The subsequent question that follows suit is whether or not public intellectuals become less-than-effective sources as their career statuses improve. Is there a direct correlation between popularity and polarity? The answer is conditional upon the public intellectual to whom one is referring. Susan Estrich utilizes her power correctly by holding on to her ideals throughout her career, while other public intellectuals provide a poor sampling of the public intellectual pool, like Juan Williams, whose intellect was sacrificed as his publicity increased.
Both Estrich and Williams have worked as editors for various periodicals, represent minority groups, identify with a liberal political position and have worked for Fox News. However, the news outlets that employed Williams eventually imputed his thinking and restructuring of his political assumptions, which can be measured by his controversial commentary on Fox News’s The O’Reilly Factor, followed by his termination as the host of National Public Radio’s daily talk show, Talk of the Nation.
When asked by Bill O’Reilly if he felt the United States was facing a dilemma with Muslims, Williams responded by saying, "Look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."
Soon after, Williams soon became a pariah in his own political party. He lost his job at NPR the following week, which was announced with the release of this statement in regard to his termination, “His remarks on The O'Reilly Factor this past Monday were inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and undermined his credibility as a news analyst with NPR”. Perhaps his political opinions simply changed over time, but it is hard to ignore the fact that his quick swing to the right corresponds with his increasing appearance on conservative television. Further, Bill O’Reilly was in the process of battling his own slanderous backlash from his appearance on ABC’s The View where he blamed Muslims for the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001. O’Reilly was looking for support, and Williams provided just that. Williams’ opinion was clearly influenced by those around him because it was out-of-line with his previous political positions.
Public intellectuals’ knowledge can only be viable as long as their identities remain consistent and strong. Susan Estrich manages to work within the confines of the polarized media that exists today without sacrificing her opinions to meet the demands of the audience.
In a blog posting by Estrich on January 9, 2009, she defended her allegiance to Israel,“if Israel is your enemy, so am I.”
There has been no change in her stance on Israel despite the recent demonstrations in Egypt, and America’s support of the Egyptian pursuit of freedom and democracy. She does not overlook the topic of Israel, and on February 11, 2011, she responded in accordance with her previous political positions about Israel,
“They are saying that one of the best and most courageous things Mubarak has done — despite some difficult periods, he maintained relations with Israel and recognized its existence — is reason enough for his downfall. I have a hard time finding anything romantic about that.”
Estrich does support the endeavors of the Egyptian population, but she does not marginalize her own priorities in favor of the greater American opinion. That is what qualifies her as a reliable, model public intellectual. In a pragmatic sense, the public intellectual must broaden its audience in order to survive, yet stick to what it knows best. A public intellectual offers expertise, not mediation.
No comments:
Post a Comment