As part of my strategy to Win Facebook Friends and Influence People, I'm Facebook friends with Fox News anchor Greta Van Susteren. (Actually, I just follow her fan page, along with 245,000 other people.)
I thought this post of hers last week revealed more than she meant it to:
Last night I had dinner with an old friend – I had not seen her in about 30 years. She asked me, 'do you ever get any rest?' I responded 'I have such an easy job…I really don't need much rest." She was surprised …but I told her to think about it: my job is not like a doctor or a nurse or emergency responder or police officer etc. where I have peoples' lives in my hands….it is not like a teacher with giant responsibility for children's education…or a business owner with overhead and employees to worry about….or a family member taking care of a sick relative etc. The foregoing is VERY HARD and VERY STRESSFUL. I just have to study and ask questions. That is not hard. Journalism is a very easy job (assuming you have a job (of course being a journalist and looking for a job is very stressful.) Sure, it is important to do your best to get it right – but that still does not bring it to the level of other much, much, much more stressful jobs. I practiced law for about 12 years or more…and that was very stressful since I was responsible for my clients. That is a 24/7 job and it is 24/7 worrying. Because I have had the experience of a very stressful job, I know how easy my current one is. So…the point of this post? I guess…to salute everybody out there since I know, compared to me, you have a tough job.
Greta, on behalf of doctors and nurses, teachers and lawyers, business owners and home caregivers everywhere: You're supposed to be scouring the world for truth because we don't have time to. If journalism is a "very easy job," you're not doing it right.
I’ve watched her show; it’s not terribly impressive. Any journalist with such a public pulpit SHOULD obsess over it and view it as more than just a forum for asking questions. But from what I’ve seen of her shows, Greta doesn’t rise to the level of a journalist.
Agreed, U. But to the extent that she can even utter such foolishness as the above without expecting to be shunned by her colleagues ….
… for instance, some lawyers work harder than others, but no lawyer would say it’s a “very easy job” because it doesn’t REALLY involve responsibility, just reading and reacting to the law and “trying to get it right.”
Apparently Greta is surrounded by colleagues who she thinks feel the same way: Journalism is just for grins!