Jackson Jambalaya

While looking for a good Jazz article to post, I discovered this passage by Nat Hentoff:

"I write a weekly column on civil liberties, international human rights and other endangered species for the United Media Newspaper Syndicate. The column reaches about 250 papers. Not all run it every week, but many do. In those papers I see, jazz does not appear to be covered regularly, if at all.
But in one of them, the Port Folio Weekly in Virginia Beach, Va.—among its lively reporting and commentary on local and national politics and the arts—there is jazz reportage, about the area and beyond. In a recent "Editor's Notebook,"
Editor in Chief Tom Robotham wrote: "Jazz, needless to say, does not have mass appeal, and if I were to choose stories based solely on what we think large numbers of readers 'want,' jazz stories would never see the light of day."
This attitude by a newspaper editor is becoming less frequent. "It's always been my belief that a good publication doesn't simply give readers what they want," Robotham wrote. "It brings readers into new worlds. It says, in essence, listen: You may know nothing about this subject; you may even find it distasteful. But it's full of light and wonder—and if you open yourself up to it, you may add a whole new dimension to your life."
By contrast, a good many daily, and even some weekly, editors are interpreting a fairly recent journalism philosophy—community journalism—to mean that editors should go out into the community, find out what readers want and give it to them. That's why you'll find little of the horrors suffered by citizens in Zimbabwe, Sudan or Tibet being reported in most American papers. Those dictators get a pass. And for that matter, how many Americans know, in depth, the significance to their own lives of key United States government decisions?
But to Tom Robotham, jazz, while not thriving according to jazz record sales, is something his readers ought to know about. Jazz may, he notes, be getting "scant media coverage elsewhere…but somehow I can't bring myself to give up on a musical genre that expresses so many nuances of the human spirit. When I listen to the best active jazz artists—to Jacky Terrasson, Ravi Coltrane, Joe Lovano, Dave Holland, Roy Hargrove, Terence Blanchard, Jason Moran, Cyrus Chestnut, David Murray, Jane Ira Bloom and others—I always ask myself: 'How can anyone not love this stuff?'" ...."
http://www.jazztimes.com/columns_and_features/final_chorus/index.cfm?id=30

There are many thoughts that come to mind when I read his quote about how newspapers should not just give people what they want, but try to bring readers into new worlds. I would have said that newspapers try to give people what they think they want. I could shred The Clarion-Ledger with that philosophy as it publishes restaurant reviews written by the owners themselves, eschews book reviews, changes the editorial pages from a collection of writings by nationally respected columnists to a primarily "talk-back" focus that is really just a fancy named for Bubba's barroom bullshit, and so on.

I will not go down that path and focus instead on Robotham's philosophy. His ideas spell out the purpose of this blog. True, I am a jackass to alot of people in my posts. My favorite writer is Voltaire and my favorite philosopher is Nietzsche. I served in the military around people who wore Ranger and Special Forces tabs; guys who were tough, realistic, and had seen real combat. I took classes at Mississippi College School of Law under Professor Page, a true genius who could argue your side better than you, even while opposing you. What does this mean? There are not too many people I actually respect so I feel just fine being the jackass at times.

However, I want this blog to be something more than just taking potshots at everyone. I think newspapers should bring people into new worlds as shown in my jazz posts. Hopefully those posts are written in a way that will encourage people to try jazz. I've inserted a "Book of the Day" feature. Books are rarely discussed in the media anymore. I applaud The Jackson Free Press for including regular coverage on books. How often have we read a good book because someone else pointed it out to us? Sometimes astronomy photos with explanations are posted as this is a subject usually ignored by the media except in case of disaster. I have found it catches people's interest as they wonder about what goes on in the skies above.

Although at times I have scooped the media but this is not really a news blog (I will post scoops when I discover them.). Reporters are so busy covering the story itself that they don't always have time to sit back and connect all the dots, which a few stories here have done. Humorous Youtube clips are posted because lets face it, we don't laugh enough. I've also tried to put together the best list of links for both the Jackson area and the media and blogosphere. Links are added to those lists based on how good and relevant they are, not just because of their philosophy. That is one reason advocacy groups usually are not linked even when I agreed with their ideas.

Iraq and terrorism are covered because these issues will dominate our lives for quite some time and are literally matters of life and death. The websites and stories linked have been from true experts or reporters who are actually in the field, not simply articles written by left- or right-wing rags sitting in air-condictioned officers while sipping bourbon in the ivory tower. Hopefully when you read the posts about Iraq and terrorism, you have learned something, not just had your thoughts validated.

A blog such as this is not bound by the same rules as the media. As it has changed from its beginnings 11 weeks ago, it will continue to grow and change. It is very much like Jazz: changing, improvising, adapting. You may not always like the coverage. However, you might find yourself loving the coverage the day after you were cursing it, even if you were the target.

Jambalaya means that anything and everything can be added, seasoned, and served. There is not an agenda here as there are at some websites or blogs. There are no consitutient groups or political allies to please. I am just as likely to bash a Republican as a Democrat. The only agenda here is that I hate stupidity and don't mind calling it out when I see it. That and trying to give people a different way to look at things even if the tactics I use seem extreme at times. This blog is about pointing out stupidity, having serious discussions, learning new things, and last but certainly not least: having fun. Hopefully it has done the same for the reader as well.