Do you hear what I hear?
Over the course of her vast and storied career, when broadcaster and journalist Barbara Walters (1929-2022) asked pointed questions to world leaders, did opinion writers of her day characterize her questions as “accusatory?” Perhaps they did and I was too young to be paying close attention at the time. No doubt Ms. Walters, unquestionably a pioneer and trailblazer in the field of journalism, faced her share of criticism as a woman asking tough questions to high-profile and prominent men in politics, sports and entertainment. Had she been a woman of color perhaps the criticisms of her may have been even more fierce.
The tone of ABC News’ Rachel Scott’s opening question to former President Donald Trump at Wednesday’s National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) conference in Chicago was not (to my ear!) “accusatory,” as described by Peggy Noonan in her Wall Street Journal “Declarations” opinion piece, “The Fight of Trump’s Political Life: Kamala Harris has the wind at her back. Her strengths became clearer in the last two weeks.” (August 1, 2024. 5:52 p.m. ET) In case you missed it, here is Rachel Scott’s opening question in its entirety.
“Hi, Mr. Trump. Rachel Scott. ABC News. Mr. President, we so appreciate you giving us an hour of your time. I want to start by addressing the elephant in the room, sir. A lot of people did not think it was appropriate for you to be here today. You have pushed false claims about some of your rivals — from Nikki Haley to President Barack Obama, saying that they were not born in the United States, which is not true. You have told four congresswomen of color, who were American citizens, to go back to where they came from. You have used words like ‘animal’ and ‘rabid’ to describe Black district attorneys. You’ve attacked Black journalists, calling them a ‘loser,’ saying that the questions that they ask are ‘stupid’ and ‘racist.’ You’ve had dinner with a white supremacist at your Mar-a-Lago resort. So, my question sir, now that you are asking Black supporters to vote for you: Why should Black voters trust you after you have used language like that?”
Rachel Scott’s well-phrased opening question was factual and the spirit in which she delivered it was professional and straightforward. That’s what I heard.
It is reported that some inside the NABJ objected to giving Mr. Trump this time and space, arguing to deplatform him, even as the organization has a history of inviting presidential candidates to speak at its annual conference. Given Mr. Trump’s propensity for lying, his critics within the NABJ did not want to use the organization’s platform and risk its reputation by offering an opportunity to perpetuate the former president’s lack of truth-telling; others argued that journalists should be allowed to be journalists: to question those in power on behalf of the American people in general and the cultural constituencies they serve in particular. I completely understand the former and wholeheartedly support the latter: by platforming controversial leaders, you shine the full heat of the spotlight on their foolishness and their flaws, on their brilliance and their buffoonery.
We all remember Mr. Trump’s Birtherism 1.0, initially featuring former President Barack Obama and more recently Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley; and we are all (at least I am!) fully prepared for Birtherism 2.0, featuring the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and current Vice President Kamala Harris, which has already in fact begun, and continued on that NABJ stage.
In a Politico piece (“Trump tells Dem congresswomen: Go back where you came from.” Posted 7/14/19 at 9:15 a.m. EDT), writers Bianca Quilantan and David Cohen report Mr. Trump as saying: “So interesting to see ‘Progressive’ Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly and viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful Nation on earth, how our government is to be run…Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came,” he added. “Then come back and show us how it is done. These places need your help badly, you can’t leave fast enough. I’m sure that Nancy Pelosi would be very happy to quickly work out free travel arrangements!”
The former president is widely thought to have been referencing Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), all of whom were born in the United States, with the exception of Omar, who immigrated to the U.S. as a Somalian refugee when she was a young child in the early-1990s.
Referring to Georgia’s Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, Mr. Trump called her a “rabid partisan,” as reported by PBS (“Trump’s attacks on prosecutors echo long history of racist language” posted on PBS.org under Politics on Aug 22, 2023 11:20 AM EDT). In that same article, Mr. Trump is quoted as describing Manhattan Attorney Alvin Bragg as a “Soros backed animal,” referring to the Hungarian-American billionaire businessman, investor and philanthropist.
Here’s a headline from The New York Times from a few years back: “Trump’s Latest Dinner Guest: Nick Fuentes, White Supremacist: The former president’s table for four at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday also included Kanye West, whose antisemitic statements have made him an entertainment-industry outcast” by Maggie Haberman and Alan Feuer (November 25, 2022).
First convened on Friday, December 12, 1975, at the Sheraton Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., among the NABJ’s founding members were Maureen Bunyan (WTOP-TV/Washington, D.C.), Pluria Marshall (freelancer), Max Robinson (WTOP-TV/Washington, D.C.), and DeWayne Wickham (Baltimore Sun) — all of whom intersected with my own pursuit and practice of journalism as a student in the mid-80s and as a young public relations and communications professional in the early 90s. These pioneers, among the 40+ other founding members, and all of the broadcast, print and online media professionals (and digital creators) that have followed in their footsteps over the past 40+ years since, have each and have all contributed to creating an ethical standard, a fine polish and a disciplined professionalism that was on full display by journalists Rachel Scott (ABC News), Kadia Goba (Semafor) and Harris Faulkner (Fox News) on that NABJ stage. Salute – to each of those fierce sisters who met that moment in fine form.
A curious thing what the ear hears. Where some hear anger and accusation in the questions of journalists, particularly journalists of color, others hear facts and curiosity, the latter comprising the deep roots of proper journalism.
Do you hear what I hear?
