[2134] in peace2
Regarding your comments about WordsWorth Books
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Louise Cohen)
Thu Dec 12 10:08:26 2002
Message-ID: <00de01c2a1ee$3e4087a0$87ae06d1@Cohen.cable.rcn.com>
From: "Louise Cohen" <louisejc@rcn.com>
To: <julias@mit.edu>
Cc: <peace-announce@mit.edu>
Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2002 09:53:33 -0500
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Dear Julia Steinberger,
Recently a friend sent me a link to your website and a copy of your e-mail
to peace-announce regarding WordsWorth Books. I well remember my own
efforts way back in the 60's to protest America's senseless war in Vietnam,
so I am happy to see that students are still engaged in the larger world. I
do feel, however, that you may not have all the information you need to make
a realistic decision in your condemnation of WordsWorth Books, and of the
organization CAMERA.
You are hardly dealing with "large corporate / rich bastard contributors" in
this situation. Aside from the fact that name calling never sets an
atmosphere in which one side can be persuaded of the other's views, in this
case, you are simply calling inaccurate names.
It is important to understand that WordsWorth Book Store withdrew not a
contribution, but advertising from WBUR. This is not the case of a
rich person using the power of a donation to influence an organization, but
it is an honest businessman making a sacrifice based on his
values.
This is a challenging time for small independent book stores, which are
themselves a neighborhood cultural treasure, but must deal with competition
from retail giants (the folks who really do rule our economy).
When the owner of WordsWorth realized that years of dialogue with the
management of WBUR had failed to achieve a meaningful change in the
anti-Israel bias of the station, despite more than ample solid research and
documentation of that fact, he was faced with an agonizing decision.
WordsWorth's radio ads reached precisely the population demographic that
attends author readings and buys books. They were a tool by which he
sustained his business, which not only provides for his own family, but
which employs dozens of staff and pays taxes and contributes
philanthropically to the local community. (You would probably be astounded
if you knew the full extent of their personal and corporate involvement in
many issues you hold dear. Just ask the Friends of the Cambridge Public
School Volunteers, among others.)
He needed WBUR as much or more than they needed him, but having been
frustrated by the failure of all the years of respectful conversations that
CAMERA tried to have with the administration of the station, he felt that he
could no longer in good conscience link the name of his business with that
station, even if it meant that he would lose a critical source of access to
potential customers. Whether or not we agree with his views, we should
admire his courage and integrity.
Regarding the work of CAMERA: Your e-mail calls them a "a pressure group",
but I wonder how closely you have read their publications. CAMERA is simply
what is called by publications a group of "fact checkers". They slowly and
meticulously research articles and radio and tv programming to verify the
accuracy of the material being presented. Before condemning them, you might
want to challenge yourself to a careful, rigorous reading of their material.
If you can find examples of misinformation or lies in their work, then take
the matter up with them, or go public with them. You might be surprised at
what you find when you read their material with an open mind, instead of
slapping a label on them.
Like you, I hope and work for a day when all humans will occupy this planet
in love and respect for each other. I hope you, as a group that values
peace, will open your minds and hearts and be able to serve as role-models
of constructive communication.
Sincerely,
Louise Cohen
PS: Incidentally, only a small fraction of the businesses in Cambridge have
ever advertised on WBUR, yet for some reason WordsWorth is being targeted
for ceasing to advertise. No business or individual should be forced to buy
any product, be it toothpaste or air time. We accept the fact that people
are free to choose the products they find satisfactory, yet somehow hold a
former advertiser to a different standard. What is that about?
