Buzz Trexler

Last Sunday, I went to a river baptism connected to my mom’s church, Roan Mountain United Methodist, and penned a column about it. There is also a video, but the date at the end of the video is wrong. It should read Sept. 13, but the video editor and I both missed it until it hit the larger computer screen. We’ve uploaded a corrected version, but for some reason the errant version is showing most of the time. Oh, well. Maybe it’ll straighten out at some point.

Here are short links to the column, photo gallery and video:

Photo gallery of “The Baptism of Rhodyjane”:
http://tr.im/rhodyjane_photos

Video of “The Baptism of Rhodyjane”:
http://bit.ly/rhodyjane

Faith Today column of “The Baptism of Rhodyjane” with links to photos
and video:
http://tr.im/rhodyjane_column

It was an incredible faith experience for me …

In a matter of weeks, scores of bicyclists will begin a 433.7-mile trek from Johnson City to Nashville to bring awareness to the need for “forever families” — families who are willing to adopt children in need.

About 80 cyclists will partake of a kickoff banquet Oct. 4 at the Carnegie Hotel in  Johnson City, departing that town 7 a.m. Oct 5 and traveling about 112 miles before arriving at the Alcoa Muncipal Building around 5 p.m.

Unlike other such rides, the Tennessee Adoption Tour is not a fund-raising event, but the goal is to raise an awareness. “The need for these children is not money — there’s plenty of foundations to help the kids — it’s getting the families to adopt the kids,” said Tour Director Jesse O’Hatnick.

Jim Norwood, of Harmony Adoptions, told Alcoa Kiwanis this week that the tour started five years ago with five riders and no sponsor. Today, there are a host of sponsors and riders are coming from seven other states and they all have a direct connection to adoption, either professionally or personally, Norwood said.

To find out more about the tour and how you can help someone make “A Journey Home,” go to www.adoptiontour.org.

I just read a story by The Associated Press concerning the Supreme Court of the United States hearing arguments in a case involving “Hillary: The Movie.”

Citizens United, a conservative group, wanted to air ads for the anti-Clinton movie and distribute it through video-on-demand services on local cable outlets during the 2008 Democratic primary campaign. However, the story explains that federal courts said the movie sounded like a long campaign ad and needed to be regulated as such.

According to The AP, the movie is filled with criticism about Hillary, including a statement from former Bill Clinton advisor Dick Morris saying she is “the closest thing we have in America to a European socialist.”

My first thought was this: What’s the difference between the anti-Clinton “Hillary: The Movie” and “Fahrenheit 9/11,” Michael Moore’s anti-Bush rant that was released in the middle of the 2004 presidential campaign? Well, the apparent difference is that campaign finance regulations do not apply to DVDs, theaters or the Internet. In those battlefields, the Red and Blue teams can spend away in the war for the minds of the voting public.

The conservative group was not allowed to broadcast TV ads for the movie, but it did get its message out by advertising on the Web, selling the DVD and showing the movie in a few theaters. Michael Moore gets his message out the same way.

I’ve never watched any of Moore’s movies and his garish Web site turns me off as soon as the page paints. The titles and related synopses leave me pleading, “Give me a break, Mikey.”

Sadly, the poor conservatives can’t get their own break. Truth is, they haven’t got a fighting chance when it comes to rolling out digital dollars and cash-cow celluloid pushers.

The Supreme Court of the United States could wipe away limits on spending by corporations and labor unions, but it’s way too late for a high court opinion to make any difference for the original intent of “Hillary: The Movie.”

Of course, Mrs. Clinton’s not the president, but she is the Secretary of State.

America’s fighting wars on the other side of the world, but there’s a continuing war here in Blount County that is sometimes ignored: The war on the home front that we call domestic violence.

Joani Shaver, executive director at Haven House, which serves victims of domestic violence, recently told Alcoa Kiwanis Club, “We’re seeing a horrendous rise because of the economy, but that’s no excuse.”

She explained that domestic abuse comes in many ways, not just physical. It includes emotional, psychological, economic and even spiritual. Each form leaves a devastating impact.

“Abuse is a very private crime, and most people don’t realize it’s going on,” Shaver said.

Haven House suffered a fire earlier this summer and is still in need of financial help to make repairs. According to its Web site, the shelter has raised only a fraction of the money needed to repair its gutted kitchen.

