on editors
...i could be wrong, but this is what i heard...
...that in Ancient Rome, the guy that arranged the bloody games at the Colloseum, his title was the "editor"...
...so...
...this guy, the organiser, the manager, the director of presentation for daily atrocities aimed at keeping the masses entertained, peaceful, united...
...he's the origin of the title "editor"...
...that's where we get the word from...
...and maybe the job description hasn't changed all that much since they were opening pits with lions in them, flooding the arena and dropping in sharks...
...beacause newspapers, radio, tv news, the media in general, they play a number of roles in our lives, some more subtle than others...
...there's the dissemination of news, of course...
...the publication and broadcasting of "matters of public interest"...
...but the reasons we read, listen, watch, they're more complicated...
...our reasons for reading, listening, watching, they're symptomatic of our society...
...we're voyeurs...
...it's a strange and horrible thought, but maybe we take pleasure in reading about the latest murder...
...or terrorist attack...
...earthquakes, floods, hurricaines...
...because by reading about it, you prove that it hasn't happened to you...
...a perverse "Cogito ergo sum"...
...it might have happened in your city, or even to someone you know...
...it might have "changed the world in which you live", (see 9/11)...
...but for every day you're able to be horrified, outraged, terrified, that's another day when you're not the victim...
...it's somebody else's tragedy...
...and it's the reason why for centuries we've read Greek Tragedy too...
...it's called catharsis...
...expose an audience, evoke pity, evoke fear, bring them to the emotional brink...
...healing, easing, soothing strong negative emotions by exposing our minds to the extremes of human suffering, with a resultant emotional relief, release and sense of well-being...
...because deep down, we all know we live in a very sick, troubled, unjust world...
...but we don't like admitting this to ourselves...
...so we make it through our days by filling them with simple pleasures...
...coffee, our homes, friends and lovers...
...we use them as a buffer between our existence and the reality outside...
...but we know the world we create for ourselves is a delicate one, one that can be torn down at any moment by the next murder, or terrorist attack, or earthquake, or flood...
...and so we read for comfort...
...because it's not us...
...not us we're reading about...
...collectively, united, peacefully (and entertained), it's always not us...
...safe until tomorrow's possilbe headlines...
...and so, like the citizens of Ancient Rome, we look to the editor to arrange a daily performance of bloody atrocities, a sacrafice to the ways of the world that isn't us, safe in the knowledge that for today at least we'll be seated in the audience, cheering, booing, horrified, appalled, but fuck it i'm in the audience, so that's fine by me...
...but like i said, i might be wrong...
...that in Ancient Rome, the guy that arranged the bloody games at the Colloseum, his title was the "editor"...
...so...
...this guy, the organiser, the manager, the director of presentation for daily atrocities aimed at keeping the masses entertained, peaceful, united...
...he's the origin of the title "editor"...
...that's where we get the word from...
...and maybe the job description hasn't changed all that much since they were opening pits with lions in them, flooding the arena and dropping in sharks...
...beacause newspapers, radio, tv news, the media in general, they play a number of roles in our lives, some more subtle than others...
...there's the dissemination of news, of course...
...the publication and broadcasting of "matters of public interest"...
...but the reasons we read, listen, watch, they're more complicated...
...our reasons for reading, listening, watching, they're symptomatic of our society...
...we're voyeurs...
...it's a strange and horrible thought, but maybe we take pleasure in reading about the latest murder...
...or terrorist attack...
...earthquakes, floods, hurricaines...
...because by reading about it, you prove that it hasn't happened to you...
...a perverse "Cogito ergo sum"...
...it might have happened in your city, or even to someone you know...
...it might have "changed the world in which you live", (see 9/11)...
...but for every day you're able to be horrified, outraged, terrified, that's another day when you're not the victim...
...it's somebody else's tragedy...
...and it's the reason why for centuries we've read Greek Tragedy too...
...it's called catharsis...
...expose an audience, evoke pity, evoke fear, bring them to the emotional brink...
...healing, easing, soothing strong negative emotions by exposing our minds to the extremes of human suffering, with a resultant emotional relief, release and sense of well-being...
...because deep down, we all know we live in a very sick, troubled, unjust world...
...but we don't like admitting this to ourselves...
...so we make it through our days by filling them with simple pleasures...
...coffee, our homes, friends and lovers...
...we use them as a buffer between our existence and the reality outside...
...but we know the world we create for ourselves is a delicate one, one that can be torn down at any moment by the next murder, or terrorist attack, or earthquake, or flood...
...and so we read for comfort...
...because it's not us...
...not us we're reading about...
...collectively, united, peacefully (and entertained), it's always not us...
...safe until tomorrow's possilbe headlines...
...and so, like the citizens of Ancient Rome, we look to the editor to arrange a daily performance of bloody atrocities, a sacrafice to the ways of the world that isn't us, safe in the knowledge that for today at least we'll be seated in the audience, cheering, booing, horrified, appalled, but fuck it i'm in the audience, so that's fine by me...
...but like i said, i might be wrong...
posted by Tony at 4:18 p.m.
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