I have seen more descriptions of life in Gaza in the past two weeks than I have seen in the media in the last 17 years of Israel’s blockade.
I’ve seen more Israelis, speaking out against occupation and war, than I’ve seen, just about, ever.
If journalists are capable of finding those speakers now, even under bombardment, even in the heat of a loved-one’s loss – where have those people been in our media’s reporting all this time?
In an interview recorded just after the October 7 attacks by Hamas, I speak with independent journalist and activist, Sonali Kolhatkar, about her new partnership with the solutions-focussed YES! Magazine. A co-founder of the Afghan Women’s Mission, I made a point of asking Kolhatkar how Afghanistan was faring after being hit by a series of earthquakes that have received next to no attention in US media. They are suffering.
People in journalism like to say that what bleeds leads, but not all bloodshed gets equal treatment. More to the point, even if one accepts that what bleeds leads, what follows? If blood is the only currency that is effective in our attention economy, how do we expect, ever, to break the cycle of blood-letting?
Can we do better? I believe we can. Sonali and YES! are part of that effort.
The world is full of everyday heroes who are studying the root causes of our conflicts, working to dismantle systems of discrimination, exploitation and oppression, and doing their best to build societies based on peace with equity and justice. Those heroes are out there. We need to give them airtime — and not just when blood is flowing.
We’ll keep at it. Thank you for staying with us.
Stay kind, stay curious,
Laura Flanders
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