"Yesterday, the brass at ABC News issued orders forbidding reporters to wear lapel pin American flags or other patriotic insignia. Their reasoning was that ABC should remain neutral about "causes". Since when is support for preventing our death & destruction some sort of a cause? Since when is patriotism to be discouraged. I urge you to boycott ABC and its sponsors and affiliates.
Please forward this to as many as you can."
Then it gives a link to Snopes which is an internet site that checks out these things to find out if they're for real. So she clicked on it and sure enough ... it's real!!!!
And what really got her ripped is that this didn't happen yesterday ... this evidently goes back to right after 9/11/2001!!! And seven years later is the first she's hearing about it? Did no one know this? Did you?
And even more ..... WHY???? Well, I'll tell you why. It seems that after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., some news outlets asked their on-air personnel not to wear any patriotic symbols in order to "maintain an image of impartial neutrality". Hello!!!! They added that it was also to protect overseas reporters from being harmed if someone thought they were an arm of the American government. Huh?
Evidently ABC was prominent among these news outlets. They actually said they didn't want to signal how they feel, that it might appear by wearing these "symbols" they were spokespeople for the U.S. government. They wanted to appear neutral and remain "objective".
Well guess what. Meme says that WE'RE NOT OBJECTIVE!!! And by the way ... ABC stands for American Broadcasting Company (maybe they forgot that). Also, while it would be really nice if all news organizations were objective in every way, they're just not. Their "feelings" show through all the time. We don't think there are many people in this country who would get their back up because a reporter is wearing an American flag on the air (or anywhere else for that matter).
And for anyone who does???? Tough noogies.
'Til next time.
Molly
Copyright HBS 2008
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