Ed Yong is a science writer and the author of “An Immense World.”
A very good #longread today on how journalism needs to be better for all of us.
This is a damning indictment of my profession, my prepandemic self included. I am far from the only journalist covering this topic but clearly there aren’t enough of us. How could so many people feel so thoroughly unrepresented by an industry that purports to give voice to the voiceless?
In this status quo, people are expected to ignore the threat of infection, pay through the nose if they get sick and face stigma and ridicule if they become disabled. Journalism can and should repudiate that bargain. We are not neutral actors, reporting on the world at a remove; we also create that world through our choices, and we must do so with purpose, care and compassion.