Al Sharpton - news reporter or news maker?

[jks9199]

It's kind of interesting the latitude that Rev. Al Sharpton has received in his activities. He host a regular show, reporting and commenting upon events of the day. Yet he is also an active activist, coordinating and staging demonstrations, advocating for causes... essentially, making the news he'll then comment upon. See Al Sharpton plays several sides in Trayvon Martin story from the Washington Post for discussion of this regarding Trayvon Martin.

Here's my question, and it can be expanded to a lot of talking heads: When does Al Sharpton, journalist, cross the line about being Al Sharpton, activist?

 

[elder999]

It's kind of interesting the latitude that Rev. Al Sharpton has received in his activities. He host a regular show, reporting and commenting upon events of the day. Yet he is also an active activist, coordinating and staging demonstrations, advocating for causes... essentially, making the news he'll then comment upon. See Al Sharpton plays several sides in Trayvon Martin story from the Washington Post for discussion of this regarding Trayvon Martin.

Here's my question, and it can be expanded to a lot of talking heads: When does Al Sharpton, journalist, cross the line about being Al Sharpton, activist?

He's not a "journalist." He's a commentator.As such, much like Bill O'Reilly or Gas Lamebag, he can be as much of an activist as his employers (or contract) allows.

 

[granfire]

Volksverhetzer.....

I hope someone is gonna snatch him up soon, the Good Lord or the Devil, don't matter much....

 

[Big Don]

When does Al Sharpton, journalist, cross the line about being Al Sharpton, activist?

Tawana Brawley

 

[granfire]

Tawana Brawley

:lfao:

 

[Big Don]

:lfao:

Yeah, because false accusations of rape, sexual assault, racial hate crimes are hilarious.

 

[granfire]

Yeah, because false accusations of rape, sexual assault, racial hate crimes are hilarious.

nah, you bringing it up at every turn, that's funny.

 

[Big Don]

nah, you bringing it up at every turn, that's funny.

Mary Jo Kopechne was unavailable to comment, because she was killed 44 years ago, not that Ted was held anymore responsible for his actions than Sharpton has been.

 

[Steve]

Elder has it exactly. He's not a journalist any more than Hannity or O'Reilly. He's paid to share an opinion and to interpret current events in a particular manner.

 

[jks9199]

But is there a line, between commenting on the news and actually creating the news you're providing commentary about? It's rather clear that Sharpton was heavily involved in the promoting the outrage about Trayvon Martin. Was he out line? The article mentions one incident where he talks about how some ministers are setting up a rally... and never mentions that he was one of the most prominent ministers setting up the rally...

 

[granfire]

But is there a line, between commenting on the news and actually creating the news you're providing commentary about? It's rather clear that Sharpton was heavily involved in the promoting the outrage about Trayvon Martin. Was he out line? The article mentions one incident where he talks about how some ministers are setting up a rally... and never mentions that he was one of the most prominent ministers setting up the rally...

We call that instigator where I come from.

 

[billc]

Hmmm...we spell "instigator," diffferently...for al "Tawana Brawley" sharpton you spell it A*****e.

From wikipedia on al "Tawana Brawley," sharpton...

Tawana Brawley controversy

For more details on this topic, see Tawana Brawley rape allegations.

On November 28, 1987, Tawana Brawley, a 15-year-old African-American girl, was found smeared with feces, lying in a garbage bag, her clothing torn and burned and with various slurs and epithets written on her body in charcoal. Brawley claimed she had been assaulted and raped by six white men, some of them police officers, in the town of Wappinger, New York.
Attorneys Alton H. Maddox and C. Vernon Mason joined Sharpton in support of Brawley. A grand jury was convened; after seven months of examining police and medical records, the jury found "overwhelming evidence" that Brawley had fabricated her story.[SUP][73][/SUP] Sharpton, Maddox, and Mason had accused the Dutchess County prosecutor, Steven Pagones, of racism and of being one of the perpetrators of the alleged abduction and rape. The three were successfully sued for defamation, and were ordered to pay $345,000 in damages, with the jury finding Sharpton liable for making seven defamatory statements about Pagones, Maddox for two, and Mason for one.[SUP][74][/SUP] Sharpton refused to pay his share of the damages; it was later paid by a number of black business leaders including Johnnie Cochran.[SUP][32][/SUP]

 

[granfire]

Hmmm...we spell "instigator," diffferently...for al "Tawana Brawley" sharpton you spell it A*****e.

From wikipedia on al "Tawana Brawley," sharpton...

Like I said:
Volksverhetzer.
Some terms just don't translate well. But is a bit of inheritance from Germans darkest hour.
'Rabble-rouser' does not capture the vitriol and vileness of the German term.

 

[arnisador]

News is dead, esp. on TV--it's entertainment. To me it's the same as with the Republicans employed by Fox.