When Jean Garner first walked into our Journalism 199 class, her presence wasn’t particularly striking. Her appearance was casual and she had a similar demeanor to most of the instructors on this campus. The knowledge she divulged, however, made a more lasting impression. First, we watched a documentary about educators in Pakistan who defy the norm by encouraging female students to pursue their academic goals. After watching the documentary, I realized that journalism has powerful storytelling potential when applied to otherwise highly politicized situations. The voices present in this documentary, those of Shabeena, the female students, and both of the village elders, would’ve have been lost amongst the rhetoric from those on both sides of the issue. Journalists from news organizations like Al Jazeera are able to showcase the human element to a global audience. This particular documentary proved that there are prominent male figures who don’t subscribe to patriarchal notions of whether females should get educated. Furthermore, the arguments female instructors used to convince students of their right to be educated, dispelled many myths about the tenants of Islam. Thus, effectively proving that there is a distinction between Islamic fundamentalism and the actual practices within the religion; a distinction that many in the West take for granted. Another part of her talk that illustrated the significance of journalism was her description of Al Jazeera’s funding. The Arab nation of Qatar has made it their priority to promote peace in the Middle East. Rather than pursue strategic foreign policy goals through “hard” power, they’ve chosen Al Jazeera as a “soft” power mechanism. Through Al Jazeera, they are able to disseminate information from a third party source to a broader Arab audience. This state-sponsorship has also caused many to be skeptical about claims that Al Jazeera is a truly independent news organization, especially since Qatar is officially an Islamic nation. The documentary she showed us, as well as this account of Al Jazeera’s funding, proved the intertwining nature of journalism and global politics.
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If you saw the intertwining of journalism and global politics in Al Jazeera's work, what do you think made the biggest impact on you as a viewer that you don't get through a regular broadcast on networks like ABC or FOX? Would you consider working for organizations that take an approach similar to Al Jazeera or do you prefer the network approach? Why? What are the benefits and pitfalls to each?
ReplyDeleteChristina- I feel that ABC and FOX, while most of the times are reliable sources for domestic news, only provide one perspective when it comes to global reporting. Since they're reporting for an American audience they're less likely to provide details or stories that they don't feel would appeal to this audience. I would consider working for organizations like this, only because I feel they present news in a way that's geared towards what i feel journalism should accomplish.
DeleteI would have to agree with you in the fact that Garner left a very lasting impression on many things including Al Jazeera and journalism.
ReplyDeleteGarner mostly left a lasting impression on myself when she discussed journalism and what it meant to us. Did you gain anything from this viewpont and her questions? What were your thoughts when she questioned about our reasons for journalism? Why do you want to be a journalist?
Kendall- I thought her Q&A session was valuable because it made me question why I wanted to pursue journalism. i gained more perspective on the importance of journalism, like i mentioned in the post. Her stories about the impact journalism has had on the Middle East and around the world made me realize that I can impact global affairs through my writing.
DeleteAgain, I was unfortunately sick the day Garner spoke to our class. But from everyone's comments, I can almost feel the inspiration of her message myself. I see that the documentary was a very powerful part of her presentation for you. Do you think she would have had the same lasting impression on the class without it?
ReplyDeleteKrystyna- I think she would have because her personal stories and experiences also gave me insight on the profession of journalism. However, the documentary provided context for her discussion of why journalism impacts global politics. As I mentioned above, I also though her q&a session was an important component of her visit.
DeleteHanna I remember you said you are a Political Science major. After being in this class, or being able to meet Jean Garner would you say that you are considering journalism as a possible career path? If not switching your major, possibly minoring, or just knowing that you would like to have a career that had elements of journalism in it in the future?
ReplyDeleteAfter taking this course I have considered journalism more seriously as a possible career option. I haven't narrowed down what type of reporting I would like to do, but I do know that that I enjoy writing and could apply political science knowledge when reporting.
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