25 Comments for this entry

• 

  schmidtj
  August 31st, 2011 on 4:47 pm

  I had no idea who Soledad O’Brien was before this class. I do not watch TV, and especially not news. It’s too depressing. I did, however, find her a very intelligent, well informed, capable woman. She spoke with such fondness about her family, and talked so freely, I could almost see myself as a part of the family. Her comments on the tsunami in Japan and her fears of hurting her crew by making a bad decision during the aftershocks shows more heart than a lot of investigative journalists have. Her discriptions of Blair Mountain and the arguments over its future were concise and unbiased. Overall a wonderful discussion.
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  charbonsauk
  September 1st, 2011 on 6:59 pm

  Soledad O’Brien was an amazing guest, I felt as if I were in the living room with an old friend just chatting about life and things. Her frankness and openness about her life, family, and experience was refreshing. She is highly educated and intellegent (one does not necessitate the other) She graciously, patiently, and quite emphatically gave advise on how to make successful life and career choices, but gingerly so as to hardly notice. And she would know, a married mother of 4 working a crazy insane schedule and yet made time to join us and humor our intrusive questions while promoting and instilling a humanitarian notion of helping others. I am feeling inspired by this powerful successful lady and can merely say “thank you” to both Soledad O’Brien and Irvin Mayfield for this unique opportunity.
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  Sam
  September 1st, 2011 on 8:36 pm

  Going into Professor Mayfield’s class on Tuesday, August 31, 2011, I had no idea what to expect. I soon learned that he would be interviewing Soledad O’Brien and then the students in the class will have the opportunity to ask Mrs. O’Brien questions. To be honest, I had no idea who Soledad O’Brien was going into this. Now, not only do I know that she is a well-known and well-respected CNN anchor, but I also know a little about her background and her accomplishments. As she spoke about her history, with such emotion, I felt as though I knew exactly what she was talking about. She spoke about how her mother and father were very much discriminated against due to their interracial relationship. As she told stories about her parents being refused service in restaurants and even being spat on, I can feel myself getting angry that someone would have to be a victim of such actions. Her interview was very informative and entertaining, to say the least. She had my emotions going wild. I went from being angry, to sad, to laughing so hard I was crying. One thing she said that I will never forget is, “the concept of role-modeling is very important and very real. When you see someone accomplish it, it makes it easier to accomplish it yourself.” She is point on at saying this and I couldn’t agree more. Overall, I really enjoyed her interview with Professor Mayfield.
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  phenixd
  September 2nd, 2011 on 1:27 pm

  I left class on Tuesday, with a lot of new ideas and had a new outlook from Soledad O’ Brien’s different lifestyle. She seems like she grew up very head strong and independent. Her family being “different” just because her parents were in an interracial relationship seems like a struggle to grow up in, when you live in a 99% white population. She definitely made it seem that there were a lot of obstacles for her and her parents. I feel that from what she said about her brothers and sisters all being successful, that not being like everyone else made them stronger. Like Sam stated, when Soledad made the point of having a good role model in your life, it hit home for me. A lot of times when you see families that have a father that’s a doctor, the daughter will become a dentist, the son becomes a doctor also, and so on. A point I started to ponder on, is what if you don’t have that role model, like her. Do you think it would help to inspire you to find someone that has fulfilled your same dreams or even look up to someone you don’t know? I believe have some type of role model will give you that extra push. Soledad was such a well-spoken, funny, educated lady that really had a lot of self-awareness. She is down to earth and very inviting to helping people. She was very interested in how we got our information about issues around and had a lot of great suggestion of expanding our knowledge of these issues. I enjoyed that interview so much and learn, not only who she was, but that she is a brilliant and inspiring woman that taught me a whole lot in an hour.
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  eilertsent
  September 2nd, 2011 on 11:35 pm