The 30-day shelter currently has 32 beds. “Our capacity is really limited,” she said, explaining that staffing is also an issue. “The problem is each one of those people … has a care plan, each has a safety plan.” With a staff of three, that can be a tough task.

But sheltering abuse victims and their children is not the only service Haven House provides. There are volunteer court advocates, transportation, and prevention programs as well.

Haven House is funded through federal grants, the ALCOA Foundation, Blount County government and United Way of Blount County, the latter of which she calls “our life blood.” Needless to say, the organization can use more help.

This is a topic very close to my heart, because my family has been caught in the web of domestic violence.

In the late 1960s, my mother, sister and I were victims in Florida during a time when law enforcement officers did not answer domestic violence calls. There was no place to turn. It was a remembrance of that battle which led me to become involved with Blount County’s Domestic Violence Task force in the 1990s, which also led to the establishment of a domestic violence unit. In March 2000, my 20-year-old niece was killed in a domestic violence incident in Richmond, Va., leaving a young child behind. It just goes to show that this war has no boundaries and has multiple levels of victimization.

A common epitaph on war memorials is along the lines of “lest we forget.” This need to remember that we have an ongoing war in Blount County is one of the reasons that we, as the newspaper of record in Blount County, publish domestic violence reports in Blount Records. Another reason: It’s common knowledge that one of the most dangerous calls to answer as a public safety officer is one involving domestic violence.

There’s no question that this is a war worth funding. As one lyricist wrote, “War is hell on the home front, too …”

Donna and I have a habit of watching NBC’s “Today Show” with our morning coffee. Believe me, I’m well aware of its conservative talk show reputation as “The Obama Network.”

Is it deserved? Maybe, maybe not; however, recently I couldn’t help but watch Matt Lauer smirk following an interview with conservative columnist Michelle Malkin. (Did he roll his eyes? Check out the clip on YouTube.) Malkin’s got a new book out with the incredible title of “Culture of Corruption: Obama and His Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks, and Cronies.” Lauer does a good job of peppering her with questions, but Malkin pretty much held her own.

But this brings up the whole question of bias in the media. Anyone with a mustard seed of intellect can tell you Fox is on the Right; CNN has the reputation of being on the Left; and other network news programs can leave you wondering “Who’s on First, What’s on Second, and Where’s Third?”

Truth be told, most viewers/readers have their own inherent biases and filters that they use (either consciously or subconsciously) when consuming news and information. Subsequently, they will assign bias — most often against their own viewpoint — whether it is reality or mere perception.

All of this brings to mind a University of Tennessee roundtable on the media and health care that I was asked to participate in sometime during the early 1990s. To the best of my recollection, other media representatives included a reporter from a major metropolitan daily and a young man from a mid- to large-size Tennessee newspaper. The conversation went something like this:

Health care worker: “We need your help in getting certain messages out to the public.”

Tennessee reporter: “You’re asking us to make the news. It’s our job to report the news, not make it,” the context of which was that to do so would include an element of bias.

At this point, I chime in with something along these lines: “Listen, if you claim that there is absolutely no bias in reporting, then you’re not fooling the readers, you’re only kidding yourself. It is only because we have an element of bias that tells us something is a news story. The challenge is to eliminate that bias and prevent a fair and balanced report.”

I thought I was standing alone when the reporter from the major metropolitan daily stood up — he was the size of a linebacker — and said this: “We know that every policymaker in the nation reads our newspaper every day. And when I walk down the streets of New York and see children with bloated bellies like they’re in some Third World country, it makes me want to do something. And you don’t change policy with one story. You change policy with one story, then another, and then another, until somebody does something.”

There was this sense that Diogenes had just found an honest journalist, for here was a reporter who was unabashedly practicing advocacy journalism. He was letting his bias loose upon the readers in hopes of effecting change and made no apologies for doing so — and that’s the difference. Journalists who obviously come at a subject from a particular point of view, but maintain they are being unbiased in their approach, are not fooling readers or viewers.  They only add to a growing general distrust of journalists.

When it comes to media bias, professionally trained journalists know that we all have biases. And since bias is the enemy to true journalism, the task is to recognize that bias and struggle to present the balanced report.

All we can do is run the good race — and we do.

