NLGJA’s conventions serve a great many purposes. Engaging
in conversation about issues of the day — as well as establishing
and re-establishing our working relationships with fellow members — certainly
rank near the top of the priorities during
the annual gatherings.
As you read this
newsletter’s coverage of our 15th anniversary
celebration in Chicago, it becomes
clear that this year was no exception, as we engaged in important
discussions about a range of topics.
Ponderings on ethics in blogging held importance alongside examinations
of the difficulties of freelancing as attendees gave thought to many
subjects that will resonate beyond the four days we met together.
But among the panels and plenary sessions, one subject held particular
resonance for me because its relevance went beyond the specific coverage
topic. Indeed, it underlined a foundation of good journalism: our
universal responsibility to ask questions.
“The Closet Six Feet Under” tackled the difficult matter
of how we paint a complete portrait of an individual after death
when there are unanswered questions about the subject’s sexual
orientation.
Plenary moderator
Kelly McBride of the Poynter Institute quite simply asked, “Should
there be a rule that you are going to delve into significant relationships?”
In a seemingly parallel universe, just days before the start of
our convention, Empty Closet columnist and outgoing NLGJA National
Board Member Mubarak Dahir penned a succinct, important piece that
focused on an issue touched upon in the plenary: the contentious
issue of outing.
In discussing
the history of outing, Dahir wrote, “Traditionally,
outing was used by anti-gay people as a means to ruin a gay person’s
life. The revelation that someone was homosexual was so horrible,
it meant their demise. Today, representatives of ‘mainstream’ media
most frequently do not ask whether or not someone is gay because
it is ‘personal.’ Another often-repeated line is that
sexual orientation is ‘irrelevant.’”
“Both excuses are malarkey,” Dahir continued. “In
this day and age, where public figures rightly or wrongly are put
under a microscope, it’s difficult to imagine anything being
too personal. You can debate whether
or not you like that standard, but the standard should be applied
evenly.
“By refusing
to simply ask whether or not someone is gay perpetuates the notion
that answering affirmatively is the ultimate shame.”
Indeed, during
the “Six Feet Under” convention plenary,
panelist Charles Strum of The New York Times noted that it “seemed
like an awful imposition” to ask whether musician Bobby Short
were gay when preparing his obit, while noting that “everybody
knew” isn’t a baseline for reporting what is presumed
to be fact.
Moving the conversation
along, The Washington Post’s Hank
Stuever said, “We still have people who believe that being
gay would mar an obituary. The work
we need to do is with people who are still alive.”
Stuever also
cut to the broader problem, one between the lines of Dahir’s column. “The problem isn’t,
as the blogs report, about the problem with gay obits. The problem
is how bad
newspapers do covering gay people every
day.”
At national conventions
and via programming in our chapter cities, NLGJA will continue
to hold important discussions about reporting
on sexual orientation and gender identity
(perceived or otherwise, whether in life or postmortem), and specifically
how we can provide
a full measure of an individual’s life.
But in our newsrooms
every day, we should remember one basic journalistic tenet that
will help us to do our jobs better. We must be prepared
and willing to raise questions to begin
with, no matter how difficult they may seem. We hold that responsibility — and
we can also help our colleagues to do the same.
Don’t ask, don’t tell? I don’t think so. As journalists,
it is clearly our job to ask. And when we have all of the necessary,
relevant information — to tell, as fairly and accurately as
possible.
