Palaver from Persimmon Crossing
with Warren Faulk
JOURNALISTIC EPITAPH
An open letter to leading television newsmen.I have been listening to you for your entire national level career. Please give me 5 minutes.
How would you like to be remembered? If your epitaph were written today it could fairly include that you were handsome, compelling, successful in terms of ratings, but it would also necessarily state that you spent much of your time on things sensational, yet of little substance.
You have been given tremendous talent and opportunity which you have not used to their best advantage. How significant will your reports on O.J., Monica and Elian seem to the people of the future who will certainly know that you did not bear down on issues such as renewable fuels, clean water and charity? I mean really hammer at things for long periods of time like the space race, Watergate, Vietnam. Get some things done. Some things that cry out for attention.
These otherwise important things are not interesting enough to sell advertising? How does something get to be interesting? Packaging! What is it you do best? Packaging!
Do I suggest that you be biased? Have an agenda? No I do not suggest it. I just recognize it and now I'd like to harness it for good.
Your face is one of a person in the prime of life. Poised to do your best work. Uniquely positioned to do some major good. Well how about a push to:
-
Wean America from reliance on petroleum based fuels in this decade.
Put 10 million methanol fueled cars on the road in the next 5 years.
Actually do something with geothermal technology.
Reduce pollution levels by half in the remainder of your journalistic career.
Invite the homeless back into the fold.
P.S. I just heard that Mr. Peter Jennings intends to report on alternative forms of energy this week. The promo shows a field of wind turbines. The audio asks what happened to the promise. What happened is that we just haven't made the operational effort yet. At least not in any significant way. I don't know what his objective is or how far he intends to go with the theme. I hope he can get the train out of the station. Why should a news person be leading? Well ... leaders are where you find them. You use what you have.
-- Warren Faulk
Smarr, Georgia
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