WeAreChangeLA set out to get a word or two with American Media icon Tom Brokaw, at an April 17th "Presidents Lecture Series" event at USC. Though well embedded in the arena of corporate structure and agenda, Mr. Brokaw has long brought no small degree of integrity and high professional standards to bear upon his craft, and thus to America and the world. Jeremy Rothe-Kuschel and I were intent to find his position on the challenge of bringing solutions to the breakdown of honest news reporting in our troubled world. I firmly believe, as JFK stated, that our Nation's chances for survival "in it's final analysis, will depend on an informed citizenry." With this in mind, I put my question to Mr. Brokaw-

"Given the big, momentous, turning points we've had of late, in the past few years since 9/11, how would you recommend we move forward, in getting more transparency and more honesty, and more coverage of issues like the anthrax attacks... issues pertinent, and things that the mainstream media has not been willing to delve into for different reasons. What do you suggest we do to bring Truth to the mainstream, where it's not being brought currently?"

There was a marked physical response from him to the word anthrax, which included what looked to be an involuntary reaction of quickly moving his hand to his neck, and giving it a brief rub or two. Instantly regaining his composure, he proceeded to share with us the following-

He said he had been discussing this issue with USC's President on the way to the event."It's hard work, I mean it doesn't happen with the snap of the fingers... I have come to the conclusion that the solutions in this country are much more now from the ground up, than they are from the top down." After acknowledging what he characterized as the "declining" system of news generating and feeding "techniques", he offered that "...those of us in the media have to be not just cognizant of that, but we have to be facilitators of the news."

After expressing appreciation for USC's commitment to bolstering positive influence in journalism, Mr. Brokaw shared an observation, "I watch the local news now, and it's car chase, after burglary, after Paris Hilton... and it must have been live coverage of Britney Spears being escorted by the police department to the hospital? But you too have to take the news seriously, and demand more of it. It's not by accident that this stuff ends up on the air, because viewing goes straight up. And we are at a time now of growing strife... regarding information in terms of how we get the news and where. This internet is not a phenomenon... we are at the seminal stages. It has infinite reach... It's one of the greatest democratization tools I've ever seen. We can share with others our opinion, and reach the far corners of the world... but it also requires professionals who are gathering the information and laying it out in the right way, and it requires consumers who are willing to play a part in getting information that is important to them and not simply a distraction..."

Jeremy and I got the impression that Tom Brokaw is a good man in a tough spot. He is beholden both to the nefarious paradigm within which he played a role allowing the formation of our current dilemma(s), and the newly emerging paradigm he acknowledges must be nurtured "from the ground up" if our world is to avert further demise. Hope of, and confidence in, our ability as citizens to rise to the occasion was the tone of his response.

We left with a newly bolstered sense of empowerment and purpose, and it is our hope that you too will glean a bit of spirit from what Mr. Brokaw shared with us that night.

With you in our quest for Truth, Justice and Liberty,
Stewart Howe & all of us at WeAreChangeLA