PHM-Exch> Food for a confessional thought

[Claudio Schuftan]

Human Rights Reader 320



*THE SUPERFICIALITY AND FRIVOLOUSNESS OF THE PUBLIC OPINION WORKS AGAINST
THE NEEDS OF OUR HUMAN RIGHTS MOVEMENT. *
                        -Unfortunately, the public opinion has not yet
realized that it opines what the private opinion wants them to opine. (Quino)


Journalism helps shape public opinion; it thus is part of politics.  Keep
in mind that one of the basic tools to manipulate reality (or the truth) *is
* the manipulation of words*.* When trustworthy news are not available or
when news manipulate reality, we fall into the reign of rumours and
clandestine communications --and people feed on it. And when human rights
(HR) are being neglected and violated, the press must have more courage
than rigor; when one lives in democracy, courage is not so much needed as
rigor.

**People who are not confused about HR probably owe this fact to their
total lack of information. That is why, perhaps facetiously, Thomas
Jefferson once said that a man who never reads a newspaper is better
informed than a man who does; this, due to the fact that the one who knows
nothing is closer to the truth than the one whose mind is full of
falsehoods and errors. It was over 200 years ago, that Jefferson actually
also said that the freedom of the press was a pain that we must bear,
because our liberty depends on it. We could add: …because human rights
depend on it.

To read the rest of the Reader, go to

http://wp.me/plAxa-1Ir

Claudio
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