Friday, December 9, 2022

"I am part of the tribe and I know the rules."

Bari Weiss has converted and expanded her blog into The Free Press: For Free People. It will, I think, serve the interests of the none-woke among us. From her introductory post:
Each one of us has a tiny computer in our pocket with, basically, the sum total of human knowledge. We have never had access to more information, or more ways to share it. 

At the same time, it seems we understand our world less and less. 

As the gap between what we’re allowed to say in public and how we talk in private grows, so does our distrust—in power, in the press, and in one another. ....

At some point, maybe you noticed that rather than conveying complexity—even if it was inconvenient or uncomfortable—the press was in the business of giving their readers, their viewers, and their listeners confirmation. Confirmation that they were right, confirmation that their political opponents were wrong. ....

The Free Press is a media company built on the ideals that were once the bedrock of journalistic enterprises: honesty, doggedness, and fierce independence. We publish investigative stories and provocative commentary about the world as it actually is—with the quality once expected from the legacy press, but with the fearlessness of the new.

We place a special emphasis on subjects and stories that others ignore or misrepresent. We always aim to highlight multiple perspectives on complicated subjects. And we don’t allow ideology to stand in the way of searching for the truth. .... (more)
I've appreciated Weiss's personal blog, and this site looks very promising. I've subscribed. Much is already there, some carried over from Bari Weiss's Common Sense blog (If you subscribed to Common Sense, you are already subscribed to The Free Press.) From an early entry, "Why Everyone Wants the Same Things":
I recently read an email from an NPR employee in which the signature was the most intriguing part. After his name and pronouns (he/him) was the question: “Why are there pronouns in my signature?” I clicked the link. 

It led me to a six-page Google document called the NPR Pronoun Guide. “We act to create an inclusive environment in which individuals of all identities feel valued,” it stated. This was followed by a lengthy glossary of terms. I read it all, but the fundamental question in his signature was left unanswered: Why are there pronouns there? 

Only a few years ago, it would have seemed bizarre to have your pronouns in your emails. I’ve asked people who include their pronouns in emails (and elsewhere) why they do so. They offer versions of the same answer: That it’s a long overdue recognition of the complexities of gender, or that they are making a small gesture that improves the world. 

I believe this new phenomenon is an illustration of a deeper, hidden social force. That is the relentless, often unconscious, need for humans to reassure themselves they are in sync with their group. Displaying pronouns signals: I am part of the tribe and I know the rules. .... (more)
Also on the site right now:
And more. You, too, can subscribe.

The Free Press

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