  I got a lot out of the interview with Soledad O’Brien. I thought she was refreshing and down to Earth. I also liked when she mentioned how important role models are and how people lead by example, because I couldn’t agree more. I admire her charitable contributions and how her charity evolved, that was pretty inspiring. I have always wanted to start a foundation, but it seems like it would be difficult and she made it seem so possible. She just started it one day and I admire that. I also like how she owned how much media television she watches and reading she absorbed, I always wondered if I was the only one and it is good to see that I am not! One thing that kind of struck a nerve though was how she spoke about her parents not being allowed to be married. It is crazy to think that society was that warped and not too long ago. It makes me sick. Not a lot of things get to me, but a discrimination infuriates me and to be reminded that it was once a way of society, just astounds me. I like the fact that her parents didn’t let a discriminative society keep them apart and got married any way. I think it is great that spite obstacles her entire family is accomplished. I didn’t read her book, but I could see why she would write one, she definitely has some motivating stories. I will probably actually pick up a copy because I am interested in knowing more.
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  samantha junot
  September 3rd, 2011 on 5:57 pm

  I definitely have to agree with everyone who said that Mrs. O’Brien is very well spoken and down to earth. This, without a doubt, is 100% true. She also seems like the type of person that knows what she wants and goes for it, no matter what comes in her way. Even with 4 children, and her busy career, she still manages to fit in time to write a book and complete several documentaries. Looking at some of the titles of her documentaries, as mentioned in Stephanie’s blog, I know for sure that I will be reading some of them because most seem to have a little to do with an anthropological aspect (one of my minors) of life. I think my favorite part of the interview was the random questions that Professor Mayfield asked her toward the end of the interview. Questions like, what is your favorite/least favorite word, what is your favorite/least favorite sound, and what are the most important/least important news stories now? I believe that the answers to these questions allowed us to get to know Mrs. O’Brien on a different level, which was nice. Like charbonsauk mentions in his blog, it was like sitting in the living room chatting with friends about life. She is most definitely down to earth and I can understand clearly why so many people like her throughout the world. I am now a fan! Thanks so very much to Professor Mayfield for choosing such an amazing woman to come into class and a very special thanks to Mrs. O’Brien for taking the time to come visit us.
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  eilertsent
  September 3rd, 2011 on 7:16 pm

  @Samantha I enjoyed those questions he asked too! They were anything but expected and interesting to hear her answers. I liked how she refused to use the word hate, I guess after seeing so much of it she is sick of it. She was pretty quick with her answers too which I thought was cool, because if I was put on the spot it would have taken me a minute.
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  charbonsauk
  September 3rd, 2011 on 9:25 pm

  I think I just totally nailed my POLI SCI assignment due to the inspiration by Soledad O’Brien toward critical thinking. I agree that role models are important, even the bad ones teach us something. I personally taught my daughter not to drink or smoke or curse, I do way too much of all three. Good role models are better and I plan to use this opportunity as a motivational tool for my time here at UNO. Thanks again to Soledad and Irvin, and everyone that had a hand in making this happen! See you all in class next week, I can hardly wait to see who is next!
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  samantha junot
  September 4th, 2011 on 8:20 am

  @charbonsauk: Sonny told me that Susan Spicer will be in class on Wednesday! She’s one of the most amazing chefs around!!!!

  By the way, I really feel bad for the students who didn’t make it to class for Mrs. O’Brien’s interview. She was the PERFECT guest to bring into class.
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  schmidtj
  September 4th, 2011 on 1:48 pm

  The more i think about the time we spent with Soledad O’Brien, the more I realize how many life lessons she tried to impart to us all. She described the difficulty of being mixed-race in a white neighborhood, and how she always had friends in her family. That tells me that I underappreciate me family sometimes. She told us to read everything, and my goal in life has always been to learn something new everyday. She told us about her interns who are spoiled and think they are entitled to everything, telling me that hard work is how one gets where they want to be, and no one owes me anything. I appreciate the wisdom she imparted and the informal conversation in which she gave it to us.
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  hemphillk
  September 5th, 2011 on 3:51 pm

