The Liberal Media

Today I opened my New York Times. That is, I opened my internet browser, I selected NYT among my bookmarks, and I clicked on OPINION. Just like that.

God knows I love living in the Twenty-First Century. Back in the olden days, in the 1980's and 90's, I had to drive to the library to read the New York Times. And if someone beat me to it, I had to wait my turn. Imagine that!

I love the New York Times Op-Ed writers. Each has their own unique soapbox, their own voice and pitch. The one commonality is their ability to communicate, and in my humble opinion, they are experts in the science and art of communication.

Today Gail Collins wrote, "Send in the Clowns, and Cheese," a piece dedicated to poking fun at the G.S.A.'s 2010 Western Regions Conference, held in Las Vegas at the cost of $2,742.50 per bureaucrat-attendee. She makes me chuckle, the way Erma Bombeck makes me chuckle. Even as I'm cringing I'm chuckling ~ and that's a rare talent.

And Nicholas Kristof, whom I've mentioned here before, published "Arsenic in Our Chicken?" Kristof doesn't make me laugh. He doesn't even make me smile. But I love him for what he does, and that is, think. His column today addressed the routine fact that our chickens contain banned antibiotics, antihistamine, acetaminophen and arsenic. Lovely, huh? But it is nothing like last week's column which everyone should read.

Thank you, Ms. Collins and Mr. Kristof, elite members of the liberal media, for entertaining and educating me again today. Both of you are a welcome part of my daily routine, bringing smiles and smirks, fear and frustration, thus making me a better and stronger citizen.
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Kristof & WuDunn

Have you ever read Nicholas Kristof's columns in the New York Times? If you have, then you might know what I'm going to write. If you have not, then you owe it to yourself to read his work.

Often, I wander over to NYTimes.com to catch up on world news. I see the title of Mr. Kristof's column listed on the main landing page, and I pause. Do I want to read it? Right now, in the middle of my beautiful life? Because I know it's going to remind me that precious few people live as privileged and free as I do. Mr. Kristof, you see, has a habit of using his soapbox to draw attention to the most disadvantaged people on earth.

I admire that about him. Turns out, so do others.

In 1990, Mr. Kristof and his wife, Sheryl WuDunn earned a Pulitzer Prize in journalism for their coverage of China's Tiananmen massacre. And in 2006, Mr. Kristof won another Pulitzer Prize for what the judges called "his graphic, deeply reported columns that, at personal risk, focused attention on genocide in Darfur and that gave voice to the voiceless in other parts of the world."

The judges hit the nail on the head when they described his writing as "deeply reported columns." That's exactly how I would describe the feeling of reading a Kristof column, and it's exactly why I so often pause, before clicking. But Mr. Kristof has a special talent, and that is, though he writes of horrific injustice, he always writes with a palpable hope for a better day.

Today I learned that Kristof & WoDunn published a book last year that advocates for international women’s rights, education, and empowerment. The title is *so Kristof*: Half the Sky: Oppression and Opportunity for Women Worldwide. Injustice and Hope, all in one title. I can't wait to read it.