Shirley Sherrod Versus Andrew Breitbart-Another Rosa Parks Moment Perhaps?

Was quite disappointed to hear a professor speaking on MSNBC this morning (7/31/10) saying that Shirley Sherrod may lose her case against Andrew Breitbart and should therefore let it go. I really did not know whether to get extremely upset at the comment or to just catalog it as another professional with clearly no clue of what has happened. I'm still undecided.

The suing of Andrew Breitbart and Fox News for their role in her firing is not about winning or losing the case, even though I think that it may be safe to say if Ms. Sherrod does not feel she would win, she may not even pursue the suit. It's more about finally making everyone aware that there will be a price to pay when you write or report something about another that you have not seriously researched and insured that was true.

This suit would be the "shot heard around the world" that just making things up as you go in order to spark a reaction will garner that reaction but may be not quite the one you had in mind. Regarding Fox News, the lesson would be to check and verify a story before spreading it around as if it was "gospel". All stories should be properly sourced and all comments should be reserved until the final count has been done but in our haste to be the one with the breaking news, we take shortcuts like BP and then wonder why it just exploded in front of us.

Should Ms. Sherrod also go after the USDA, in my opinion yes she should because they had the opportunity to correct this issue before it grew into a scandal but they too choose to verify before assuming. They also refused to listen to both sides of the issue before passing judgment.

Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus and was arrested for it. This incident brought to light brighter than ever the struggle for Civil Rights and America gathered together as one. Shirley Sherrod could bring the same focus on news agencies that report and comment long before they verify their stories. They look for the ones who will get them the biggest audience and the highest ratings not once considering the effect that their reporting will have on the people in the story. This has got to change. Being responsible is the responsibility of everyone especially those who have a captured audience. We owe our children and this nation no less.