  From the first day of class, when professor Mayfield announced that we would be interviewing Soledad O’Brien in a week, all I could think was “Oh God, I hope I don’t make a fool of myself!” As a person who admittedly does not keep up with global affairs nearly as much as I should, I was incredibly intimidated by the idea of talking with a real live CNN news anchor (and an award-winning film maker and author to boot!). In the week preceding our discussion with Ms. O’Brien, I tried to gather as much information about her life and work as I could, and in the process ended up learning many new things about her that I never would have taken the time to read up on other wises. For instance, I had no idea that she comes from such a large family (she is one of six siblings, all of whom attended Harvard) or that she herself has four young children, all between the ages of seven and eleven. As much as I have to admire a mom who is able to juggle a career as a traveling journalist with raising four children, what really made me respect Ms. O’Brien was when she admitted that it is sometimes difficult being away from her children so much, and that she regrets having to leave them with babysitters while she is at work. In this day and age, sometimes I feel like the “modern woman” is expected to be an almost super-human hybrid of career, family, and looks, so it was refreshing to meet one of those rare women who is all of the above, but is still able to admit that balancing everything can be a struggle. It was moments like this where Ms. O’Brien’s candid honesty seemed to shine through in a way that was neither self-deprecating, nor annoying humble. For each question, whether it was asked by Mr. Mayfield or by a student, I truly felt I was receiving the most honest answer she could give, in her confident yet down-to-earth manner that made Ms. O’Brien so incredibly likable. More importantly, I learned through our discussion that Ms. O’Brien takes the same honest, unbiased approach when making her documentaries that she did while answering our questions. During our Q & A, I asked her how she kept from found becoming biased during the making of “Battle for Blair Mountain”, a documentary about the struggle between coal miners and environmentalists. Ms. O’Brien answered that she had found valid points on both sides, and that she thought it important to tell the story factually and honestly by presenting an impartial view of the situation. Ironically, she followed this by saying that after the release of the Blair Mountain documentary, she had received hate mail from both the coal miners AND the environmentalists who had seen the film (and were offended), and this was what let her know that she had made a good film. I truly believe that every investigative journalist could learn something from Soledad O’Brien’s straightforward and truth-seeking attitude, and well as her obvious curiosity and need to explore further the world around her.
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  toupsd
  September 5th, 2011 on 9:15 pm

  Walking into class, I had no idea we were going to start any interviews, let alone such a big star on the first week. I had heard of Soledad O’Brien, but knew little about her. I knew she was a newscaster and not much more than that. I had the preconceived notion she was just an average person who could read a teleprompter while looking good doing it. Also being a multiracial female would make it easy to be a newscaster and get into the prestigious Harvard. In the beginning of the interview, fake laughter was heard after everything she said, adding to my suspicion that life was somewhat handed to her. Yet as the interview continued, my thoughts shifted dramatically. She talked about her charities and all the effort that goes into her career. My opinion switched from a hollow parrot, repeating what she was told, to a true philanthropist whose goal was helping humanity all across the world. I realized that it wasn’t the struggles in her life that made her so caring, but it was what she did with her power that helped deal with the struggles of others. She shows the devastation that the tsunami brought to Japan, risking her life and the many crew members she brought along. Unlike many people in her line of work who care merely about ratings, she cares more for the well-being of complete strangers than her own. She also knows the struggles of young black females in America, leading her to start a charity offering scholarships to females to get into college. In my opinion I consider her a philanthropist more than a newswoman. Although I walked in expecting a story about someone with only the ability to simply read well, I walked out with only respect for a great woman of our times.
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  toupsd
  September 5th, 2011 on 9:43 pm

  I’ve never been a fan of mainstream news, especially between Fox News and CNN. I hate how the country is literally divided into two sides: The liberals and conservatives. Each have their own agenda even though they say they are unbiased. You can literally turn on the two channels and hear the same exact story, each with their own spin on it. By the end of the show you have two completely different stories. I expected Mrs. O’Brien to be exactly what her employer, CNN, wants her to be. I thought she would be one dimensional while trying to persuade others to think like she did. Then she made a lasting impression on me, she said the one thing that made me respect her more than anything. She basically said that she often can’t decide which side of a story to pick, and the way she said it proved to me she was being honest. I immediately felt a connection because I feel the same exact way. Constantly questioning how you feel on a topic is, to me, the only way a democracy can truly work, and she knew this. The story about the fight between the miners and the environmentalist, where she couldn’t decide which side to back up, showed me that she had a brain as well as beauty. It is really important to me that anything in politics needs to be really thought out. You can call yourself a Republican or a Democrat but that doesn’t mean you can blindly follow a politician. Soledad O’Brien should be considered one of the great newscasters of our time for her ability to lead with her brain, rather than focusing on how full her wallet is, or just repeating what she is told to say.
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  zach
  September 6th, 2011 on 2:29 pm

