National Public Radio

Note: I had already written most of this when I began hearing news about the firing of Juan Williams from NPR. Although everything I have written here remains valid, I have been hesitant to post this since my feelings about NPR are currently dominated by the subject of the firing. I will post a separate entry about Juan Williams.

I often listen to National Public Radio while driving my car. This arose partly from the fact that at my home, the signal for their stations tends to be weak. In addition to music, I hear many interesting, thought-provoking, and profound things on National Public Radio, while driving my car.

There are various problems associated with this. For one thing, I often miss the beginning and/or end of a story or interview. I also tend to miss or forget the details. If I were reading, or even watching TV in the comfort of my home, I would be more likely to catch people’s names, or the titles of books they have written, and I could further research the information later, at my leisure. (I realize it is POSSIBLE to later track down information heard on National Public Radio, but it can be difficult, especially if my memory is hazy since I was focused on my driving.)

For example, a few months ago I heard part of a fascinating interview with someone who had written a book about something. I was especially impressed with some comments the author made about ... I believe he used the phrase “group identity”. As I recall, it was the author’s contention that the phenomenon of group identity -- the idea that people identify themselves by their nationality, region, race, religion, or an infinite number of other factors -- is a horribly destructive force, and at least partially responsible for much or most of the conflict in our world, and for many other problems as well. He said some eloquent, profound things, and I would like to read more of what he had to say, and I would like to be able to quote him, and link to him in this blog ... but for now, all I can say is that he was “someone who had written a book about something”.

I also have heard interesting comments from “some guy who used to be a high official in Iraq” and “four or five experts on International Law” -- and sometimes I try to quote them, or make other references to the information I heard, but it is always vague and impossible to verify or research. They will probably show up in this blog at some point.

Since the firing of Juan Williams from NPR, I have been considering the extent to which NPR is biased toward certain views. I have always been aware of this bias, but felt it did not interfere substantially with the information I gained from listening, especially since I tend to pay more attention to their guests than to the actual NPR staff.

Now I wonder: If I fundamentally disagree with the policies of NPR management, then am I somehow supporting these policies just by tuning in on the radio? If I attend a lecture or rally, and I fundamentally disagree with the opinions being put forward, does my mere presence at the event imply or deliver some kind of support?

Truth is complicated.