Thursday, September 19, 2019
Justification
It is common for those who transgress to justify their actions with the phrase, "Everybody does it." The response, of course, is that "Everybody doesn't. Only some do." That is why this fellow's testimony to Congress is reprehensible. He told them that he lied on national television because the media are "as dishonest as everyone else." Not only was he wrong, but he was outrageous. Editors and reporters will target him in retribution for a comment like that. They will be accurate and fact-driven but will seek to destroy him. And, well they should. There is little to be gained and much to lose for lying to the media. This is not to assume that journalists are standards of truth. There are venal operators who make up and bend facts to their self-interest in reporting. They are human and subject to the same faults as everyone else. But, for the most part, the media respect facts and evidence as standards by which they live. PR professionals know that, and it is why accuracy is so important when dealing with reporters. It is misery to work with or for someone who lies pathologically. The best solution is to resign. Those who hang on in the Trump administration have made a bargain with the devil, one they can't win.
Comments:
Post a Comment