  When i walked into class i had no idea what it had in store for me. I knew I would be introduced to many important public figures and i would have to blog about it. That seemed like an interesting class to fill in my break on wednesdays. I knew that Soledad O’Brien would be the first guest in the class and I am fairly familiar with her work. I was a little excited to attend class given that Soledad O’brien is such a prominent figure in news. Once the class started up and the interview with Soledad O’Brien began, I was instantly glued to listening to everything she had to say. Her statement that the concept of role modeling is very realistic and important really stuck out to me. Her story about the struggles in Harvard and how seeing her sister succeed influenced her to strive for the best. Once someone watch someone else succeed, it is a lot easier to see yourself succeed as well. Role modeling is extremely important for people growing up and now I notice its importance thanks to Soledad O’Brien. My girlfriend is a communications major at Southeastern University. And to see how Soledad O’Brien came about being such a prominent figure in news is making me push her to do her best.
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  schmidtj
  September 6th, 2011 on 2:44 pm

  None of the essays in Professor Mayfields book match anything I did last week. All of the essays do, however, say something about my life as a New Orleans native. What person born in this city is not an artist of some kind? And what artist does not put his or her love into their work? Who here has never dressed in elaborate costume, or tried to explain to a tourist at Mardi Gras why we have African-American Indians and what Jocimo Fina Hey means? The rich history of the Mardi Gras Indians, how it is the nod to the heritage of escaped slaves assimilating themselves into their adoptive Native family. The language, although impossible to translate, tells us much of what those men and women faced, leaving their friends, family, life, even language behind. Who from this city doesn’t have a sore spot where exploiting humans is concerned, the way Africans, Germans, Italians and Irishman were exploited in this city until the 1950’s or later. Professor Mayfield completely captures the heritage and the culture and the heart in all New Orleanians.
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  matthewc
  September 6th, 2011 on 2:53 pm

  To be completely honest, I have never heard of Soledad O’Brien. I am not one who watches the news on television for just any reason. I usually only hear about the the news from the radio or from posts on Facebook and sometimes from friends who just want to talk about it. Walking into class on Wednesday was the first time i had even heard of Soledad O’Brien. Once she began to talk about her job I learned a lot about her. I discovered that she is a CNN anchor and an author of a book. She enjoys making documentaries and she does not try to make them one sided but rather she tries to call it like she sees it and present the facts. I liked that how she values the hard worker as appose to the type of person who is use to having everything handed to them and unwilling to start from the bottom. It really hit home with me when she said that. I think there are too many people out there right now who just expect to be handed everything they ever wanted without actually earning it or working for it. Overall i really enjoyed her as a speaker and am really glad i decided to take this elective class.
• 

  zach
  September 6th, 2011 on 2:59 pm

  Soledad O’Brien’s road to where she is today is extremely motivating. It started out in Long Island, NY as the fifth of six children in her family. She enrolled into Harvard Medical and realized that medicine was not her forte. After that she joined a news station as an intern and that was the beginning of her news career. Eventually she would be hired as an production assistant, then writer trainee, then writer. Next, NBC would call her for a job after all the progress she had been making. While she was working for the Weekend Today Show she went back to school to be able to say that she fully competed college. Later she would film a documentary named Blair Mountain, a story about the history of the mountain and the battle today between coal miners for their jobs and environmentalists for the earth. Another interesting story is her interview with Ernest Gaines, an alleged CIA operative who took many of the controversial pictures we see today from the segregation era in the U.S. Does his involvement with the CIA lessen the value of his photographs? Another aspect of Soledad O’Brien’s career that sticks out to me is how she strives to obtain all kinds of information. Whether is be random information or an actual story she is covering for CNN. She says that in order to have the best report you must have information from every angle of the story. My favorite part of Soledad O’Briens interview was when she shared her story about her experience in Japan after the 9.0 earthquake and huge tsunami to follow. I really enjoyed listening to someone explain the situation that was happening there and the absolute chaos that was entailed to it.
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  hendersont
  September 7th, 2011 on 9:45 am

