Let's All Hope for the Best

I started out the morning just super, reviewing lectures, organizing ever-multiplying piles of paperwork, then I turn on the TV just to watch a wee bit while brushing my teeth and soon enough it's more than a hour later and Rita is on the brain. I just feel dread washing over me. I basically "watched" Hurricane Katrina from initial evacuation warnings to convention center/Superdrome despair and snippets of absolute horror stories to FINALLY help arriving. My level of concern about Rita bringing more chaos and heartache has risen to teal--or "Jesus Christ, bad shit is definitely gonna happen" (it's a six level system, details soon).

The news coverage on those 24 hour channels really doesn't do much to alleviate the worry--which brings up an interesting point I recently discussed in class. What's the line between sensationalizing events like Katrina and Rita and actual reporting? Is repeatedly showing the corpses outside the convention center in New Orleans too much (but it's ok if you show them once, twice?) I see the value in reporting the conditions in the convention center/Superdome because it reveals how inept FEMA and other emergency agencies turned out to be. Let's hope that revelation translates into reforms, but again, where do you draw the line?

It takes some smart viewers to be able to read between the lines--I really hope my students learn those necessary skills as they move through the college system--maybe in my class, maybe not, who cares? as long as they learn something. Critical thinking skills, goddamnit!!