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Since we're taking about privilege. Many moons ago at job interview, a legendary editor with a worthy journalist daughter who everyone celebrates, I was asked, "what do your parents do?" He was unimpressed with my answer. I was 23, I wanted to change the world. "Anyone in media?"
I said no. I was from a lower middle class family. First generation journalist. I got the job. But I learnt to notice who the imp people around my age or slightly older were. I was learning the ropes of midnight SI Press while ppl close to my age were on plum reporting beat
They spoke of midnight visitors - famous poets, theatre artists. We were learning to unwrite middle school English & unlearn "ki" as punctuation. They were "sharing a drink with dad." Homes with teak bookshelves. Reading was curated by intellectual upper class working parents.
I realised that intellectual, social and class capital of second and third generations of journalists is something we'll never compete with. It refinement the rest of us will acquire over years of hard work and still many doors will be closed to us. Do something -
Google the names of all truly well known journalists today. Those you hear as household names. They are brilliant, I'm not denying it. But brilliance is also a combination of right opportunity + practice + privilege + experience capital of parents and their intimate social circle
Many of these journalists are doing phenomenal things bec they're actually good. But almost all of them are product of stunning privilege. The doors that opened for them as young reporters. When you can call a newspaper's managing editor "uncle" at work, where is the struggle?
May I end this by saying that if as middle-aged editors (personally witnessed twice, man + woman, many others did too) you have to scream at trembling interns over the phone, "how dare you not recognise my voice," & "do you know who you're speaking to?" your career is a waste.