  A woman who is a first generation American, a woman who thought Harvard Medical School was not for her, a Woman who’s career takes her on so many mind blowing adventures: Soledad O’Brien is a down to earth, outstanding person with a story of a life time! Born in Long Island, New York, Soledad O’Brien spoke on the struggles of being a multiracial female in her neighborhood. A woman getting into Harvard at her time was absurd. However, her and all five of her sibling went, including an older sister that look up to. Now, she is known for being one of the most interesting, brilliant anchors of her time. She spoke in the dangers of her journeys to different countries, tackling different storms and meeting amazing, and exciting people. However, her career wasn’t always that exciting. She started off as just a staple remover! Now she is one of CNN’s top anchor. To the world, Soledad O’Brien is known for documenting wonderful stories on the world as we know it and also, being on a very succesful political team at CNN. When I met Soledad O’Brien, I saw her as a mother of four wonderful kids, a wife to an amazing man, and a giver to not only the world, but to young women who are struggling to succeed in higher education. She is just an amazing, fun loving person who has a great sense of style! If you want to get the very cute shoes she had on at the interview, she tweeted me and said they were made by Kenneth Cole and you can get them from Marshall’s for only $25! Soledad O’Brien is a role model for all people! Go to school, take up something you love, make a career out of it, give back to others and look good doing it all!
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  futrellj
  September 7th, 2011 on 1:02 pm

  Soledad O’Brien was an amazing and intimidating first guest for our discourse of New Orleans class, although she turned out to be incredibly down to earth and insightful. Mrs. O’Brien admittedly left Harvard after three years of school because she knew it wasn’t the career she was meant for. Only after such a bold and brave change did she find that she had a love and knack for news media. Through personal determination she quickly moved through the ranks in the local Boston station where she began her career, eventually ending up as an anchor for CNN in 2003. She returned to Harvard while pregnant with her first child not because she needed to, but because in her words, “I am a finisher.” She has succeeded in a tough business by staying informed and being one, or two, or three steps ahead of the rest. Her discerning words on reporting on celebrities stuck with me throughout the week. She noted, as the media around the Kardashian wedding was still buzzing, that if she had donated a few million dollars to a worthy cause along with the forty million dollars she spent on her wedding that her fame could bring some type of positive effect and make her a role model worth watching and following. Soledad has had the ability to see things from around the planet and bring it to the American public in their living rooms while still maintaining a grounded and unbiased view of the world. Mrs. O’Brien truly comprehends the influence she and other people on television can have on the young and old in our country, and she is someone I will happily continue to follow.
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  phenixd
  September 7th, 2011 on 1:35 pm

  I have reflected a lot on the interview by Soledad O’ Brian. From all the blogs above, it is certain that she made a huge influence on a lot of people in different ways. One of the details of her life that stood out to me was how it took her sometime to find what she really wanted to do with her life. All the time, I feel like I am overwhelmed working full time and school full time. But, when I look at her I can’t imagine how crazy her life style is. If Soledad O Brian can keep it together and balance her lifestyle as well as she does, I think I can too. It made me feel silly for feeling like I have a hectic lifestyle. She gave me a lot of reason to get more passionate about what you’re involved in. She was saying how at first she was following her role model, her sister, in medical school. Her sister just got it really easily but, was also very interested and just got it. Mrs. O’Brien realizes that this is not what is for her and falls into something she loves shortly after. From that, I got a feel that I really have to love what I’ m doing to do my best. I’m not going to go far with what I want to be in life, if it’s not something I’m really serious about. I really took a lot out of her interview and I can’t wait to see what Irvin Mayfield has in store for us next class.
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  BeckyR
  September 7th, 2011 on 5:23 pm

  Soledad O’Brien
  By Becky Retz

  Here’s what I would have said on Twitter following Soledad O’Brien’s interview:

  Soledad O’Brien was right about role modeling. It’s much easier to figure out how to do something if you see someone else already doing it.

  Here’s what I would have posted to Facebook:

  Soledad O’Brien’s ideas about role modeling were smart. To paraphrase a popular song of some years back: “If you can see it, you can be it.” One of the great things about our multimedia world is that, unlike a generation ago, you don’t have to rely on finding a role model who lives in your neighborhood, or even your city. The Internet allows access to information about people, their struggles, and their successes all over the world. If you’ve got access to the Web, there’s no longer any excuse for not being able to figure out how make things happen for yourself. And even if you don’t have access to the Internet, you can always resort to the last generation’s Internet. It’s called books.

