Like a lot of people I know, I’m so busy during the week that unless I hear it on the radio, it’s hard for me to make time for the news. I DVR the evening news and my favorite show, 60 minutes, so if I do have free time at home I can catch up on the latest happenings. But in the last few weeks I have heard a lot about a story in the news that I can’t stop thinking about- and it seems neither can the media.
I was running on a treadmill in a hotel gym when I watched with amazement the full story of Shirley Sherrod. If you haven’t heard about the story yet, then welcome back. You must have been vacationing on a deserted island not to have heard about the ousted Agriculture Department staffer who was fired when a doctored video suggested she was a racist. At first glance the former Georgia rural development specialist seemed racist in an edited video clip showing a speech she gave at a NAACP meeting. Not long after the story broke, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack fired Sherrod who was denounced by many in the media, including NAACP leadership. Many apologizes have been expressed to Sherrod since the speech in its entirety made it clear her comments were not hateful.
While there are facets of this story related to racism and bigotry that can be debated and should be discussed as President Obama said “around the kitchen table”, I think its important to note why the story became a firestorm to begin with.
One blogger wrote a story that dramatically changed a woman’s life over night. A story without the facts, without the whole story, that created a wrongful verdict in the court of public opinion. Sound familiar?
Sadly, this happens all of the time in the agricultural industry. As I ran on the treadmill that evening listening to Shirley’s story, I couldn’t help to think about how the media helps people to jump on a treadmill- or bandwagon- until we fall off and on to the next story. It can be exhausting!
One person writes a story about one livestock abuse case, one pesticide product, one biotechnology stance, one ______ fill in the blank and the industry is left with a very damaging story that does not present all of the facts, if any. Often by the time the facts are presented we are on another treadmill or topic in the media and the public never hears the whole story.
I hope if Shirely Sherrod’s story teaches us one thing, it’s to look for the whole story. Rightfully someone shed the light on her whole story. I don’t think American Farmers and American Agriculture can wait until someone else sheds the light on all of the false stories we are faced with everyday. We must tell our story, the whole story, of how we feed and clothe the world with fewer resources than ever- before we as farmers are ousted beyond come back.