Celebrating I.F. Stone's Birthday

I.F. Stone's 100th birthday comes at what feels like a real low point in terms of the iconoclastic, independent journalism with which Stone is so unmistakably identified.

So it's particularly appropriate that the observations of Stone's birthday aren't just fond looks back at the rebel journalist's storied career; they have a strong focus on strengthening and encouraging independent journalism going forward.

There's a birthday party and panel discussion next week at NYU (you're all invited); a new ifstone.org Web site about Stone launched by his son, Jeremy Stone (come visit); and -- most significantly -- a new I.F. Stone Medal established by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University and its Watchdog Project, where I am deputy editor.

The I.F. Stone Medal will be presented annually to a journalist whose watchdog work captures the spirit of independence, integrity, courage and indefatigability that characterized I.F. Stone's Weekly. The medal ceremony will be more than just a party: Each year, the winner will talk about his or her own work, after which a distinguished panel will try to identify some practical lessons from the award winner's experience.

Stone believed that strong dissenting voices are crucial to keeping the United States true to its democratic ideals. As Bob Giles, curator of the Nieman Foundation, writes in his announcement of the new medal: "It is this spirit of independent thinking that challenges punditry and conventional wisdom that we wish to honor. The press, as an independent bedrock of our democracy, and the freedom of journalists to stand alone and apart from mainstream ideas and political currents are under great stress. Today, Izzy Stone serves as a model of the resolute, provocative journalist who worked against injustice and inequity, and loathed pomposity and false posturing, often at personal cost."

Our industry right now is suffering from a grave lack of independence, manifested in self-censorship and timidity. The pressures are clear. The increasing corporate ownership of newspaper and television stations has literally undermined our independence and in too many newsrooms is making us more responsive to our stockholders than to our readers. It threatens to make our newsrooms faceless and interchangeable, and to make journalism the voice of the powerful. There's also the rise of television punditry, which rewards glibness and balance over sincerity and authoritative analysis. And there's the fearful triangulation and what Jay Rosen so aptly calls misguided contrarianism that seems to have replaced independence and speaking truth to power as the guiding principles of political reportage.

I.F. Stone is rightfully a hero to those of us who value independent journalism. Most significantly to me, Stone never squelched his voice -- an informed voice, full of outrage and born of an unconcealed devotion to fair play, civil rights, civil liberty, free speech, truth in government, and peace on earth. These are the same nonpartisan, humanist values that have fueled our discipline's best work throughout history.

And as it happens, our industry is ripe for a revival in which we proudly express our journalistic passions. As I've written elsewhere - for instance, in a book review of Myra MacPherson's excellent I.F. Stone biography, "All Governments Lie!" and in a Watchdog Blog post on calling bullshit - the Internet and Jon Stewart are providing us with a daily lesson in how deeply the public values passionate truth-telling.

So the occasion of I.F. Stone's 100th birthday provides the perfect opportunity for us to focus on the need for journalists to be independent from inappropriate economic, political and personal pressures -- and for us to celebrate those who live by the principles Stone embodied.

Comments

[anotherbozo]

"Iconoclastic, independent journalism:" I daresay I.F. Stone would have been pleased with Huff Post and internet blogging phenomenon generally. It is this, not corporate print journalism, that can resuscitate the free press in our society, just as the internet has propelled a certain Illinois senator to the front of the Democratic pack.

[3fingerbrown]

My favorite writing by Stone is a book called "The Trial of Socrates," which challenges academia's conventional presentation of the great philosopher's life and death. A very entertaining and intellectually brave book. Here's a link to an interview he gave on the subject: http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/socrates/ifstoneinterview.html

[VicPerry]

Thanks for that link. I love that book too.

[CatfishJohn]

I had the pleasure of hearing I.F. Stone speak at my college graduation ( Binghamton University) about the need for iconoclasm and fearless truthtelling in journalism. Juxtapose that to the media's spineless acquiescence to bushco's lie machine leading to war and complicit journalism of the once respectable NY times ( judith miller) in rubber stamping the bushco. WMD lies. How pertinent his words were and still are. During the speech at my graduation , i vividly recall the long island princess mom's and wall st dads in attendance started booing him openly as if it was some kind of outrage that this man was out of line, despite the fact that Binghamton U. at the time was an extremely left leaning campus with a lot of students who would in time be involved in progressive career causes. his speech left an indelible memory, although i truly wonder if today colleges are more inclined to invite American Idol/MTV celebrities to speak rather than serious intellectual mavericks....

[MichaelDeane]

My dad was an IF Stone type journalist AND I'm happy to say, a friend of Izzy Stone. As a kid I remember reading the newsletter which arrived in our house. And I can happily remember answering the phone when the great man called my father. I also have one of IF Stone's books dedicated to my dad which I treasure.

