Editor, Times-Union: Re: Sue E. Clark, "Left-wing media," Feb. 28
How pathetic are you? It's grand to have opinions, and even better to share them in the name of debate: I'm all for that. But simply copying and pasting a form letter, then attaching your name at the bottom and passing it off as your own? That's pitiful.
All it takes is a quick Google search to find carbon copies of "your" views, so unless you and Mr. Robert Reber of Brentwood, Fla., (the first search result returned) are psychic buddies, how else do you explain that your letter matched word-for-word with his? And with one in an Iowa newspaper? And a Georgia publication as well?
It's fine that you have a problem with the supposed "liberal bias" in the mainstream media, that's certainly worthy of discussion. To me, a more alarming problem is with plagiarism and form letters sent under the guise of real views.
Here is how Webster's defines plagiarism: "To ... pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own: use (a created production) without crediting the source... present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source." Notice I used quote marks to indicate that those are someone else's words; notice, too, that I credited the source of the aforementioned words. Quick tip: These are ways to avoid being a plagiarist.
On a related note, does the supposed left-wing bias in the media really, truly, madly, deeply mean that much to you? If it does, you should read about it, research it, analyze it, and then sit down and write your own thoughts and opinions. It doesn't matter what your particular view is, as long as it is yours. For example, my dear colleague Harold and I disagree on just about everything, but I respect the fact that he takes the time to form an opinion and then share it with others. It's precisely why this forum is here, as opposed to what you're using it for: a dumping ground for your e-mail forwards. Stop wasting our time.
The fact that you can't bother to take the time to actually look into what you're criticizing speaks volumes. On the flip side, this letter was written by me, and contains my personal thoughts and opinions. Agree or disagree, but at least I took the time to care.
To summarize: good to have opinions, great to share them; yay. Bad to be so lazy that the greatest effort in "discussing" this subject for you was to copy, paste, add your name and send to your local newspaper; boo.
Your lazy attack on the media is ironic, considering the press is the greatest defender one of our most sacred rights: freedom of speech. You've done your best to make a mockery of it.
To quote Stephen Colbert, Ms. Clark, "you're on notice."
