 by dorothy snarkerNavigation |
Reporter Lara Logan becomes the story, but it ain't newsWe want certain things from our newscasters. We want them to be honest, we want them to be fair, we want them to be intelligent, and we want them to be just attractive enough to spend an hour or so in our living rooms every evening. This poses a bit of a problem for CBS foreign correspondent Lara Logan.
You see, while Lara is honest and fair and intelligent, she is also gorgeous. And, well, that's where things get complicated. The 37-year-old South African native was recently named chief foreign affairs correspondent at CBS and has worked for CBS Evening News, 60 Minutes and The Early Show. She has reported on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. Her work has earned her international acclaim as well as shiny hardware including Emmy, Overseas Press Club and Edward R. Murrow awards.
But if you read The Washington Post earlier this week, all you'd really know about Lara is that she is pregnant by a married man. Columnist Howard Kurtz wrote what amounts to a tawdry tabloid tell-all masquerading as serious journalism. We learn that she has been separated from her husband for a long time, then she had a relationship with a fellow journalist in Iraq and after that, started seeing her current partner, a federal contractor who is also separated from his wife. You can practically see Kurtz pinning the scarlet “A” on her chest. Kurtz goes on to quote her current partner's estranged wife, who calls Lara's promotion “a slap in the face to everyone who believes in marriage.” He then reassures us that Lara and her partner “plan to get married eventually.” Whew, what a relief — I couldn't possibly get my news from an unwed mother who was living in sin.
How, exactly, is all of this news? Um, if I'm not mistaken, America has two wars going on right now — two wars that Lara has been covering for the past seven years. Two wars where soldiers and civilians are being killed each day. Two wars where hundreds of millions dollars are being spent each day. Two wars with no foreseeable end in sight. But, hell yeah, let's hear more about the hot reporter's sex life. Now that's what I call journalism. The trouble for Lara really started last month with her appearance on The Daily Show. And, again, she did nothing more than have the audacity to be more honest, fair, intelligent and attractive than any other newscaster in the business. While she has been a vocal critic of the coverage of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars for years, she left no doubt to how she felt about the American press while chatting with Jon Stewart: If I were to watch the news that you hear in the United States, I'd just blow my brains out because it would drive me nuts. Watch the whole interview and you see a smart, strong, tough, tenacious, passionate and pointed woman who represents everything you want in a good reporter. She's also funny and cusses like a sailor. Scratch what I said before, she is the perfect reporter. When Stewart asked her, “Have we lost our humanity with this entire situation?” her answer was unequivocal: Yeah, we have. I was asked once, 'Do you feel responsible for the American public having a bad view, a negative view, of the war in Iraq?' And I looked at the reporter and said, 'Tell me the last time you saw the body of a dead American soldier.' What does that look like? Who in America knows what that looks like? Because I know what that looks like. And I feel responsible for the fact that no one else does. OK, I take back all previous assessments — she is the best reporter in the world. Of course this kind of real straight-talk express didn't sit well with the right-wing pundits. They started to go after Lara in droves after her Daily Show appearance. I guess when they couldn't find any flaws in her actual reporting, they went straight for her private life. Ah, the old “Don't listen to her, she's a tramp” defense. That Madonna/whore complex just never goes out of style.
You know, it's not like there aren't countless male newscasters with complicated private lives. Bill O'Reilly (loofah, anyone?), Keith Olbermann (a 25-year age difference with his 24-year-old live-in girlfriend) and Anderson Copper (come Out, come Out wherever you are) spring immediately to mind. But do they get the Woodward and Bernstein treatment from The Washington Post about their bedroom behavior? Of course not. Men have clearly separated personal and professional lives. That is just understood. The sad truth is that some men simply don't know what to do with a beautiful woman who insists on having brains, so they either dismiss her as dumb or brand a hussy. Lara is neither. She's just a damn good reporter. Submitted by on July 10, 2008 - 11:00am. |
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News, Reviews & Commentary on Lesbian and Bisexual women in Entertainment and the Media
Double-standard
I wrote the below at Ms. Snarker's blog, but I thought I would repeat this here.