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In watching the Michael Jackson memorial event today, I found myself torn between two vocations: There was the newsroom cynicism that looked at motives and celebrity production, and then there was the desire as a pastor to see family and friends make their way through what can be a difficult ritual — likely doubly so for a family caught in the midst of stardom.

The memorial event sometimes had the feel of a celebration of Michael’s life, sometimes it had the feel of just another pop variety show, but there were also some poignant moments that gave a sense of normalcy:

• Michael’s daughter, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson standing before the throng and proclaiming, “I just want to say ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you can ever imagine. And I just wanted to say I love him so much.” She then fell into the arms of her aunt, Janet Jackson. It’s a clip that is playing over and over on CNN in the background as I write this post.
• Brooke Shields sharing how she and Michael were friends who bonded through the common life of child stardom. “We had a bond and maybe it was because we both understood what it was like to be in the spotlight from a very, very young age. I used to tease him and say, ‘I started when I was 11 months old. You’re a slacker. You were like 5?’ Both of us needed to be adults very early, but when we were together, we were two little kids having fun.”
• Motown legend Smokey Robinson expressing the same sort of sentiment that an elder experiences when a younger friend or family member dies: “You don’t think you’ll live to see them gone.”

Those are the moments and memories that are common to humanity as we move through the rituals of a loved one’s passing: Grief, remembrances, and shock. Still, in the swarm of celebrity and pop culture hoopla, I continued to wait for one particular moment, growing more and cynical — and then it came, from Bernice King, daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:

“My prayer is that no one and nothing, public or private, fact or fiction, true or rumored, will separate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus,” King said. “Because ultimately at the end of the day it is only God’s love that will anchor you, sustain you, and move you to a higher ground, far above the noise of life. There you will find the peace, comfort and joy to move forward and advance Michael’s legacy.”

She later added, “Michael’s life and work was inspired by the love of God.”

Earlier, I believe, Stevie Wonder shared, “This is a moment that I wish that I didn’t live to see come. But as much as I can say that and mean it, I do know that God is good and I do know that as much as we may feel — and we do — that we need Michael here with us, God must have needed him far more.”

Not certain about the theology that God needs someone more than we do and thus decides to end their life here on earth, but it was good that God got a shout out, so to speak.

It was a long memorial event, and I may have missed other references to the Giver of Life and the Giver of Gifts, and thus the One who gave us the gift of Michael Jackson’s talent. But with an audience of millions, the pastor in me sought more in terms of comfort, assurance, and the love of God for the children and family.

I was still cynically stewing about this when we were in the News budget meeting discussing coverage for the next day’s print edition when I was reminded that the family had a private memorial service before the Staples Center spectacle. And then it hit me: That’s exactly where it belonged.

Michael’s mother, Katherine Jackson, has guardianship over his children. It is said that she is a woman of faith, and perhaps with that in mind, and knowing the entertainment spectacle that would follow, she placed the service of faith in the forefront.

Once again, I am humbled by the revelation that things are not always what they appear in this world, whether in the spiritual or the secular realm.

Whatever one thinks of the spectacle that is currently under way in Los Angeles, the media coverage of Michael Jackson’s funeral seems unprecedented in this digital age.

The Associated Press is providing a raw, live video feed that can be accessed by our readers using this short URL.

Interestingly enough, when there is no other voiceover, you can hear the cameraman’s comments. There is the occasional “Oh, God,” as well as various other mutterings.

They’ve now switched to the Staples Center in anticipation of the memorial service.

We can’t help but watch it unfold and pray it’s without incident.

It was the week of the Benign, the Bizarre, and the Beautiful.

The superstition in the cult of celebrity is that death comes in threes. This week, it seemed to play out with the deaths of Ed McMahon, Michael Jackson and Farah Fawcett.

McMahon was a fairly benign figure for a celebrity in USAmerica. In my mind’s eye, he can be heard crooning that iconic salutation of “Heeeeeeeere’s Johnny!”  He’s seen sitting on the couch, laughing at Johnny’s jokes, expressing mock shock at one of Carson’s risque cracks — most of which are pretty benign themselves when compared to other contemporary comic comments. Then there was his constant presence as the co-host of Jerry Lewis’ annual Labor Day MDA Telethon — a presence that is to have been only surpassed by Lewis himself.

The benign celebrity died Tuesday at the age of 86.

