The following article was written by Keith Pickett (aka wilsonpickett) as a guest post for Conservatives4Palin
———-
Part I
Is it karma or merely coincidence? Or better yet, perhaps the chickens really have come home to roost.
One year ago today (July 26, 2009), Alaska Governor Sarah Palin became Citizen Sarah. After speaking to an outdoor crowd of 5,000 following the Governor’s Picnic in Fairbanks, she passed the state CEO mantle to Lt. Governor Sean Parnell in a simple but impressive ceremony.
In her final address to the citizens of the state, Governor Palin talked with pride about “The Last Frontier” — the energy-rich state in which she has lived most of her life — and how important it is to keep championing Alaska’s role in its quest to provide energy independence, natural resources and national defense to America.
But the line that drew wild, prolonged applause was early on in the 19-minute speech. Having visited Alaskan National Guard troops stationed in Kosovo earlier in the year and then having attended a memorial service that week at Fort Rich for three young Alaskan soldiers killed while representing our nation overseas, she got right to the point:
“Together we do stand with gratitude for those who protect all of our cherished freedoms, including our freedom of speech….which I am going to exercise,” she said.Wow. She drew a line in the sand that could not have been any clearer. And, boy, was she right!
“…..And now for some straight talk for some – just some – in the media because another right protected for all of us is freedom of the press. You (the media) have such important jobs, reporting facts and informing the electorate and exerting power to influence. You represent what could and should be a respected, honest profession……that could and should be a cornerstone of our democracy.
“Democracy depends on you,” the Governor emphasized, with determination in her voice. “And that is why our troops are willing to die for you. So… how about in honor of the American soldier, YOU QUIT MAKING THINGS UP!”
Here we are exactly one year later, and we are learning this very week the many despicable ways in which so-called journalists made up things in plotting to disgrace Governor Palin, immediately after she was announced on national television as the surprise choice of Sen. John McCain to be his Vice-Presidential running mate at the GOP rally in Dayton, Ohio, in 2008.
Just as in her Republican National Convention acceptance speech five days later, when she called out Candidate Obama for steps he would take if elected President, she hit the nail on the head in her Fairbanks speech about what the media’s responsibilities could and should be in a democracy, implying that they were not living up to those ideals. We citizens knew they weren’t, but the widespread collusion and vindictive attitudes we are now witnessing in the transcripts from the JournoList files take your breath away.
Like Governor Palin, I grew up in a small town (pop. 2,500) in the nation’s farming heartland, attended a state university (a land-grant school) and majored in journalism. And like Governor Palin, I still remember the emphasis on the 5 W’s (who, what, when, where, why) and the one H (how). Journalism ethics were taught, including double- and triple-checking sources, verifying quotes, etc.
Having spent 40 years working in journalism on projects all over the United States and in several foreign countries – as a corporate communications executive, public-relations consultant, magazine editor, newspaper writer, U.S. Air Force public affairs officer – I can understand how frustrated and aggravated Governor Palin must be at times.
What we are now seeing is not journalism; it is slimy political advocacy stuck in the gutter, disguised as some form of journalism. The old, once-respected journalistic institutions – The New York Times, many other daily newspapers, major TV networks (except for FOX), even The Associated Press – have fallen into the liberal trough of hogsh*t, and I question if they will ever come out or get cleaned off. Instead of the old journalism stand-bys pulling up the Internet to their standards, the blogosphere yanked journalism down into the gutter.
What we instinctively knew was going on with all the “anonymous sources” but now see in written details with our own eyes is a disgrace to the profession of journalism. I am sure Governor Palin feels the same way.
Thank heavens, though, the chickens have come home to roost…… on the one-year anniversary of Governor Palin’s final address to Alaskans. Poetic justice, don’t you think, Rev. Wright?
Palin TV
