sigma6d

sigma6d t1_j6kua07 wrote

Current Affairs Podcast: Why Are So Many Pedestrians Getting Killed in America? >Angie Schmitt is a transportation writer and planner whose book Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America examines the shocking and disturbing growth in pedestrian deaths on the streets of the United States. After declining for 20 years, pedestrian deaths began climbing drastically again around 2010.

>These gruesome tragedies are preventable—in Europe, deaths are declining rather than increasing—and in Angie's book, she discusses all of the factors contributing to the problem. These include:

>The proliferation of big trucks and SUVs with huge blind spots and killer front ends

>Gentrification pushing poor people into the suburbs, where not having a car means having to walk to work across busy six-lane roads and take your life in your hands

>The lack of any serious US national investment in making our roads safe and laws written by the oil industry (for instance, many state constitutions prohibit using gas tax money to build sidewalks)

>A lack of good public transit

>A culture of "blaming the pedestrian" that sees accidents as a result of walkers' foolishness rather than bad planning

>The fact that the victims of these accidents tend to be poor people, old people, and people of color, whose lives are less valued and who navigate worse infrastructure

>Angie's book is filled with important information about an overlooked crisis. It's a serious issue of racial justice and shows the American class divide at its ugliest: rich people in giant trucks mow down poor people of color who have no choice but to dodge traffic. It's a dystopian tragedy, made all the worst by how avoidable it is. Instead of ensuring that everyone could navigate the built environment safely, America has shifted blame onto victims (as we can see in the concept of "jaywalking," which punishes pedestrians for crossing streets even when there are no crosswalks nearby). Angie lays out why we need to care more about this injustice and how we can address it at relatively little expense.

The Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America

Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America

You wouldn’t download a car

Crash Not Accident >Before the labor movement, factory owners would say "it was an accident" when American workers were injured in unsafe conditions.

>Before the movement to combat drunk driving, intoxicated drivers would say "it was an accident" when they crashed their cars.

>Planes don’t have accidents. They crash. Cranes don’t have accidents. They collapse. And as a society, we expect answers and solutions.

>Traffic crashes are fixable problems, caused by dangerous streets and unsafe drivers. They are not accidents. Let’s stop using the word "accident" today.

Does news coverage of traffic crashes affect perceived blame and preferred solutions? Evidence from an experiment

Biden’s Infrastructure Bill Nixes The Auto Industry Propaganda Term “Car Accident”

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sigma6d t1_j5levdo wrote

Current Affairs Podcast: Why Are So Many Pedestrians Getting Killed in America? >Angie Schmitt is a transportation writer and planner whose book Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America examines the shocking and disturbing growth in pedestrian deaths on the streets of the United States. After declining for 20 years, pedestrian deaths began climbing drastically again around 2010.

>These gruesome tragedies are preventable—in Europe, deaths are declining rather than increasing—and in Angie's book, she discusses all of the factors contributing to the problem. These include:

>The proliferation of big trucks and SUVs with huge blind spots and killer front ends

>Gentrification pushing poor people into the suburbs, where not having a car means having to walk to work across busy six-lane roads and take your life in your hands

>The lack of any serious US national investment in making our roads safe and laws written by the oil industry (for instance, many state constitutions prohibit using gas tax money to build sidewalks)

>A lack of good public transit

>A culture of "blaming the pedestrian" that sees accidents as a result of walkers' foolishness rather than bad planning

>The fact that the victims of these accidents tend to be poor people, old people, and people of color, whose lives are less valued and who navigate worse infrastructure

>Angie's book is filled with important information about an overlooked crisis. It's a serious issue of racial justice and shows the American class divide at its ugliest: rich people in giant trucks mow down poor people of color who have no choice but to dodge traffic. It's a dystopian tragedy, made all the worst by how avoidable it is. Instead of ensuring that everyone could navigate the built environment safely, America has shifted blame onto victims (as we can see in the concept of "jaywalking," which punishes pedestrians for crossing streets even when there are no crosswalks nearby). Angie lays out why we need to care more about this injustice and how we can address it at relatively little expense.

The Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America

Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America

You wouldn’t download a car

Crash Not Accident >Before the labor movement, factory owners would say "it was an accident" when American workers were injured in unsafe conditions.

>Before the movement to combat drunk driving, intoxicated drivers would say "it was an accident" when they crashed their cars.

>Planes don’t have accidents. They crash. Cranes don’t have accidents. They collapse. And as a society, we expect answers and solutions.

>Traffic crashes are fixable problems, caused by dangerous streets and unsafe drivers. They are not accidents. Let’s stop using the word "accident" today.

Does news coverage of traffic crashes affect perceived blame and preferred solutions? Evidence from an experiment

Biden’s Infrastructure Bill Nixes The Auto Industry Propaganda Term “Car Accident”

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sigma6d t1_j054yn8 wrote

A More Perfect Union: Lights. Camera. Crime.

How a Philly-born brand of TV news harmed Black America. >The institution of local broadcast news is a young one, but among the most ubiquitous in the United States. It’s a pair of routines that unfold each night: As Americans gather to wind down their days, the medium has worked to deepen racial tensions and reinforce racial stereotypes about communities of color.

>This format launched in Philadelphia, first with the birth of Eyewitness News in 1965, and then with Action News in 1970. Over the next few generations, the pervasive and seductive twin broadcasts would spread to stations across the country — and with them, negative narratives about neighborhoods that would effectively “other” certain groups based largely on race, class, and zip code.

>More than half a century later, the impact of this efficient and pioneering approach remains, but continues to be condemned as harmful, as critics call for a reimagining of stories that tell a fuller story of communities, one that more accurately captures the humanity and dignity of all who live there.

A More Perfect Union >A special project from The Inquirer examining the roots of systemic racism in America through institutions founded in Philadelphia.

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sigma6d t1_iquo4j3 wrote

Buried by the Times: The Holocaust and America’s Most Important Newspaper > An in-depth look at how The New York Times failed in its coverage of the fate of European Jews from 1939–45. It examines how the decisions that were made at The Times ultimately resulted in the minimizing and misunderstanding of modern history's worst genocide. Laurel Leff, a veteran journalist and professor of journalism, recounts how personal relationships at the newspaper, the assimilationist tendencies of The Times' Jewish owner, and the ethos of mid-century America, all led The Times to consistently downplay news of the Holocaust. It recalls how news of Hitler's 'final solution' was hidden from readers and - because of the newspaper's influence on other media - from America at large. Buried by The Times is required reading for anyone interested in America's response to the Holocaust and for anyone curious about how journalists determine what is newsworthy.

All the News That’s Fit to Print

The Nazi Hydra In America [How America's Right Wing Politicians Are Plunging The Country Into A Fascist Police State]

Hitler’s American Model: The United States and the Making of Nazi Race Law

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