One of our worst traits in journalism is that when we have a narrative in our minds, we often plug in anecdotes that confirm it. Thus we managed to portray President Gerald Ford, a first-rate athlete, as a klutz.
I'm sometimes embarrassed by how clinical I can become when I'm out reporting.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the speaker's awareness of becoming emotionally detached while performing their job.
Nicholas Kristof expresses a sense of embarrassment at his ability to adopt a detached, almost clinical approach when reporting on difficult subjects. This statement highlights the internal conflict that many journalists face, balancing the need to remain objective and the natural human inclination to empathize with the subjects they are covering. It draws attention to the psychological impact of consistently encountering distressing stories, suggesting that maintaining emotional distance can sometimes seem necessary for professional integrity.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about the challenges faced by journalists in maintaining objectivity.
More from Nicholas Kristof
All quotes βA basic element of the American dream is equal access to education as the lubricant of social and economic mobility.
Worrying about bills, food, or other problems leaves less capacity to think ahead or to exert self-discipline. So, poverty imposes a mental tax.
Most moms and dads, they want to be good moms and dads. But it's an incredibly hard job when you are stressed out, when you are poor, when your life is in chaos. And giving them some of the tools to be better parents, to whittle away at that parenting gap, gives those kids a much better starting point in life.
Since the end of the 1970s, something has gone profoundly wrong in America. Inequality has soared. Educational progress slowed. Incarceration rates quintupled. Family breakdown accelerated. Median household income stagnated.
The news media's silence, particularly television news, is reprehensible. If we knew as much about Darfur as we do about Michael Jackson, we might be able to stop these things from continuing.
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