  Post for Mayfield Blog:

  When Soledad O’Brien talked about role modeling, it reminded me of when my son was little. I used to smoke back then. But I never did it in front of him. I knew I was his role model and I didn’t want him to have in his head the image of me with a cigarette in my mouth. When he was older and the lure of smoking came his way, I didn’t want him to associate it with Mom. It was my job to not be part of making that OK for him to do.
  Then one day when my son wasn’t around, I was somewhere outdoors with friends and we all lit up. There I was minding my own business, enjoying my Virginia Slim menthol, when I noticed this little kid several feet away, watching me. I wasn’t that kid’s mother. But at the time, I was a fit young woman, well dressed and having a good time. To that kid, I may well have looked like somebody who had it together – and my behavior implied smoking was a part of that. I realized the very annoying truth that I wasn’t just a role model for my son. I was a role model for every little kid who I came in contact with. I didn’t smoke in public after that. And I never forgot the concept that the things we do, the behavior we exhibit every moment, tells the world who we are and how we believe people should act.
  Having that knowledge was essential to survival after the storm. People were freaked out. They were panicked. All of which tended to lead to more freaking out and panic. But I knew that just as the role modeling of panic influenced others’ behavior, modeling calm and confidence could do the same thing. So every morning (and sometimes every hour) I took a deep breath, smiled, and remained calm and optimistic. Maybe our houses weren’t gone. Maybe we’d be able to go back home. And if they were gone, then we would embrace the new beginning – just as our role models had. Our Creole ancestors rebuilt this city after it was burned almost completely to the ground twice during colonial times. Our parents and grandparents rebuilt after the devastation of Hurricane Betsy in the 1960s. That’s the great thing about role models. Even in those times when you get tired of being one, all you have to do is look around, or a little ways back, to find a role model of your own to inspire you all over again.
  -30-
• 

  BeckyR
  September 7th, 2011 on 5:28 pm

  Ernest Withers
  By Becky Retz

  Soledad O’Brien’s talk about famed Civil Rights photographer Ernest Withers having simultaneously been an FBI informant interested me. She repeatedly mentioned that the story was remarkable because of how much “access” he had to Civil Rights leaders. As an example of Withers unparalleled access, she spoke of a photograph he took of both Civil Rights and opposition lawyers conferring with a jurist at his bench.

  “To get that shot, he must have been standing behind the judge,” she said.

  This is where the story actually got interesting to me, because his high-level access to Civil Rights leaders would not have enabled him to stand behind a judge on his own bench during proceedings. That kind of access would have to be granted by some kind of civil authority. Now maybe it’s just because I’m from New Orleans, a city that from its very beginnings has always existed on two levels – the official way things are supposed to be and the way they quietly really are – that I got to wondering exactly what was going on with Ernest Withers. Was the government using him or was he using them?

  So, I tracked down the original September 2010 story published in a Memphis newspaper, The Commercial Appeal. The story was derived mainly from old FBI files, which the newspaper staff and some experts they brought in combed through. Now, when a newspaper goes to that much time and expense, they want a big story. They are going to print the most sensational details they can find. Here’s a sampling of the information that Withers turned over to the FBI, according to the story:

  One Civil Rights leader brought cigarettes to jailed radicals. There’s no passed on information about what they discussed and the fact that he had been there would have been in the prison visitors’ log.

  A local preacher apparently bounced a check to the radio station he preached on and had an argument with the station owner about it.

  Withers also apparently told them that another local minister opposed the Vietnam War (along with half the country at the time) and planned to bring in protest leaders. The photographer also supposedly passed along a pro-strike newsletter the minister produced. It was a NEWSletter. That means it was probably being distributed to a lot of people. This doesn’t seem like very “inside” information.

  In fact, none of the above seems like crucial information and none of it gives direct quotes of what the informant said, which means there’s no way to tell how much of the story is conjecture on the part of the handling FBI agent, the person who wrote the report, the newspaper reporter, or the so-called experts who examined the files. It’s just like a game of telephone in which a circle of children pass along a whispered phrase or sentence. By the time it gets to the last person, it is almost never the same words that the first person said. The point is: The reader of the newspaper story is getting at least third- or fourth-hand information, and that has to be taken with a grain of salt.

  The only time informant no. ME 338-R (supposedly Withers) is actually quoted is in connection with the taking of a college campus building by radicals in 1968. Withers, who was the only photographer allowed past the police barricades and inside the building, is quoted as reporting the radicals “definitely had a single-barrel 12-gauge shotgun, a rifle with a telescopic sight, a bayonet, at least one Derringer, and one pistol.” The story goes on to say that that this information was confirmed by another source that same night. Now, if I can get you to pay me to tell you something somebody else is going to tell you anyway, why wouldn’t I? Especially if in return I get access to the scene that no other photographer or reporter is getting. And the information didn’t even lead to anyone going to jail, because the school administration decided not to press charges.

