In news that I’m sure will absolutely and completely take you by surprise, a CBC Editor shared openly that the reason Indigenous issues aren’t often represented in the mainstream media is because white people don’t read/listen to it:
This is not a guess. Whereas news organizations in the past relied mostly on gut instinct to gauge the importance of any particular subject to the audience, they now have hellishly accurate online tools that can measure precisely how many people are reading any story at any moment.
Big numbers are the prize, and editors and columnists know beyond a doubt that when they select certain topics for coverage, the audience will probably tank.
I’ve learned that one guaranteed way to shrink my numbers is to write about Israel/Palestine, or, to an even greater extent, Indigenous issues.
In that vein I’ll remind FtB readers that Caine is at the actual Standing Rock Camp doing bonafide journalism. You can see the first post of their series here.
It is important for you to know. Better if you can help in some way and choose to. Money can be sent here or here. Signal boost the campaigns, Caine’s work, or those few media outlets that are reporting on the camp fairly. Or even attend the camp! Anything but “meh” is helpful.
-Shiv
So white people don’t want to see/hear about matters which affect indigenous people? Not exactly a surprise. Also not surprising is that the CBC (any Broadcasting Company, really) would be aware of what sort of news items have what sort of effect on the size of their audience. Can’t really fault the CBC for having that awareness.
What the CBC can be faulted for, is the attitude summed up in the words, “Big numbers are the prize.” Give the people what they want to see and hear, and don’t concern yourself with whatever they should be seeing & hearing; journalism is just another channel to deliver eyeballs to advertisers, right?
A very appropriate poem from Humbert Wolfe:
You cannot hope to bribe or twist,
(thank God!) the British journalist.
But, seeing what the man will do
unbribed, there’s no occasion to.
Apparently, Wolfe’s words apply to more journalists than just the British kind.