22/04/2007

Readers see prejudice; was there?

By MÁRIO MAGALHÃES
ombudsman@uol.com.br

I don't recognize racism and prejudice in these two episodes, but in one of them what the newspaper did was unfortunate; as listener I would like to hear more opinions

Formula 1 racing introduced 22-year-old driver Lewis Hamilton, already a phenomenon in the media. On Monday, Folha reported that the Briton "has become the first novice to become one of the top three in the three first steps of the big race."

The same day reader Juan Antonio Peñaranda wrote to the ombudsman: "I think it is absurd to give so much importance to the fact that Lewis Hamilton is black. I doubt that, if he were Russian or Chinese or any other race, they would give it the same attention. I find this attitude to be eminently racist."

That was followed by reader Felipe Critis Secol: "Why do they keep on saying (that this is the first black who is a Formula One racer)? Stop it!"

On Tuesday, reader Marcelo Alessandro de Souza returned to the theme of prejudice, "perplexed" by what he classified as "barbarity."

In the illustration about the massacre in which a student killed 32 people in the United States, a box showed - Souza believes - "a black shooting white victims."

He asks: "If the suspect were Asian, as reported, how can we allow a reconstitution of the facts (that way)? By looking at it, our social tragedy, that of discrimination and prejudice, is reinforced daily, mainly in the middle class."

In fact, even ignoring that the assassin was Korean, the news already reported that the witnesses was identified as Asian.

The artistic editor at Folha, Fábio Marra, disagrees with the reader: "The gunman was drawn from behind because, at that time, we had no confirmation of his ethnicity. The dark tone was used to give depth to the drawing. The drawing does not show a black, it is only a drawing without a color or recognizable features."

These are highly subjective controversies. I don't recognize racism and prejudice in these two instances. In one of them, nevertheless, what the newspaper did was unfortunate.

I respect differing opinions by the two readers, but I believe that Folha was right in pointing out Hamilton's status. He is the only black among 700 drivers who already race in the elite sport. It is news; it has journalistic relevance.

As for the illustration, I agree with Marcelo de Souza: it shows a black man (or mulatto), with dark skin and kinky hair, shooting at people with light skin. The information was incorrect.

As listener, I would like to get more opinions. Is Folha right or wrong? What do you think?

Release of video and photos generates debate

An intense debate mobilized journalism: was the gesture by U.S. TV network NBC correct in not airing the video and photos it received from Korean Cho Seung-hui, the hallucinating man who killed 32 people at the university in Virginia on Monday?

Between the death of two students and the massacre of 30 other victims, the assassin sent in the mail what the anchor of the network called a multi-media package. Friends and relatives of the victims felt disrespected by the exhibition and protested.

I received messages condemning the publication of the photo of Cho armed. But there was praise for Folha 's coverage.

There are situations in which it is not recommended to display scenes that provoke deep pain. There are others in which the right to information is stronger. It is a decision that is sometimes dramatic. I believe that NBC (and the others that followed) got it right in exposing the material. There was public interest in knowing the mind of the monster through his own voice.

Error creates border between Venezuela and Bolivia; Manaus moves to Amapá state

Folha reported on Monday about the opening of a milk plant. The story was accompanied by a photograph of presidents Hugo Chávez and Evo Morales in a ceremony.

Until that point, there was no surprise. The alliance of the two brings together a new political scenario for South America. What does not appear on the map of the region is the geography that the newspaper described.

The story asserted that the milk plant was located "at the border of the two countries" (Chávez's Venezuela and Morales' Bolivia), but Brazil lies between them. Reader Thiago Machado S. Ribeiro pointed out the mistake, and it was published in the "corrections."

Another reader, Isaltino Coelho Filho, called attention to Folha 's electronic edition on April 13, which said, "Heavy rains are affecting Manaus again, in Amapá state" (Manaus is in Amazonas state). The correction came out on the Internet.

Switched horoscope jumbles predictions

Pisces natives who read the astrology column in the arts and entertainment section on Tuesday learned that "now that Venus enters Taurus," "a short trip could be the best thing to expose the mind." There was not one word about money.

The prediction by the person responsible for the column, Barbara Abramo, was another: "Cauldron of creativity will stimulate right decisions in finances." It mentioned nothing about traveling.

It ignored whether some Pisces were traveling and did not indicate if another discarded an investment fund by a lack of green light in the horoscope.

What happened? By mistake, Folha on April 17 ran the entire column - all 12 signs - from March 17. On Wednesday, it was mentioned in the "corrections."

It was the worst mistake of the week. There is a portion of readers who do not believe in astrology. There is a certain percentage of those who believe in the service items Folha publishes.

The journalistic validity of publishing horoscopes is debatable. But if the newspaper considers it is choosing the right option, it should make sure it avoids what happened.

Barbara Abramo recalls that it is not the first time it got switched. She said: "The damage to readers is that there was no access to the real tendencies of the day, through analysis of the position of the stars in the sky on that day... Readers were misled, and some don't take the horoscope seriously."

Translation by John Wright