  Some people act like this part-time gig somehow diminishes who Withers was. But they need to keep in mind that he was not a Civil Rights leader. He was a photographer. And guess what – all photographers are spies. That’s what they do. They watch you live your life and record it. Withers wasn’t given access to Civil Rights leaders because he was a trusted confidant. He was seen, as Andrew Young said, “as an important publicity tool because his work often appeared in Jet magazine and other high-profile publications.” These leaders used Withers to further their political agenda. So what if he used them and the FBI to further his agenda? Besides, as Young added, “The movement was transparent and didn’t have anything to hide anyway.”

  So what was Withers’ agenda? The only thing we know for sure is that taking great pictures was important to him. We know this because in order to get those pictures, according to multiple sources including his son Rome, he endured being “harassed, beaten, shot at.” Maybe he took the FBI gig to get a little more access under a little less hazardous conditions. He was also a financially struggling photographer with eight kids. So the money couldn’t have hurt.

  But when I look at the evidence they’ve been able to produce of the level of information he passed along to the FBI, it seems to me that the G-men were the chumps to pay for it. I think he could have made money betting them that he knew where they got their shoes.
  -30-
• 

  schmidtj
  September 15th, 2011 on 5:55 pm

  Thinking of Mrs. O’Brian’s discussion I have to say that she was dead on about having a role model. My parents are my role model. My mother has a BA in english that took her nearly a decade to complete because she was working full time at BellSouth. She finished just as she was about to have her second child, my older brother. My father founded the Ronald McDonald House Childrens Charities of New Orleans. He is still the senior board member, although mostly retired. My Oldest brother survived Acute Lymphacetic Lukemia in 1978, when it had about a 3% survival rate, so he is someone who has shown me that its never OK to give up, and that we can beat the odds. I try to take these lessons with me every day, and I hope they can help someone else.
• 

  rushings
  December 7th, 2011 on 9:19 am

  Prior to this class, I was not aware of Soledad O’Brian’s many successes. I felt privileged to have a well known CNN anchor open up to the class about her background and career. Hailing from Long Island, New York, Mrs. O’Brien grew up in a 99% white neighborhood. She shared how hard it was for the community to accept her parents being that they are an interracial couple. However, this didn’t stop them from continuing their normal lives. After graduating high school, Soledad O’Brian, as well as her other siblings, attended Harvard University’s Medical School. She then realized medical school wasn’t for her and became an intern at a local news station. Being the intelligent, well-spoken person she is today, you would have never guessed the main task of her intern job consisted of removing staples. Later on, Soledad O’Brian received a position as a production assistant, writer trainee, and gradually moved up to a full time writer. While pursuing her new passion, Soledad O’Brian took a break from Harvard and became a full time anchor for CNN news. While pregnant, she later went back to school at the age of 34, to finish pursuing her degree. She said no one cared if she had a degree or not but she pushed herself to finish and “once you see it happen it’s much easier to come to the conclusion that you too can make it.” While juggling being a writer, news anchor, charity founder, Soledad O’Brian is also a married mother of four children.
  Soledad O’ Brian is full of life and an abundance of inspiration. I truly enjoyed being her presence.
• 

  rushings
  December 9th, 2011 on 12:16 pm

  • As life brings on many obstacles, I understood why Soledad O’ Brien took time off from school. People may feel the need to steer away from their first passion to find others. In Soledad’ O Brien’s case, she began as an intern at a local station and progressed into the successful news anchor she is today. Although school is here to help us, I understand how that might have prohibited giving her all to the new job. I had this dilemma a few semesters ago. Dropping out of school was never an option, but I thought taking a break could have made my situation much better. Just like Soledad O’ Brien, I was unsure about what I wanted to do with my life. I then realized that taking a semester or two off would have been a waste of time and huge set back. Unlike Mrs. O’Brien, I didn’t have an internship or any other job besides my current one to fall back on, so decided to stay. When Soledad O’ Brien said she wanted to go back to finish and better herself, it made me appreciate my decision to stay in school. I learned that nothing in life will be handed to you and the harder you work the more opportunities that will come your way.

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