I went to journalism school. No one ever mentioned his name and reacted with indifference when I mentioned it (their heroes were Bob Woodward and the like). Maybe it was that moment that I decided to get out of journalism, I'm not sure but I knew the industry was clueless.

So I am not surprised to know that many people have no clue who this heroic man was. I do. And I'm glad others do too!

[MountainMuscle]

If anybody reading this is not already familiar with Dan Froomkin, his fascinating daily column at the Washington Post website is required reading for anyone who wants keep a sharp look-out at what's really going on inside the "W"hite House. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/linkset/2005/04/11/LI2005041100879.html

[JS]

Perhaps it's also time to make some noise and get "I. F. Stone's Weekly" - the movie re-released. It was made in 1973 and I remember it to be a very enlightening film.

JS

[Scarabus]

Recommendation for those who aren't aware of it....

Scott Johnson wrote a work titled "Soliloquy," which features the recorded voice of I.F. Stone in a passionate plea for reason and common sense. The performance I have was recorded by the Kronos Quartet.

Really good stuff! Warning for rock fans, however: this is the contemporary equivalent of "classical" music. On the other hand, shouldn't we judge the substance rather than the categorical label? And, BTW, the Kronos Quartet have been called the "rock stars" of classical music.

This is a wonderful composition, a wonderful tribute to the power of I.F. Stone's words. Still gives me the shivers and makes we want to pick up a banner and march...or a word processor, to demonstrate the current equivalent of the "pen" to continue conquering the power of the current equivalent of the sword.

[TommyMcCarthy]

I applaud Mr. Froomkin's rememberance of I.F. Stone here, and concur that these are dark days for independent journalism.

I had a prof. in college who never missed a opportunity to assert that a free press was as important to the freedom of the citizenry as an independent judiciary. I've never forgotten that..

Today we still have both, in a manner of speaking, although it's sometimes a toss-up as to which is more corporate controlled.

Froomkin points out correctly that it is not the heavy hand of government censorship that is to be feared so much as the creeping, insiduous, and often unnoticed SELF-censorship that is responsible for the oft-heard lament that consumers have 500+ channels and damn few choices. Never was this so transparently obvoius as during the run-up to, and early prosecution of , the Iraq debacle. Echoes of this journalistic "herd mentality" can often be seen in the coverage (or LACK thereof) of the current Presidential campaign.

"PurpleGirl" has it about right.....if it weren't for PBS I'd throw my television away.

Some say it will only get worse, and some that the rennisance is just around the corner......time will tell.

Thank god for the Internet....which is simultaneously our modern counterpart to the "soapbox in Hyde park" and the single-broadsheet printing presses of the early American republic.

Hopefully we can, collectively, continue to scrape together enough sheckels to fund a free, secular, public education so that succeeding generations know NOT just how to operate the equipment,...... but how to sort the wheat from the chaff,as it were,..... while they navigate the wild and woolly new frontier of "user-generated content"

As an aside,....­congratula­tions to Dan Froomkin for his fine series "White House Watch"..which is entertaining reading for political junkies like me. Regards...­..........­..........­..........­..........­..........­.........t­m

[ajm]

I.F. Stone was still on the scene when I was in college in the 1980s (which is starting to sound like a LONG time ago). The number of times his name was mentioned in my four years of j-school? Zero. A pity.

[Scarabus]

I'm sure you're aware of Scott Johnson's wonderful composition Soliloquy, which feature the recorded voice of I.F. Stone; but other readers might not know it. I have the performance by Kronos Quartet on their album Short Stories. (Warning! This is contemporary "classical" music, folks. Still, the Kronos Quartet have been called the "rock stars" of classical music.)

[Purple Girl]

My view is that only PBS stations are worth watching anymore. Go Independent. We'll follow- we've ahd enough of the screaming , Lunacy and Voyuerism we can stand. I've found myself even turning off Keith (Not jsut because I'm a bit P.O.'ed at MSNBC' Debates')- but he's failing to make the obvious connection, and when he gets close to saying something about the obvious Corp conspirators he does not. FOX is easy, so is BillO & Rush. go Farther- sink your teeth in a bit deeper.
You all know as well as we do- there is evidence of High Crimes and Accomplices protecting them. Do the Voodoo taht You Do So Well! Hunt these asssholes down like Britney Spear, or Lindsay or Buffy or what ever blonde infantile 'starlet' you are currrently hounding.
The media has placed it allegience with the wrong side. they will throw you under the bus to save their asses. We may reward you for your Patriotism with increase Sales and Market shares.

[TommyMcCarthy]

Hear, Hear. The most important contribution I make to our democracy is a few bucks annually to the local PBS affiliate. I get more "Bang-for-the-Buck from that than I would from 5 years worth of zillion-channel full monty cable.....­..........­..........­..........­..........­..........­..........­..........­..........­tm