Frank Somerville Suspended By KTVU Update – Oakland’s Dr. Elnora T. Webb, PhD Op Ed

KTVU Treatment of Frank Somerville Speaks Volumes astir What’s Considered Newsworthy
By Elnora T. Webb, PhD

Elnora Tena  Webb  PhD

A beloved loved 1 conscionable shared distressing news, Frank Somerville, has been suspended “pending further review” by Fox-owned KTVU. Frank Somerville, a long-standing writer who began his enactment with KTVU successful 1991, began co-anchoring the evening quality successful 2008. Up to now, hundreds of thousands of america person tuned successful to KTVU successful bid to acquisition the authentic clarity of facts and insights provided by Mr. Somerville. Frank, arsenic helium is called by galore of us, is not lone a singular fixture connected KTVU, helium has been unwavering successful his enactment of our large and divers assemblage crossed and beyond the Bay Area.

We are disheartened to acquisition his absence. More importantly, we are profoundly troubled to
learn that helium has been removed – aft 30 years of work -, and conscionable shy of his status due
to a “newsroom spat” due to the fact that helium wanted to convey contextual facts.

The ceremonial and informal property authorities that his removal is based connected his tendency to illuminate the
rampant home unit and its disproportionate interaction connected women of colour and Indigenous
People, which goes “largely ignored” by the press.

Why is what Frank wanted to stock controversial? For a increasing fig of america crossed these agreed states, our superior intent successful accessing the “news” is to unafraid facts, including and particularly contextual details. Increasingly, we question INTEGRITY and FAITH successful the accuracy, transparency, and richness of the accusation disseminated. However, excessively frequently, what we person are watered down dependable bites that dainty viewers arsenic though we person constricted (or no) captious reasoning capableness and constricted judgment, incapable of discerning what is close from what is purely for amusement – adjacent erstwhile the alleged impermanent amusement is horrific similar the murdering of women, men, and children.

What’s the issue? A predisposition to “dumb down” alternatively than “elevate” What did the precocious Carl Sagan constitute successful his 1995 published The Demon-Haunted World: Science arsenic a Candle successful the Dark?

“The dumbing down of American is astir evident successful the dilatory decay of substantive contented successful the enormously influential media, the 30 2nd dependable bites (now down to 10 seconds oregon less), lowest communal denominator programming, credulous presentations connected pseudoscience and superstition, but particularly a benignant of solemnisation of ignorance”

Challenging the presumption quo are different singular members of the media. These professionals are pulling backmost the curtain, educating radical connected erstwhile beliefs that were held to beryllium true. Now, they, too, are coating a much analyzable and implicit picture. In fact, excessively galore professionals specified arsenic the constabulary had been taught disparaging ways to objectify others i.e., prostitution is simply a victimless crime. Now, this and truthful galore different scripts are being challenged and replaced to uncover the value of societal justice.

What is the solution?

Short-term – instrumentality Frank to his occupation without immoderate ramifications owed to his humanities contributions Long-term – beryllium innovative and put successful a strategical rethinking of the nature, content, and transportation of quality that honors humanity and our capableness to workout discernment and truthful overmuch more.

How bash we get to the semipermanent solution? To beryllium determined based successful portion on:

• Establishing wide shared values and a imaginativeness for the quality i.e., to pass astir the human
  conditions and elevate humanity
• Leveraging experts among journalists, futurists with humanities backgrounds, societal science
  researchers, and professionals from divers industries with occurrence starring innovations that
  elevate conditions for ample groups of individuals
• Recognizing that our lives are precise analyzable and becoming overmuch much truthful – thus,
  education via the quality is essential
• Honoring the tremendous capableness of each people, autarkic of their existent usage of mental
  or affectional faculties – retrieve folks emergence to the level of expectations
• Always remembering, arsenic humans we person evolved and volition germinate successful ways that whitethorn be
  difficult to ideate astatine this clip – that is unless we bash imagine
• Guarding against the presumption quo oregon hazard the continued nonaccomplishment of your assemblage and helping to
  ratchet up a impermanent conception of our colonisation that seems blessed with the media game
  that is until they, too, disengage

Folks are awake – past twelvemonth successful implicit 1,000 cities, much than 45 cardinal Americans were joined by countless millions of others crossed the satellite successful protestation to injustices arsenic the video of the sidesplitting of George Floyd illuminated – FINALLY – to truthful galore the stark world that excessively galore of america woody with regular – that determination are 2 Americas wrong the U.S. The lone interest I had, expressed, and committed my beingness to code is what is the imaginativeness we question to render ubiquitous truthful that these and different heinous actions are eliminated astatine champion (and addressed systematically with existent justness and equitably astatine least).

In speaking with different earlier completing this draft, she informed maine of a show, Queen Sugar, wherever a deficiency of knowledge, understanding, anger, hurt, and fearfulness led to actions, transactions, and ignorance that prolonged those harmful dispositions. It was not until honorable and nonstop communications began did the parties to these feelings statesman to recognize wherefore and however the different – hurt, engaged successful actions that deepened the wounded and solidified the distrust and anger. The constituent present is that we don’t cognize what we don’t know, that is until we bash know. While the information of the communicative reflected present is betwixt 2 women who had been puerility friends, the quality of our media engages successful ways that perpetuate hurt, solidify distrust, and origin choler autarkic of its intent.

The happening we cognize astir home unit and quality trafficking is that the humanities lens was replete with biases, assumed the individuals being violated were blameworthy parties oregon worse off, deserved the violations. How bash we bring airy to facts wrong the broader discourse successful bid to pass nine much fully? How bash we bash truthful to assistance nine beforehand to a healthier paradigm (towards worthy ideals)? Humbly, I reason that the facts are not truthful without context. Related, “impartial” journalism has been taken to mean negating the contextual facts successful favour of what volition sell.

BTW: the beloved loved 1 to whom I referenced earlier is simply a woman, Chinese, aged 73. I americium a woman, Black Native Latina, soon to beryllium 63.

ZENNIE62MEDIA, INC. note: Oakland’s Dr. Webb sent this sentiment editorial for publication.  Anyone who has a substance oregon video presumption connected a taxable of nationalist involvement tin nonstop it to zennie@zennie62media.net