Given the sleight of hand we've all seen the mainstream media deploy in recent days, one has to wonder what the term "professional journalist" really means. I had always thought... naively as it turns out... the word "professional" referred to a higher standard... someone who had served an apprenticeship and was capable of performing at peak proficiency. Well... silly me.
The Trayvon Martin shooting is a case in point. Apparently pumping up the emotional quotient of the story trumps any & all facts.
Let me explain.
The accused shooter, George Zimmerman, is constantly referred to as a "white hispanic"... which, I'm assuming refers to mixed race parentage. Using this sort of classification... one would have to refer to President Obama as a "black caucasian."
The only possible use of this term is to exacerbate racial tension.
In addition, much of the reportage has centered on Mr Zimmerman carrying a licensed, legal firearm... the implication being that he's one of those crazy, right-wing gun nuts. Turns out, Zimmerman is actually a registered Democrat, but hey... let's not get too wrapped up in details.
In stark contrast, Trayvon, an (albeit thrice suspended) high-school senior, was only armed with bag of candy and a can of soda. But ask yourself... was it really that black & white? Evidence & eyewitness testimony... glossed over by the majority of news outlets, suggest otherwise.
Most significantly, Trayvon is less the Cosby kid than is being portrayed. The thing I find most objectionable, apart from the superficiality of the coverage is the use of pictures to reinforce the media's initial premise that this was a one-sided hate crime.
Witness how the two parties are being portrayed... George Zimmerman by a booking photo from 2005 and Trayvon Martin as a smiling tween from a photo of similar vintage.
In the photos above, you get a better idea of who both of these men are today.
Heck, don't take my word for it... get it straight from the Tweeter's mouth...
Go on, click on the Twitpic... I dare you.
Oh, yeah... one more thing. Ask yourself which picture the almighty Globe & Mail uses in their most recent article, which incredibly, is citing photographic evidence to make their point. Go to the big picture at the top of the post to find out.
UPDATE: From Cosby Kid to Tupac ...second Trayvon twitter feed found...
"Plzz shoot da #mf dat lied 2 u!"LAST WORD: Speaking of victims...