In contrast to the benign McMahon who remained largely in the background, almost as much as a piece of furniture as the couch he sat upon, Michael Jackson was as obvious as the singular glove that adorned his hand.

Like most 50-plus-year-olds, I remember Michael Jackson long before the days of “Thriller.” In my adolescence, there was “I Want You Back,” ABC,” and “Ben,” the latter of which always seemed a little creepy to me. After all, Ben was a rat, if I recall.

While the Jackson 5 was way too bubble gum for me in 1969 to the early 1970s, Michael and his family always seemed benign enough. Their music was a strain of pop along the lines of The Archies, The Cowsills and 1910 Fruitgum Company.

Still, you have to wonder how stardom affects a 10-year-old boy — particularly in USAmerica where we treat pop stars like little gods. On the other hand, we know how it affects the little gods we make in celebrity culture. Wipe the cobwebs from your mind and the names surface like so many ghosts in a Smoky Mountains cemetery: Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Elvis Presley, Jim Morrison, Brian Jones, Keith Moon. And you don’t have to look very far to see that some celebrities are bent on self-destruction.

Someone with a calculator and a stack of obituaries came to the conclusion that the average lifespan of a rock musician is about 37 years. If true, Michael Jackson beat the odds; however, as he became more and more of a caricature of his own persona, there was a certain sadness about him. To say that he was uncomfortable in his own skin goes beyond racial connotations, for his was an obviously troubled soul.

Over the years, one would wonder what it was that drove him to such bizarre behavior, which if chronicled in detail would likely fill this entire page. While not a psychiatrist — neither in real life, nor on TV — it seems obvious that there was some sort of self-loathing going on inside his head.

If this genius of a musician and entertainer lacked peace in his life, one can only pray that Michael, who died Thursday as he approached 50, finally found the One who accepted and loved him just as he was — not as he wished himself to be.

If Ed McMahon was a benign uncle, and Michael Jackson the bizarre sibling, then certainly Farrah Fawcett was the beautiful cousin. Whether in a toothpaste commercial, or as one of “Charlie’s Angels,” Farrah Fawcett was as beautiful and unapproachable as the infamous 1976 swimsuit poster that adorned many a pubescent boy’s wall. Still, as she sought to escape type-casting as just another pretty face and make her mark as a serious acctress, Fawcett took on the issue of domestic violence and won praise for her role in “The Burning Bed.”

Even though that iconic adolescent poster is forever imprinted on our minds, one can only hope it is Farah Fawcett’s final role in the television documentary “Farrah’s Story”  for which she will truly be remembered. Chronicling her life-and-death struggle with cancer was a courageous and self-giving act for the rest of us. It reminds us of our own mortality, yet it also serves as a testimony that the cult of celebrity can be redeemed for good — a greater good that is always possible, but israrely seen.

The Newsroom occasionally receives an anonymous telephone call alerting us to a grammatical error or misspelling in a story. Sometimes the reader is correct, while other times our usage is proper. This morning, I received one of those anonymous voice mails concerning a headline in Tuesday’s edition that read “Legal fight against Maple Lane Farms takes new tack.”

Now, I’ll confess to taking a second look at the headline when I arrived at work. It’s the veteran copy editor in me that recognizes the need to look up a spelling or usage, even when I believe I know the answer. Taking the time to look up spellings and usage keeps me honest, so I keep two of the three sacred texts of journalism nearby: “Webster’s New World Dictionary” (mine is the college edition) and “The Associated Press Stylebook.” (If you can tell me what I would consider the third sacred text of journalists, I’ll buy you a cup of coffee.)

So it was that even before the phone call, I picked up my copy of Webster’s and discovered that our usage was correct. Among the the first four usages cited in the definition: “a course of action or policy, esp. one differing from another or a preceding course.”

The anonymous caller believed that the word “tact” should have been used; however, none of the definitions provided in Webster for that word would be the correct usage. The primary definitions of that word include “delicate perception of the right thing to say or do without offending; skill in dealing with people.”

Where the confusion between the usage of the word “tact” likely arises is an association with the word “tactic,” or “tactics,” which is defined as “any methods used to gain an end; esp., skillful methods or procedure.” There is a tendency to believe that the shortened form of this word means one such method; however, according to Webster, that would not be the case.

Still, Anonymous Caller, thanks for calling, because it keeps us on our toes.

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