I'd heard about Lara Logan before, and ADORED her piece on the Daily Show, particularly because she had the gonads to call out the US press' coverage of the Iraq War for the fellating of Bush it was.
And yes, almost immediately the right-wing political blogs set about attacking and discrediting her, seemingly for the temerity of being a beautiful woman that had the audacity not to be interested in them. If they couldn't have her, they'd destroy her and make sure no one could have her!
And, of course, slowly that treatment made its way into the mainstream media. And yes, this has everything to do with the fact that a beautiful woman is a HUGE threat to the patriarchal establishment when she is accomplished, intelligent, very competent and assertive. And, not to mention, doesn't apologise and pretend that she's supposed to be ashamed of having a strong, independent and enjoyable sex-life.
A man simply would not be treated like this.
I honestly wish we had more women (heck, more PEOPLE) like Ms. Logan, maybe then we wouldn't be in the mess we are.
There's nothing wrong with having a thoroughly enjoyable sex-life with as many partners as one wants, so long as one is honest, responsible, and safe. AND such should have nothing to do with how excellent a reporter one is. Unfortunately, there's people out there like those that write articles like the one by Kurtz.
Excellent piece Ms. Snarker.
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http://kiwi-grrl.livejournal.com/
I agree
I absolutely agree whole-heartedly with this entire posting. You hit the hammer on the nail with every line.
I'll admit i have never heard of Lara Logan before, but after watching her interview with Jon Stewart i'm going to start paying attention. She seems very intelligent and i do enjoy getting the news from a woman.
My brother is in the navy and he has told me that he feels like the nation doesn't give a shit about the soldiers. They are more concerned with the latest celebrity trends. I commend Ms. Logan for bringing to light the dark things in the world.
Very good piece Ms. Snarker.
Great story
Bravo, Snarker!
I enjoyed this piece a lot, it was insightful and just witty enough. Lara Logan is absolutely right. And beautiful. The news in the US is effin' ridiculous. And not beautiful. As an American living abroad, the video footage and photos we see on the news in Europe alone are enough to make ANYONE think twice about what's going on in Afghanistan and Iraq.
As hard as it is to watch, to stomach the horrific images and sounds, it humanizes things and makes it all seem less black and white. I suppose censorship here is much looser than in the US. The wars the US is fighting are complicated, any which way you look at them. But if we only rely on mainstream television (Fox, NBC, ABC, etc) to get our news, we're going to become so desensitized that this war is going to seem less and less urgent and is going to get pushed further and further back in our minds.This is REAL. The lives lost are REAL. The money is REAL.
As for Logan, I'm glad she seems to have taken the high road and continues to do her job with gusto and courage. Can't blame the girl for being beautiful! She's proven herself as a tough journalist, dedicated to her craft, and she should be respected for that.
Thanks
thanks for the post
Thanks for the post. I hadn't heard about her before (don't watch CBS that much,) so thanks for bringing it to our attention. I think it's pathetic how the powers that be stoop to this kind of garbage when a strong woman shows them that she has more courage than they ever will. GROW SOME BALLS!
Oh, and not to criticize you, Ms. Snarker, but don't ever call Bill O'Reilly a newscaster or a reporter. He does nothing of the sort. Comparing him with Logan is like comparing apples and a big bottle of poison that destroys brain cells just by looking at it.
O'Really
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Why I Don't Sleep Much: Dorothy Surrenders
I don't think this is any
I don't think this is any different than the men. If the men had separate personal and professional lives then we would have never heard of their "indiscretions".
There's no gender inequality here. This is how the media is used to play dirty. Nobody is safe. IF you take it out of your pants on a rainy day, everybody's gonna hear about it.
