NPR Fires Juan Williams

[T'Keira Lea]

I'm sure most have seen the news on NPR's firing of Juan Williams. I admit that most of the time I'm arguing with Mr. Williams right over the conservative he's up against on Fox News. Still I have always respected him and his ability to engage in dialogue.

Here's his opinion piece filed on his new home network's website - http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/10/21/...len-weiss-bush/

It's a sad day when people can't be honest about their feelings (which we can't always control). Because the important part is how we deal with those feelings in a way that makes us better human beings.

[Lyne]

Surprisingly, I'm constantly agreeing with Juan.

I don't think what he said was all that bad. It's what he thinks. Being PC all the time does this country no favors. I also think the head of NPR was out of line when she said that Juan should have kept it between himself and maybe others like a psychiatrist.

[Chimpo]

Who is Juan Williams? And what is NPR?

[oldjedinurse]

Chimpo, "NPR" is National Public Radio in the U.S.
Juan Williams was a "correspondent" or reporter for NPR and FOX News. Now he only works for FOX.

***

I know what Mr. O'Reilly looks like, have heard his views on certain issues, and think that he's generally a fair moderator who loves a good debate - but I don't know Juan Williams at all. Still, that Williams article -- and in particular the way in which he was fired -- really irks me.

In fact, it irks me on so many levels that I don't dare say much about the actual issues Williams and O'Reilly were debating, even though terrorism and extremists are a not only an American but a global concern.

I will say this much: you're right, TKL, on the issue of a person being able to express their feelings on any topic. If you start shutting that down, then being PC teeters dangerously close to being more important than free speech. The NPR's interpretation of Williams' comments as, basically, "not PC" (my description, not theirs) is highly questionable. He said what he felt and seemed to be honest and fair in his statements. I read nothing prejudicial in what he was saying; only people who didn't properly listen or perhaps failed understand his motives and concerns would misconstrue his words in such an extreme way. Apparently, people at NPR were not capable of comprehending his part of the discussion, or simply jumped to conclusions to try and save their asses from outraged PC extremists.

Then there's not firing him in person which is just disrespectful and cowardly; it would be considered a disgrace in any well-run business. There's no excuse for refusing him an exit meeting.

Mr. Williams called out the NPR for "self-righteous, ideological, left-wing" leadership. If true, that would make NPR fairly extreme lefties as well, would it not? Just as with religious zealots, extremism comes in all forms. Some like to claim it (Al-Qaida), but others will deny it to the death.

As someone who is left-of-center herself, I certainly don't agree with the "leftist" NPR based on the statement of Juan Williams. Not even close. If NPR has a rebuttle, I'd love to see/hear it and it had better be good.

Long before Williams' firing at NPR, and for a variety of reasons (including hysterical reporting), I chose never to watch FOX News again -- not even if you hog-tied me in front of a TV and applied a branding iron to my posterior. Oddly enough though - in this situation - FOX appears to have done the right thing in giving Williams the chance to express his feelings as a full-time correspondent.

I have a question for NPR: Do they want to broadcast real debates on real issues, or only discussions slanted to promote their own agenda? Rhetorical question, of course.

As for being PC, what started out as a good attempt at making society think about being fair to all has gone way too far - so much so that it has become ludicrous and has lost its original meaning. Being PC has become a joke, and that's too bad because there was merit in the original concept.

...as of right now.

This post has been edited by oldjedinurse on Oct 22 2010, 04:07 PM