I Am What I Am

Years ago, when I first started studying journalism, my professors hammered home the importance of a very basic concept: Impartiality. For any journalist – make that, any good journalist – this is one of the key tenets of the business. Having opinions is fine, but they have nothing to do with the job at hand.

Have to cover a Republican fund raiser even though you can’t stand the candidate? Too bad. Have to spend the day talking with a member of Operation Rescue even though you’re pro choice? Have a nice time. Report on Midnight Mass even though you’re a Muslim? Allah will forgive you, as long as you get the story.

In short – journalists don’t get to choose the stories they cover, unless of course, they have a built up seniority within the organization, in which case, they get to pick and choose the plum assignments in the best places on Earth. Like Baghdad.

Listening to the news today, I’ve been hearing a lot about the U.S. camera crew that was caught in the suicide bomber attack. It’s a tragedy, to be sure, and my heart goes out to their families. What’s more, I’ve worked with Kimberly Dozier, and she is one of the best – and nicest – people I’ve met in the business. She was based in London while I worked in New York, but we spoke on the phone often while at CBS News/Radio, and she was always one of the great correspondents to deal with. Professional, reliable, friendly, and not above telling a good dirty joke or story when she had the time. I wish her a speedy recovery, and all the best.

Above all else though, Kimberly earned my respect because she is what she is: A top-notch reporter willing to ask the tough questions and go to the tough places in order to report on the story she’s assigned. She never flinched from taking an assignment, and in fact, had to volunteer for duty in Iraq. In what in many ways remains a male dominated field, Kimberly has bigger balls than many of her colleagues.

That’s why I’m even more amazed when I hear people talking about how “women shouldn’t be reporting in combat situations.” The fact that Kimberly is a woman (and a very attractive one, at that) has nothing to do with what happened to her on Monday. Had she been a man, she would have been just as injured or, in the case of her cameraman and sound engineer, just as dead. It doesn’t take strength or stamina to report from a war zone, it takes guts. And Kimberly has more than most. I know damn well she has more than me because I have to tell you, if I was still reporting, you couldn’t pay me enough to wander around Baghdad with a microphone.

The idiot who blew himself and that city block up today couldn’t have cared less that Kimberly was a woman. She was a target - a means to an end. Kimberly understands that, even if the general public doesn’t. I’m not saying that makes what happened today any less tragic or deplorable, but as somebody who’s had the concept of impartiality drilled into them, I’m saying that what happened to Kimberly is no better or worse than what happened to her colleagues, the soldiers she was traveling with, or any of the thousands of people who have been killed and injured in Iraq over the past three years.

Kimberly is what she is: A professional reporter covering a horrific war. And, as I said, earlier, I am what I am too. In an age and culture defined by labels and affiliations, I try hard not identify myself too closely with any one group or ideology, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have opinions or know where I stand on the political spectrum. The truth is, even though I’m a registered Independent, I’m a whole lot more liberal than most of the people in this country.

Should prayer be allowed in school? I don’t think so. Should a woman be allowed to end an unwanted pregnancy? Of course. Do I believe in the death penalty? It depends. Do I think this administration’s plan of giving tax cuts to the richest 1% of the population is really the solution to our myriad of social ills? Not on your life. Those are just my opinions, whether you agree or not.

Have another take on the issues? I’ll be happy to sit down with you over a coffee or a beer and talk about whatever you want. Will I proselytize in order to sway your opinion? Probably not. Will I expect you to argue passionately for your point of view? Of course. Will either of us change our minds? Doubtful. But that’s what makes America great – we can all have our points of view and agree to disagree. (Unless of course, you’re talking about the current administration, in which case, doing anything other than towing the party line is grounds for investigation, indictment, or public humiliation. But that’s another topic for another day.)

I’m a product of the coasts. I grew up in New York, went to college in Boston, and have lived in California for almost nine years now. I grew up around liberals and I generally like them. Aside from a short time in Ohio, I’ve never lived in the middle of the country with the people that George W. and his cronies call “real Americans.” Maybe I’m missing something, maybe I’m not.

That said, I’m moving soon, and hope to gain a whole new perspective on America. Maybe I’ll learn something new or see the country in a whole new light. Maybe I’ll change. I’m not sure.

For now though, you can call me any of the following: American. Agnostic. Liberal. I am what I am, for better or for worse.