The media is about ratings A.K.A money. The media will do whatever it takes or 'report' on whatever it needs to in order to get ratings.
The Iraq war doesn't get ratings because everyone wants to avoid the truth of war. No one shows dead bodies because the public doesn't want to see it. Terrorist and insurgents are not supposed to be human. To see them and their families dead in the streets makes them human and nobody wants that.
But Michael Jackson molesting kids, Britney Spears being a complete hot mess. And Logan's illegitimate child...That sells. Scandal sells.
Everybody's got skeletons in the closet and that's how politician's keep the media in line. This administration has ruined the careers of journalists (Dan Rather anyone). Hopefully, she will keep her promotion and not end up resigning.
This is what American politics and American media is all about. Smoke screens and propoganda. The media is the quintessential reality TV.
Wait, wait, wait ...
I'm confused ... I thought *WE* were a slap in the face to those who believe in marriage?
*sigh* will they ever make up their mind?
We are shaped and fashioned by what we love...
lolz
sad
i was sad when i heard the whole affair story because it works to discredit her. i did see her on the daily show and she's a GREAT journalist. but now she'll be forever discredited; i know that now everytime i see her, this story is what i think of. with time though i think that it will go away, if they give her the chance.
our media is so ridiculous; it's all about catering to interests and creating drama while not "offending" anyone. the media creates the news, it doesn't report the news. bbc world news is the closest thing i get on my tv that actually talks about the world and has important stories. cnn, fox, msnbc - it's all just clinton and obama drama.
— I couldn't possibly get
— I couldn't possibly get my news from an unwed mother who was living in sin.
LOL! Yes, I can only get my news from straight, married, middle aged white men who probably have 3 mistresses on the side.
Love Lara Logan...
is that too many L words? Anyway, I have seen Lara on the CBS Evening News reporting from Iraq or Afghanistan many times, and being a former military journalist myself, applaud her courage, guts, and reportage style.
As for sleeping with a married man, it is well known that when under the stress of war, all kinds of relationships happen. If Lara was a housewife in New Jersey and had an affair with a married man, no one would notice or care. If she chooses to relieve her war stress by sleeping around, well, who cares? How many men do the same thing?
wow
just. wow.
thank you so much for introducing me to this fantastic woman. people make personal mistakes, but that doesn't lessen the necessity of what they do in situations like this. it's just the patriarchy rearing its ugly head when a woman is challenging its power to commit all sorts of evils on the rest of the world.
she is utterly amazing and i am still stunned by the quiet power of what she had to say about us losing our humanity.
another GREAT video of lara logan:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=6I420_fPM2E
articulate, passionate, informed, and takes no shit. no wonder the right wants to take her down.
we're behind you lara! *thumbs up*
Well-written Dorothy!
I've been watching Lara for years covering this godforsaken war, and have been amazed by the amount of bravery and talent she has in reporting. While I've taken notice of her looks, Lara's reporting overpowers that by miles!
It's sad to see that, in a world where Bill O'Reilly's sexual harassment of a female producer is scarcely covered by the news media, someone still brings up the old "madonna/whore complex". *sigh*
Thank you for this.
Smart, passionate, obviously a really good journalist, sarcastic, witty. And there's a quiet intensity about her that just... wow.
Considering the seriousness of the subject (and of her job) and her credentials, boggles the mind that what the public really cares about is who she's fucking. Real news about the wars vs. affair with married man. Just what the hell is wrong with people?
Heee. Oh, this cracks me up. Except it's probably true for a lot of people. Kinda makes me wanna go headdesk-y at the same time :\
Lara Logan is amazing
I think I've found a reporter I'm actually going to be listening to.
She's extremely eloquent and passionate about the war and the media. She is what reporters are supposed to be.
Look at this interview she did with Good magazine:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK5WIjWXTbU&NR=1
She was so frank and honest she left the interviewer speechless. Damn =)
This story just blows my